Valve dropped the ball with Counter-Strike

[PeteRoy]

In 2004 Counter-Strike Source came out with Half-Life 2 source engine, a big visual upgrade from the old Half-Life 1 engine.

Counter-Strike Source was probably the most popular online first person shooter, it had modern weapons and 2 game modes, bomb defuse and hostage rescue.

Since Counter-Strike Source (will call it CSS) came out in 2004 we saw Battlefield 2 and Call of Duty 2 in 2005 which were successful and offered a lot more variety in gameplay compared to CSS, then Call of Duty 4 came out in 2007 and took over CSS as the most popular online FPS game.

Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare is in my opinion where Counter-Strike should have been in 2007 had Valve not dropped the ball and continued to develop it, yet in 2007 Counter-Strike was still stuck with old maps, old visuals, old sound and only 2 game modes. COD4 had everything CSS has and more.

It is easy to judge Valve in hindsight, that they dropped the ball on what could have continued to be the most successful online FPS game, today Call of Duty has managed to stay number 1 in popularity since 2007.

Now Valve has announced a new game, Counter-Strike Global Offense which will come out in 2012, after looking at the trailer I think that this game will not signal Counter-Strike comeback, Global Offense is using 2004 Source graphic engine, which in 2011 is already dated, also the art level is sub par for todays standards.

Bottom line is, Counter-Strike is not making a comeback with Global Offense in my opinion, it will need to compete with Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3, it doesn't stand a chance.

Also posted on my blog

 

[AbAbber2k]

More or less agree... though this could have been posted in the other thread.

 

[JSt0rm]

Maybe valvE didn't want to recreate a generic shooter every year?

 

[smackababy]

How does CS have to make a comeback when it is always top 3 on Steam?

 

[JSt0rm]

How does CS have to make a comeback when it is always top 3 on Steam?

Regenerate health of course!

 

[TecHNooB]

since CS is such a tight shooter, they could have gone overboard in the graphics department and still have it run pretty smoothly. With no single player component, this could have been easily doable.

 

[Dumac]

In 2004 Counter-Strike Source came out with Half-Life 2 source engine, a big visual upgrade from the old Half-Life 1 engine.

Counter-Strike Source was probably the most popular online first person shooter, it had modern weapons and 2 game modes, bomb defuse and hostage rescue.

Since Counter-Strike Source (will call it CSS) came out in 2004 we saw Battlefield 2 and Call of Duty 2 in 2005 which were successful and offered a lot more variety in gameplay compared to CSS, then Call of Duty 4 came out in 2007 and took over CSS as the most popular online FPS game.

Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare is in my opinion where Counter-Strike should have been in 2007 had Valve not dropped the ball and continued to develop it, yet in 2007 Counter-Strike was still stuck with old maps, old visuals, old sound and only 2 game modes. COD4 had everything CSS has and more.

It is easy to judge Valve in hindsight, that they dropped the ball on what could have continued to be the most successful online FPS game, today Call of Duty has managed to stay number 1 in popularity since 2007.

Now Valve has announced a new game, Counter-Strike Global Offense which will come out in 2012, after looking at the trailer I think that this game will not signal Counter-Strike comeback, Global Offense is using 2004 Source graphic engine, which in 2011 is already dated, also the art level is sub par for todays standards.

Bottom line is, Counter-Strike is not making a comeback with Global Offense in my opinion, it will need to compete with Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3, it doesn't stand a chance.

Also posted on my blog

Uh..

http://store.steampowered.com/stats/

Current Players Peak Today Game
57,763 69,902 Team Fortress 2
42,624 56,231 Counter-Strike: Source
40,997 55,623 Counter-Strike
17,898 27,901 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - Multiplayer
14,430 19,727 Call of Duty Black Ops - Multiplayer

I don' think so. Looks like TF2 toppled CS, and I don't think valve really cares about that. Not to mention that if you combine CS and CS:S, "Counter-Strike" is still in the lead.

I guess you could argue that a lot of people are playing Cowadoody not on steam, but I doubt Valve cares much about non-Steam gamers.

