The Complete and Comprehensive Guide to CSGO

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is a team-based first-person shooter that focuses on pitting two teams against each other. These two teams are separated between a defending team and an offensive team. The defenders are called ‘Counter-Terrorists’ and the offensive team is aptly called the ‘Terrorists’.

They have a common goal in eliminating all five of their opponents but there are other ways to win rounds. For the T side, they can win by successfully planting the bomb in either of the two sites and then defending it so it can explode. On the other hand, the CT side will do their best to stop that from happening by defending the sites from their opponents and defusing the bomb when it gets planted. 

CSGO is actually the fourth title in the series. The first CS title was actually a mod from Valve's mega-hit Half-Life. It became so big in the community that Valve took the license and released their own game. The first official release was Counter-Strike back in 2000 and it was followed by Condition Zero in 2004. CZ was not met with fanfare because it was basically the same game as the original with slight modifications.

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Significant change was felt when Counter-Strike: Source was released because that was a brand new game with new design and gameplay. This was actually not met with fanfare because it was a big change from the original. The playstyle was not the same fast-paced game that people were accustomed to which led them to stick with the original 1.6 title. 

However, everything changed in 2012 when Valve released Counter-Strike: Global Offensive or most known as CSGO. It was the game that took the tactical FPS genre into the modern age because it combined the best aspects of 1.6 and Source and made it the optimal title in the series. It was a sign that CS still fits well in the modern era if you knew your audience. 

It has been eight years, but CSGO is still the most popular FPS in PC gaming as well as esports. There are some other titles that have tried to usurp it from the throne but it still remains as the king of FPS games. 

Gameplay Mechanics

Since we have previously talked about the objectives of the game, let us also talk about what goes on in the game itself. There are multiple weapons in the game that you buy when you play. There is a built-in economy in the game that varies if you win or lose the rounds. It is a complicated system but it is easy to follow when you get the hang of it. 

The games will always start with the pistol round where players are only given $800 to spend to either buy a better pistol than the default or you can buy kevlar without the helmet. The T side will start off with the Glock-18, while the CT side can start off with either the P2000 or the USP-S. The CT side’s gun is superior to the T side because if they hit one headshot to a player without a helmet, they usually get the frag. 

The second round will usually be an ‘eco’ round for the loser of the pistol round because they have limited funds to buy better weapons. There is a strategy where losing teams spend all of their funds to buy better guns which can stifle their economy. However, if they win the round, it is all worth it. That strategy is most known as the ‘force buy’. 

The gun rounds will start in the third round and this is where teams can buy the big guns. There are four weapons that are considered as the staples of the game. First is the AK-47 which is exclusive to the T side but the CTs can pick up the gun when they eliminate a player who is using it. For the CT side, they can buy the M4A4 or the M4A1-S whichever they prefer. 

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The last weapon that is always essential is the sniper rifle or most known as the AWP. This is a very expensive weapon but it can also eliminate an opponent with one shot in any part of the body except for the limbs. It is definitely the most impactful weapon in the game but it has its downsides. The biggest one is definitely its price at $4750. Another one is that it can be exploited by the opposing team playing at a fast pace which can surprise the AWPer.

• There are a lot of weapons in the game that you should look into like the sub-machine guns which are used for aggressive play or force-buys. Light machine guns are rarely used but in the right situation, it is devastating. However, it does warrant a hefty price tag which is detrimental in a game centred around team economy.
• Lastly, grenades are very important in this game. There are four types of grenades in the game which are the
• Highly Explosive Grenade (HE) which is mostly used to damage the opponent.
• The Flashbang Grenade which can blind the opponents if thrown properly.
• The Smoke Grenade can close off an area by blocking it with smoke, it is mostly used for safe passage or defensively.
• The last type of grenade is the Decoy Grenade which can function as a fake Flashbang but it does not really do anything besides looking and sounding like a Flashbang when thrown. 
   

Weapon Skins

Alongside the fun gameplay, there are also cosmetics that you can use for your weapons. CSGO players usually have their own skins that they unlock through weapon cases or they buy from the market. There are a lot of skins in the game for every weapon. The value of these range from just a few cents to thousand of dollars when talking about the very rare skins. 

Knives are a big part of this because they are usually the most expensive weapon skins in the game. There are multiple types of knives which are all aesthetically pleasing. This draws CSGO players to buy, they can fetch a hefty amount of money on the market as well. 

Probably the most well known skin is the Dragon Lore skin for the AWP which was a big deal when it entered the market. It was a very expensive skin because its design was good and it was the go-to choice for the prominent CSGO players in the professional scene. 

CSGO has been the catalyst for weapon skins which has definitely improved its reach towards a bigger player base. A lot of people really like having these cosmetics which enhances the player experience. 

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CSGO’s professional esports scene

CSGO is one of the big three esports in the world. League of Legends and Dota 2 are the other two which are in the same genre. However, CSGO has become the pioneer of FPS esports because its framework is really easy to follow. It is one of the most spectator-friendly titles in the scene because you do not need to play the game to understand it unlike the other two members of the big three. 

The game’s esports scene revolves around the Valve Major system. It is the biggest CSGO tournament because it is supported by Valve itself. Teams participate in grueling qualifiers where they face off against the best teams in their region. There are only a few teams that have won a major, and it is classified as the biggest achievement in the game. 

The team that has won the most majors in history is Danish squad, Astralis. They have won four majors with their core lineup. Because of this, they are considered the best CSGO team in history. Their continued success over the years just shows that they are always playing at the top level and they are not a flash in the pan. 

Despite not winning a major just yet, Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev is considered as the best CSGO player ever. His talent is definitely one of a kind and he has the results to back it up. The only blemish on his career is the elusive major victory. He has come close to victory twice now, but he just misses out despite playing extremely well. He can play any role in the game excellently. 

There are other players and teams that can make the case to be considered the best in their respective fields but Astralis and s1mple are definitely the favourites right now. In the past, Ninjas in Pyjamas were the undisputed king of the scene because of their sheer dominance in the early days of CSGO. Because of that, their star player Christopher ‘GeT_RiGhT’ Alesund was considered as the best player in the game as well. 

CSGO remains as the king of the FPS genre because of the simple but effective framework. It is a fun game that can easily be played by millions of people through Steam. It is now free-to-play which was a hurdle back when it was behind a paywall. Now that it is free, you can expect that the title can endure for more years to come. 

The community is also a big selling point because CSGO is definitely one of the best games to get into if you are a fan of FPS games. Counter-Strike itself has endured for two decades now and it is not going away anytime soon. 

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Words: Pocholo Magsino