19K

I can't believe this game has been out for a few days now and nobody has started a thread on it.

Back in the day I wasn't as obsessed with Counter Strike as some people I know, but I did play every now and then. I'm shocked that this game has arrived relatively under the radar. I think CS:GO is a fantastic HD upgrade of what is pretty much the original online multi-player COD/Battlefield style game.

I downloaded it today and only played for a few hours... but many of the maps were instantly familiar. There's even quite a few that I didn't recognize at all. Like I said, I wasn't obsessed with this game back in the day so maybe all the maps are old news to some people, but to me it was a was a pleasant mix of nostalgia, and some completely new experiences. The controls are fairly simple and totally customizable (i.e. you can remap every single button to your liking), not to mention full keyboard and mouse support (on consoles) in honor of its PC heritage. You can also play "offline" where it's just you vs. bots so you can play all the same modes and maps as online, but you don't have to deal with the frustration of facing human opponents that have been playing this game for the past 15 years.

The matches are very quick and the maps are small by today's standards but it's only 5 vs 5 so it works out nice. I was shocked how such an old game could still be so much fun. I would say CS:GO is probably the absolute BEST remake of an old game that I've played this generation. If you've ever played Counter Strike in the past, I HIGHLY recommend it.

Boba Fett

$15 for online only on XBLA has had awful results in the past, namely the fickle user base disappearing after a month or two.

TheBigDave

I wish more MP games offered this. It's a great way to build-up your skills and learn the maps. Black Ops had it, and I really missed it in MW3.

WallyOPD

I don't even want to think about the thousands and thousands of hours I put into the original CS. I bought it and will give it a whirl tomorrow night.

19K

Doesn't the Xbox version have the offline mode also? I was on PS3 so I just assumed they were the same. I didn't even attempt to go online yet so I'm not sure how active it is. I spent the morning playing strictly against bots to refresh my memory. Granted it was incredibly easier, but still just as fun IMO.

astrochimp

I posted about it in the arcade thread. I'm loving it so far and yeah, the offline versus bots is very nice for us who suck online. I played the Arms Race mode for a couple hours last night. Good fun

Maxflier

I didn't even know you could use a keyboard and mouse for games on the 360. How does that even work? Do you just plug then into the two USB ports and you are good to go?

Decker

I'm pretty terrible at FPS online games and as a result I rarely play them. And I read that this one is especially unforgiving. But on the flip side, thanks to already buying Sound Shapes and being a Playstation Plus member, I can get this game on the PS3 for $8.99 after rebate. That's pretty tempting.

And I think unlike most PSN/XBLA online shooters, this one should have legs thanks to the high profile and legacy of the game series and the affiliation with Steam. The PS3 version was supposed to have cross-play with PCs, but I guess they dropped that, apparently.

Matthew Chmiel

I pre-ordered it on Steam to get access to the beta alongside a Team Fortress 2 hat.

Counter-Strike on a console, even if SteamWorks has gone through massive improvements over the past few years, doesn't compute with me. Especially with how precise and specific one has to be during the game unlike Battlefield or Call of Duty where anyone can jump into a game and start massacring. Like others have mentioned, I don't think the game will have a long life on the consoles. Especially not the 360 where Microsoft has consistently gone out of their way to block Valve on implementing updates. It may have a longer life span on PS3, but those playing it on a computer will get the longevity.

I've played it for about two hours online since its launch (my Steam time has been bouncing between this and the new Mann vs. Machine update on TF2) and I suck at the game. It's been years since I played the original game in my computer science classes during my high school tenure, but on the surface, it's a very faithful update. As a Call of Duty fan the past few years, it's hard to play a FPS where I can't quick scope. However, even as bad as I am, the game is still a lot of fun and a great way to waste time.

If anyone wants to play the game on Steam, let me know.

Actually, both the 360 and PS3 editions were supposed to have cross-play. Valve decided to drop support for it back in March due to the limitations of SteamWorks and the ability to constantly update the game on the 360 and the PS3. Valve has already updated the game twice on the Mac & PC in addition to updating the Steam software to help fix bugs specifically in the game.