Not to mention that cowadoody MP is one of the worst FPS multiplayer I've played...

 

[WhipperSnapper]

IMHO, it's really Epic Games who dropped the ball by not releasing a first-rate, polished sequel to the original Unreal Tournament (1999).

 

[sandorski]

Different Game scenarios. COD is a Military based Game, while CS is more a Police/Special Forces based game.

Has Valve dropped the ball? meh, I don't think so. Certainly CSS hasn't changed much over the years, but it still remains extremely popular and it has remained so through many COD/BF games which have come and gone. You can't expect it to be #1 forever, even with changes, but it has remained a top tier Mulitplayer Game by remaining basically as is since CS the Mod. It likely would not have if Valve was constantly changing it. When you got something that works, don't try to fix it.

 

[sandorski]

Uh..

http://store.steampowered.com/stats/

I don' think so. Looks like TF2 toppled CS, and I don't think valve really cares about that. Not to mention that if you combine CS and CS:S, "Counter-Strike" is still in the lead.

I guess you could argue that a lot of people are playing Cowadoody not on steam, but I doubt Valve cares much about non-Steam gamers.

Not to mention that cowadoody MP is one of the worst FPS multiplayer I've played...

At first I was, "WTH is that?", then I was all "lolz".

 

[ivan2]

they sure dropped something, but it aint the ball, it's TF2

 

[Newbian]

Go play on a CS zombie mod server and enjoy the awesomeness.

 

[renz20003]

In 2004 Counter-Strike Source came out with Half-Life 2 source engine, a big visual upgrade from the old Half-Life 1 engine.

Counter-Strike Source was probably the most popular online first person shooter, it had modern weapons and 2 game modes, bomb defuse and hostage rescue.

Since Counter-Strike Source (will call it CSS) came out in 2004 we saw Battlefield 2 and Call of Duty 2 in 2005 which were successful and offered a lot more variety in gameplay compared to CSS, then Call of Duty 4 came out in 2007 and took over CSS as the most popular online FPS game.

Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare is in my opinion where Counter-Strike should have been in 2007 had Valve not dropped the ball and continued to develop it, yet in 2007 Counter-Strike was still stuck with old maps, old visuals, old sound and only 2 game modes. COD4 had everything CSS has and more.

It is easy to judge Valve in hindsight, that they dropped the ball on what could have continued to be the most successful online FPS game, today Call of Duty has managed to stay number 1 in popularity since 2007.

Now Valve has announced a new game, Counter-Strike Global Offense which will come out in 2012, after looking at the trailer I think that this game will not signal Counter-Strike comeback, Global Offense is using 2004 Source graphic engine, which in 2011 is already dated, also the art level is sub par for todays standards.

Bottom line is, Counter-Strike is not making a comeback with Global Offense in my opinion, it will need to compete with Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3, it doesn't stand a chance.

Also posted on my blog

Op how can you make a comeback when you never went away? You compare CS GO to games that are completely unrelated other then they are both FPS.

CS is as much stratagy as it is a shooter, I give two thumbs up for the same gameplay with updated graphics, sometime the same old same old is a good thing!

 

[Ben90]

I bet OP hasn't even heard of #sourceinvite without googling.

 

[evident]

you fucking fail when you compare POS modern warfare which is a noob friendly camp/spam fest to a legit FPS that requires true skill to play.

 

[blackened23]

I gotta agree, CSGO looks mad weak. I don't even want to bother with it unless its completely free, and even then I might not....too many good games like SWTOR, GW2 and tribes ascent coming out.

 

[hdeck]

i think it's safe to say that this thread backfired, lol

 

[Dumac]

I gotta agree, CSGO looks mad weak. I don't even want to bother with it unless its completely free, and even then I might not....too many good games like SWTOR, GW2 and tribes ascent coming out.

If you hate FPS, just say so

None of those games are competitors to CS, and only one is even comparable.

P.S., I hope SWTOR fails.

 

[AbAbber2k]

CS is as much stratagy as it is a shooter, I give two thumbs up for the same gameplay with updated graphics, sometime the same old same old is a good thing!

