Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike legend NEO hits free agency
Olivia Richman
After nearly five years with the Virtus.pro organization, Filip “NEO” Kubski is now a free agent. In spite of more recent struggles, Virtus.pro remains one of the most storied names in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. The team achieved a major victory at 2014’s EMS Katowice and spent much of the following two years at the top of the burgeoning CS:GO pro scene. But a runner-up finish at ELEAGUE Major: Atlanta in …
Counter-Strike
DickStacy NSFW sticker turned down by Valve
Olivia Richman
Fans of Counter-Strike and phallic objects have been dealt a severe blow. Oliver “DickStacy” Tierney’s phallic sticker submission was immediately rejected by Valve and will not be available for in-game use, despite the wishes of swelling fans. The Grayhound Gaming in-game leader recently qualified for the IEM Katowice 2018 Major, which brings with it the coveted reward of designing your own personal in-game Counter-Strike sticker. DickStacy made no effort to …
Counter-Strike
Two new maps enter CS:GO competitive rotation
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s map pool has gotten a bit more lively. A pair of new defusal maps, Zoo and Abbey, have been added to the competitive rotation. They replace Subzero and Austria, which were removed on the January 24 update following runs of one and two years, respectively. Zoo is a familiar sight for longtime Counter-Strike players. An updated version of the former Operation Bloodhound map, it stands apart from …
Counter-Strike
Smooya parts ways with BIG, nex steps in
gabhernandez
One of Counter-Strike’s biggest trash talkers is parting ways with his team. German esports organisation BIG has announced today that British sensation and up-and-coming CS:GO player Owen “smooya” Butterfield has stepped down from the main roster. The news comes as quite a shock, as smooya’s growth and impact have been substantial and a key part of the team’s successes during the last year. Smooya joined BIG in April 2018 from …
Counter-Strike
x6tence Galaxy claim inaugural WINNERS League title
Jared Wynne
In the history of WINNERS League, x6tence Galaxy will always be number one. Swedish Counter-Strike team x6tence Galaxy became the first champions of WINNER League with a three-game victory over Bpro in the playoff final. Both teams came into the final having earned their way. X6tence Galaxy bested such opponents as Nemiga Gaming and Poland’s Pact, needing three games to close out each of their playoff series wins. Bpro’s road …
Counter-Strike
Bpro and x6tence Galaxy to meet in WINNERS League final
Jared Wynne
Two of Europe’s top up-and-coming teams are set to square off in the first ever WINNERS League final. Bpro and x6tence Galaxy triumphed in their respective semifinal battles, setting a date for the competition featuring some of the best young Counter-Strike talents in Europe. X6tence Galaxy was first to qualify, though it was no easy feat. The Swedish side faced off with Belarusian team Nemiga in the semifinals and was …
Counter-Strike
Battle Royale mode coming to Counter-Strike
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is about to join the battle royale party. Developer Valve has revealed that CS:GO will now feature a new battle royale game mode called Danger Zone. The news was announced on Twitter, alongside a lengthy post on the game’s official blog. Like most battle royale game modes, Danger Zone sees a group of players drop into an area, in this case called the Blacksite, in a hunt …
Counter-Strike
Astralis CSGO stars hit historical money marker
Steven Rondina
Three of the founding members of Astralis have cleared a long-standing Counter-Strike hurdle. According to Esportsearnings.com, Andreas “Xyp9x” Højsleth, Nicolai “device” Reedtz, and Peter “dupreeh” Rasmussen have become the first players in Counter-Strike history to earn over $1 million in prize winnings. The threshold was passed at the Esports Championship Series Season 6 finals. Astralis’ 2018 has been one of the most successful years in the game’s history. After opening with …
Astralis, s1mple, Ninja among Esports Awards winners
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Fortnite, Astralis, and Fnatic’s Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau were all among the winners at the Esports Awards 2018. The Esports Awards were back for a third edition of the event. The ceremony was held in London to celebrate the most outstanding members of the esports industry with 22 awards. Winners in each category were chosen with 25% of the votes coming from the community and 75% from the event’s official voting …
Astralis defeat MIBR in tight ECS final
