Jump to content

Counter-Strike: Source

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Kx1186 (talk | contribs) at 00:44, 4 January 2006 (rv). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Counter-Strike: Source
Developer(s)Valve Software
Publisher(s)Vivendi Universal / EA
Designer(s)Valve Studios / Turtle Rock Studios
EngineSource engine
Platform(s)PC
ReleaseOctober 7 2004
Genre(s)First-person shooter
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Counter-Strike: Source (CS:S) is a team based First Person Shooter which is a port of the original Counter-Strike for Half-Life in the Source engine that was used in Half-Life 2. The game was originally a total conversion mod made in the GoldSrc engine. All the Counter-Strike games pit a team of counter-terrorists against a team of terrorists in rounds of competition won by completing an objective or eliminating the opposing team. A more in depth explanation on the rules and gameplay of CS:S can be found on the Counter-Strike page.

History

In 2004, original Counter-Strike developers Minh Le and Jess Cliffe, along with members of Valve and the Day of Defeat team, brought Counter-Strike into the Source engine as an obvious choice for the multiplayer component of Half-Life 2. Following a period when the game was available to select 'beta' testers, the alpha version of the game was released on October 7th 2004.

Counter-Strike: Source (CS:S) was released to ATI Radeon Voucher holders, in Half-Life 2 bundles available on Steam, and with the boxed retail version of the game. Changes include the improvements inherent to the Source engine (such as better graphics and physics) as well as updated models, animations, maps, sounds, and some small gameplay changes.

For what Counter-Strike and its popularity is concerned the new Source engine heralds a new beginning for the most popular first-person shooter in history, a game which has been played throughout the world for more than five years.

Changes and Additional Features

The updated Counter-Strike came with a few changes, some welcomed, others questioned. The riot shield introduced in 1.6 is gone, and dead players now drop grenades just like other weapons (as was introduced in Condition-Zero). The popular maps, such as de_dust and de_aztec, have approximately the same layouts and size, but are revamped with many aesthetic additions such as glass bottles and 50-gallon drums. Other maps such as de_inferno appeared noticeably different.

At this point, Valve hasn't given the ability to make assassination maps (prefix 'as_'), however, LDuke has created a mod.punkassfraggers.com/ server plugin so you can play the VIP scenario on Counter-Strike: Source.

Counter Strike: Source includes the 'Official Counter-Strike Bot' for both online and offline gameplay. The AI of the 'bot is carried over from Counter-Strike: Condition Zero and offers 4 difficulty levels, from 'Easy', 'Normal', 'Hard' and 'Expert'. For most casual players the 'Normal' setting will offer an adequately challenging game and using keyboard commands can operate quite effectively, the level of difficulty chosen effecting reaction times, accuracy and tactical play.

Counter-Strike: Source does not presently include the range of player models included in CS 1.6. It is limited to the standard 'SEAL Team Six' and 'GIGN' for CT's and 'Phoenix Connexion' and 'Guerrilla Warfare' for T's.

File:Counter strike screenshot.png
Screenshot from Counter-Strike: Source. The skins for the CTs in this image have been updated by Valve since, along with a new skin based on the GIGN.

Havok Physics in CS:S

The implementation of the Source engine and the promise of Havok physics in CS:S led to much speculation about the increased tactical opportunities opened up by the use of physics objects.

It was originally believed that because objects in a map could be moved and had realistic properties, this would provide greater gameplay flexibility; for example, in the map cs_office, the Terrorist players could "camp" in a room and barricade the doors with cabinets or chairs. In reality, however, physical objects are rarely used for such strategic purposes. The manipulation of them is hindered by coding which causes players to 'bounce' off any physical items and the inability to pick up any objects (as a player could in Half-Life 2).

There are several reasons that objects have been coded to keep players at a small distance away. First, computations by the server would be extremely complicated when several people interact simultaneously with the same object. Secondly, network traffic to clients would have to increase by quite a bit to reflect the current state of the object(s). Thirdly, and the most problematic, the client-side prediction of objects would suffer to the point where visible and player movement anomalies would constantly be causing serious issues for players. For example, an object would seem to go in one direction for a short time and then suddenly appear right in front of a person thus causing the client to reverse that player to a previous position.

The ragdoll physics are remarkable in that no two player deaths will be played out the same way. For example, with the gravity server variable set to low, a ragdoll propelled by a shotgun could be bounced off two walls, wrap several times around a pole, hit the ground, hit the skybox ceiling, and fall back to the ground. Some critics have noted that the muted physics in the standard configuration in CS:S (without changing the physics variables, as opposed to Half-Life 2's extravagant flailing bodies) can cause breaks with immersion as similar player death poses are common. As a result, mods exist to implement Half-Life 2 physics as default.

Criticism

At present CS:S attracts about a one half of the players that the original Counter-Strike still manages to claim, due to a number of factors including hardware demands, a die-hard CS 1.6 fanbase who feel that the new incarnation is too different or buggy or indeed, incomplete.

Professionally, Counter-Strike: Source is experiencing a cold reception. Many notable professional players and clans are opposing a universal shift to Source at this point. This is reflected in the CPL's (Cyberathlete Professional League) decision to use Counter-Strike 1.6 in preference to the newer Source for it's World Tour in 2006. Because many existing professional players are not shifting their careers to Source, it is opening up opportunities for new players who are dominant at Source to begin a pro-gaming career. This may lead to an exciting period in the future of Counter-Strike, when 1.6 is finally made obsolete by Source, leaving old pro-gamers no choice but to migrate to Source, or retire.

Notable Updates

Maps and New Releases

As noted, the only two officially supported modes of play for CS:S are maps prefixed with 'defusal' ('de_') and 'Hostage Rescue' ('cs_'). At the moment there are 17 official maps available, and most of them are remakes of popular maps from earlier versions. In an update on February 24th 2005 update, the map cs_compound was added, the first original official map to be released for Counter-Strike: Source. On 13 May 2005, the second original official map, de_port, was released along with an updated version of de_inferno.

While Valve may continue to create new maps, Turtle Rock Studios continue to remake classic maps, although it is not known which maps they are working on, Below is the list of official maps for Counter-Strike: Source. de_nuke was added to Counter-Strike: Source on December 2nd 2005 and is notable as it is the first CS:S map to include High Dynamic Range (HDR) visuals. The next apparent map and 18th map to be released is the popular cs_milita. Valve noted in early December that they were currently finalizing Militia for release 'soon'.

Clan Gaming

Additionally, many Counter Strike: Source players have gotten together and created teams such as "clans". In gaming clans, players get together to challenge other "clans" in matches usually known as "scrims". Scrims are usually played in stock maps. A good example of a map usually played is de_dust2. Matches or "scrims" are usually played on one clan's server. Some clans usually have some indicators on their screen name to show the user's rank within the clan.

Servers

There are many types of servers in this game. The player may choose the game server depending on the location, player slots, players that plays there, and the maps. It may depend on even two or more factor. A clan may decide their location of their server based on the location of the clan leaders or majority of the clan members. The closer the server, usually the lower ping, but additionally ping boosters may be used within the servers to improve performance.

List of Official CS:S maps

  • de_prodigy
  • de_train
  • de_tides

See also

Additional Notes

Some parents have claimed that Counter Strike: Source, along with other first person shooters, has been influencing their children. It is rumored that the ratings on some of these games will change so that only adults may purchase them for the "safety" of their kids.

External links

Official websites
Similar Games
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Counter-Strike:_Source&oldid=33787569"