You're probably just mistaking tactics for strategy, so I'll forgive you for thinking CS is a "Strategic Shooter".

 

[Stringjam]

All of you CS pros need to come play Crysis Wars for awhile....we need more people like you!

Plus, you get the same fast and precise type of gameplay that rewards control and aim skills.....but with a bunch more options (awesome maps, about a dozen different armored vehicles and tanks, choppers, VTOL's, unbeatable graphic quality, superb gunplay mechanics, etc....).

Seriously though, every year the numbers keep going down, and I can't figure out why. This game kills COD in every way, and after every other MP I've played, I keep coming back to it. Before long, nobody is going to be there to play with anymore. :\ The benefit is, the average player skill is very high, VERY few kiddies, and an all-around mature group of players.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

Not too impressed by the trailer but I still would pick the game up. TF2 has more players than CS:S only because it's F2P now. When it was a paid game it was hovering around 20k or so.

 

[paperfist]

...and how old is the CoD graphic engine?

IMHO, it's really Epic Games who dropped the ball by not releasing a first-rate, polished sequel to the original Unreal Tournament (1999).

UT'04 rocked that boat in every way

 

[stahlhart]

IMHO, it's really Epic Games who dropped the ball by not releasing a first-rate, polished sequel to the original Unreal Tournament (1999).

Or Unreal, for that matter.

 

[gorcorps]

We haven't played it yet, so it's hard to say if valve dropped the ball or not. IMO after the CS games went retail and were a Valve product they still very much relied on the modding community to keep them fun. Valve put in a very basic framework that people added on to. I rarely played just vanilla bomb or rescue maps. I played custom maps, or gun game, or sniping only maps, or some other variant that other people put on their servers that had nothing to do with Valve. AFAIC as long as there's still modding tools it can be made fun as long as the community is there. I truly believe that I wouldn't have played CS as much if it never included anything past the default maps and gametypes. The exact same thing is true for this new game it seems.

 

[OVerLoRDI]

Now Valve has announced a new game, Counter-Strike Global Offense which will come out in 2012, after looking at the trailer I think that this game will not signal Counter-Strike comeback, Global Offense is using 2004 Source graphic engine, which in 2011 is already dated, also the art level is sub par for todays standards.

Not entirely true. Yes CS:GO will use the source engine, but the source engine has changed a lot over the years. Yes it does not offer cutting edge graphics, but it definitely delivers passable graphics for the times. Sure better would be nice, but CS:S was never about graphics, it has been able the feel and pace of the game.

IMHO, it's really Epic Games who dropped the ball by not releasing a first-rate, polished sequel to the original Unreal Tournament (1999).

This is true. UT2004 was good, but some of the game modes were too ambitious and not balanced well. My friends and I still break out ut2004 for instagib from time to time. It also played host to some great modes, like the original Alien Swarm.

Certainly CSS hasn't changed much over the years, but it still remains extremely popular and it has remained so through many COD/BF games which have come and gone. You can't expect it to be #1 forever, even with changes, but it has remained a top tier Mulitplayer Game by remaining basically as is since CS the Mod. It likely would not have if Valve was constantly changing it. When you got something that works, don't try to fix it.

CS has always been a fall back game for me. I may spend sometime playing L4D, or other competitive shooters, but I always return to CS for this reason. The players honestly do not want it to change much. When CS:GO was announced I wasn't particularly excited, I was more concerned that they feel that has been so engrained into me will be lost with the next update.

One thing that I was wondering is the trailer said something about cross platform multiplayer? Does that mean us PC gamers get to trash console players till they all ragequit?

Edit: Nevermind, google tells me that it will only be PS3 players and they can use a keyboard and mouse plugged into the console. Will level the playing field a bit, but I still think PC gamers will stomp due to the input lag on most HDTVs and potentially lower fps (30 fps is too slow unless they change the pace of the game) But who knows, I am one of the crazy people who is hyper sensitive to input lag. Still use a CRT for games like CS.