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Astralis’ reign of terror continues. The Danish team took yet another first-place finish in Arlington, Texas, claiming the top prize at the Esports Championship Series Season 6 final. It’s the squad’s fourth live event victory of the fall season, and the eighth six-figure prize secured in 2018. Though yet another trophy was added to the Danish side’s mantel, victory didn’t necessarily come easy. The event started with Astralis trouncing Cloud9 in the …
Astralis add another title in Chicago
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Astralis are the champions of Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII. The Danish squad added another trophy to its mantel in Chicago by taking first place at the event with a 3-0 win over Team Liquid in the grand finals. Though it managed to knot up the top spot with a sweep, Astralis didn’t skate through the tournament by any means. The team started its run with a pair of solid …
New Counter-Strike update brings spooky Halloween treats
gabhernandez
Counter-Strike
Halloween is fast approaching and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players have been greeted with an early treat of haunting ghosts and a spooky new map layout. The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Halloween update allows players to turn into ghosts after they die. This feature is only available in Casual, Demolition, and Flying Scoutsman game modes. As ghosts, players can haunt their opponents and roam the map freely. They can also apply graffiti …
Counter-Strike pro caught cheating at tournament
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Fans that stayed up to watch the eXTREMESLAND Asia Counter-Strike tournament got a bit of a shock. While facing Vietnamese team Revolution, Nikhil “Forsaken” Kumawat of OpTic India was caught cheating. The announcement was made following a lengthy pause in action, and was followed by the ejection of his team from the event. https://twitter.com/CSGO2ASIA/status/1053188955615588352 According to CSGO2Asia.com, during OpTic India’s second map against Revolution, Forsaken was flagged for suspicious activity …
Mouz deny Liquid at ESL One New York
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Mousesports’ Counter-Strike team is back in business. After an ugly showing at the FACEIT Major: London, the European side returned to form at ESL One: New York. There, it battled its way to the top of the tournament, taking first place and the $125,000 prize. ESL One: New York started well for Mouz, as the team went 2-0 to take first place in its group, which also included Gambit Esports, …
Astralis defeat Na`Vi to win London Major
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Astralis are once again Counter-Strike major champions. The Danish team took the top prize at FACEIT Major: London, sweeping Natus Vincere in the tournament’s grand finals. It was a great ending to what was a nearly flawless performance by the Danes. Astralis’ major began with a strong run through the New Challengers Stage, as the team advanced with a 3-1 record that included wins over CompLexity Gamging, Rogue, and Team …
Top groups at FACEIT Major: London
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
The New Legends Stage at the FACEIT Major: London has wrapped up with some surprising teams making the playoffs. Topping the groups with 3-0 records are North American staples Team Liquid and CompLexity Gaming. Astralis, Natus Vincere, and BIG all made the cut at 3-1. FaZe Clan, HellRaisers, and Made in Brazil round out the eight-team New Champions Stage, sneaking in with 3-2 records. These teams have advanced to the …
FACEIT announce Premium Pass for London Majors
gabhernandez
Counter-Strike
FACEIT has announced a Premium Pass for the London Major. As the tournament moves on to the Legends Stage, subscribed Twitch viewers will be given access to exclusive content for the duration of the London Major. Starting on September 12, viewers will be able to subscribe to the FACEIT Twitch channel with a one time $9.99 payment. The sub will open up a wide range of perks and exclusive contents …
Valve launches free version for Counter-Strike
Jared Wynne
Counter-Strike
Valve’s latest Counter-Strike update includes a new free version of the game which allows players to experience it in a llimited manner. The new “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Free Edition” gives players offline play against bots”as well as the ability to spectate matches through GOTV. Compared to the full version, it is very limited in terms of capabilities, being without the ability to play against other people. But it may …
Valve brings new Panorama UI to Counter-Strike
Jared Wynne
Counter-Strike
If you’ve played Counter-Strike for any sizeable amount of time, you’ve probably come across posts like these asking Valve to change their venerated game. It seems like our prayers, or at least some of them, have finally been answered. Valve has released the fabled Panorama UI along with a new weapon, the MP5-SD. What does this all mean? While we still don’t have many details on Valve’s development process, we …
Fans aren’t happy with new Virtus.pro uniforms
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Virtus Pro is going to look very different heading into events like The International 2018 and the FACEIT Major: London, but not because of any roster moves. The Russian organization revealed a new jersey and logo, ditching its traditional black and orange colors in favor of a new green and purple look. Check it out: Initial reactions from fans were resoundingly negative, with many saying they missed the previous color …
Counter-Strike has long been among the biggest titles in esports and competitive gaming, even going back to esports’ deepest roots from decades past. What’s more, the game continues going strong today, with developer and publisher Valve releasing the latest iteration of the franchise in 2023. The newest version, Counter-Strike 2, has not been without its issues. But its popularity continues the enduring prominence of the Counter-Strike series, signaling that the venerated franchise is likely here to stay for many years yet to come.
But how did the franchise come be to so prominent in the esports space, and role does CS2 have to play in the industry moving forward?
Counter-Strike has roots in the beginnings of esports
Counter-Strike was unquestionably one of the biggest drivers of what we would today consider to be early professional esports movement. It was far from alone, and it wasn’t the most advanced. That likely was StarCraft: Brood War, a real-time strategy game from famed developer Blizzard that caught on in South Korea and led to a professional scene in the country well ahead of any examples of esports industry elsewhere in the world.
But outside of Korea, Counter-Strike quickly became the driving force behind competitive gaming and esports. First released in 1999 as a modification for popular first-person shooter Half-Life, the game was easy to pick up and play for many gamers. Half-Life was borderline ubiquitous software for gamers with a PC, and adding a mod to it was as simple as downloading and applying said mod. So it was that Counter-Strike began to catch fire and spread across the world.
As it spread, so too did its competitive play. Early competitions often centered around online play, most prominently including the Cyberathlete Amateur League (CAL) in North America and the Clanbase Eurocup in Europe. But live, in-person tournaments, similar to those enjoyed by StarCraft players and fans in Korea, were also rising in prominence.
Within just a few years, there were a number of major annual tournaments being held for the original version of Counter-Strike. Notable international tournament organizers included the Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) in the United States, the Electronic Sports World Cup (ESWC) in France, and the World Cyber Games (WCG) in Korea. This was in addition to many other regional tournaments through which teams could test their mettle and battle over smaller prizes.
But even at bigger tournaments, prizes weren’t what they are today, and in general there was far less money available to professional Counter-Strike players than there is in today’s thriving esports industry which sees many players and teams playing at the full-time pro level. That’s a far cry from a time when perhaps a small handful of players were able to make a true living through playing CS alone, and even them, it was often a modest one.
Counter-Strike 2 at the fore of a bigger esports scene than ever before
Counter-Strike 2 was released to a far different esports space than that which the original Counter-Strike occupied. But what exactly is it that has changed the scene so much, besides the accrual of years?
Esports betting is at the top of the list. The sports betting industry is growing and expanding around the world each and every year, and esports has absolutely been a part of that. As esports betting continues to grow and thrive, it brings its benefits to the games that are being bet on. And Counter-Strike 2 is at the top of that list.
These benefits have arrived through a myriad of means. Fan interest in tournaments has gone up and become more consistent with betting markets available for each and every game played, which further incentivizes tournament organizers and their sponsoring partners. But those partners are also now more likely to work with the pro teams and players themselves. Betting operators are among the most common and most generous sponsors in the pro CS2 space, showing how esports betting’s rise has contributed to Counter-Strike’s continued prominence in esports and competitive gaming as a whole.
