Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
“I would change the AWP”: NertZ talks CS2 at IEM Dallas
William Davis
A fast track to the semifinals is only the start of Guy “NertZ” Iluz at IEM Dallas. ENCE is currently on a roll, triumphing over some of the event’s biggest names to earn an advanced spot in the playoffs. Already guaranteed top four, the team is currently preparing to face the winner of G2 Esports and FaZe, hopefully adding another victory over a top team to its run. WIN.gg sat …
Counter-Strike
“It’s always a nice feeling to stomp another team”: Heroic’s Jabbi on making HooXi upset at IEM Dallas
William Davis
Just before the final three matches of IEM Dallas, WIN.gg caught up with Heroic rifler Jakob “Jabbi” Nygaard. To little surprise, Heroic clinched an advanced spot in the semifinals of IEM Dallas after a dominant group stage run. The tournament favorite cruises past 9z, MOUZ, and G2 Esports to secure a top four placing. On day one of the playoffs, WIN.gg caught up with Jabbi to learn more about his …
Counter-Strike
nitr0 to leave CSGO, will he return to Valorant yet again?
William Davis
After a long career in Counter-Strike, then Valorant, then Counter-Strike again, Nicholas “nitr0” Cannella will be officially retiring from both competitive communities. After returning to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive with much fanfare in 2023, the esteemed Team Liquid captain will once again be leaving the game’s esports scene. The player is best known for helping win Season 2 of the Intel Grand Slam in 2019, making him the only North American …
Counter-Strike
Hiko explains why he called Valorant community “cringe”
Fariha Bhatti
Retired CSGO pro player Spencer “Hiko” Martin thinks Valorant players are cringe, but he has a solid reason to explain why he feels so strongly. The Valorant vs. CSGO rivalry is still going strong, which is pretty healthy for both games to a certain extent. But the fan base is always on the lookout to compare the two titles. This time, Hiko has reignited the debate on his recent CSGO …
Counter-Strike
“She played hard”: CSGO community mourns passing of pro ShazZ
Olivia Richman
The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive community’s hearts collectively broke over the weekend when it was revealed that Sharon “ShazZ” Waison passed away. The cause of ShazZ’s untimely death has not been made public, but the South African CSGO pro had been dealing with complicated medical issues for years. She most recently was dealing with COVID while getting dialysis. On her Twitter bio, ShazZ has written that she was fighting kidney failure. …
Counter-Strike
Two ways to get agent skins in Counter-Strike explained
William Davis
Agent skins are one of the more controversial cosmetic options in Counter-Strike history, so newer players have a harder time learning how to get them. But we have a few ways to get them. Love them or hate them, CS2 agent skins are here to stay. While they haven’t been confirmed for Counter-Strike 2, Valve has affirmed that all gun, glove, and knife skins will be ported over to the …
Counter-Strike
CSGO fan pranks community with fake knife unboxing at Major
Fariha Bhatti
A CSGO fan at the Paris Major has trolled the entire community with a fake knife unboxing. Case openings at Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Majors are nothing new. Skin enthusiasts in the audience have been doing it for a long time, sometimes hitting the jackpot but — most times — ending up with scrap items. You need insane luck to end up with rare skins, leave alone a knife. But that …
Counter-Strike
Gaben’s no-show at last CSGO Major leaves fans heartbroken
Fariha Bhatti
Valve’s absence at the last Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major is both heartbreaking and infuriating for fans, who were counting on Gabe Newell’s speech — or at least an appearance. Gabe Newell is synonymous with Valve. The president of Valve Corporation and all things CSGO makes a note of showing up at The International Dota 2 events, even if it’s just for the trophy reveal. But this appearance was always curiously …
Team Vitality ends CSGO era with a Paris Major win
William Davis
Counter-Strike
The Paris Major is over, and Team Vitality stands victorious at Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s last dance on the international stage. After dominating the legends stage and cruising through the playoffs without dropping a single map, Team Vitality has brought a close to the legacy of CSGO majors. It’s also one of the most dominant major victories of all time, matched only by Nastus Vincere’s undefeated run at the 2022 Stockholm …
All the new graphics options coming in CS2
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike 2 will completely overhaul the game’s graphics, and that means a ton of new options to play with. CSGO players looking to level up their game often turn to pro settings to replicate the exact same experience that wins championships. Video settings are a big part of it, and CS2 is already confirmed to feature legacy options like 3:4 ratios, black bars, and more. But the Source 2 engine …
PashaBiceps shocks fans with bike journey to Paris Major
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
Legendary CSGO pro Jarosław “pashaBiceps” Jarząbkowski has proven what it means to be a true esports fan as he rides his bike from Warsaw to Paris just to watch the Paris major. When it comes to CSGO legends, pashaBiceps stands out with his massive fan following, and for all the right reasons. Even after retiring, pashaBiceps, lovingly known as papito, remained loyal to CSGO. Now, he has etched his name …
CSGO gambling purge could be on horizon as Steam bans traders
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
CSGO gamblers are once again in the hot waters as big shots report suspicious community bans after trading on a certain website. CSGO gambling is now a bannable offense, but even before, Valve had taken strict action against third-party websites that allowed gambling and slots with CSGO skins. Despite that, the shops remained up and running, and Valve also went quiet for some time. However, trouble’s stirring up again after …
BLAST 2023 Paris Major Champion Stage full schedule
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Everything is set for the Champion Stage in the 2023 Paris Major. Eight CSGO squads remain in the run for the title. The full schedule for the remainder of the 2023 Paris Major has been decided. 24 teams made it to the 2023 BLAST.tv Paris Major but only eight still have a chance to snatch the title. The Legends Stage was full of exciting matches, and the final standings weren’t …
The best Pick’ems for the Paris Major playoffs
William Davis
Counter-Strike
The Paris Major has reached its final stage, and the Pick’ems for the playoffs marks the very last time fans will get to engage with this piece of Global Offensive history. The Paris Major started with a whopping 24 teams, but only eight remain in the fight for CSGO’s last major championship. The playoffs are already set, with first-round matches announced shortly following the legends stage. If you went with …
CSGO is now high art after ZywOo’s clip reaches Louvre
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
A CSGO clip has reached the Louvre, placed among like likes of the Mona Lisa, Th Raft of Medusa, and more. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s incredibly high skill ceiling has made it really easy for gifted players to find their fan base. However, among 1.8 million players, there are only a few who have reached the pinnacle of sheer, unmatched skill. And since getting to the top is so tricky, mechanically gifted players …
CSGO commentator mocks pros during Paris Major, thinks mic is turned off
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive commentator James Banks had some harsh words caught on the mic, calling out CSGO players. The CSGO Paris Major is underway, with the top teams in the world fighting to prove themselves and snag the $1,250,000 million prize pool. But not everyone is impressed with the competing teams, including commentator Banks. Banks was recently talking privately to another commentator about modern Counter-Strike players, unaware that his words …
The best legends stage Pick’ems for the Paris Major
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Our Paris Major Pick’ems predictions are off to a great start, but the legends stage is what truly separates the best from the rest. The first phase of the final CSGO major is over, and the Paris Major is about to enter the legends stage. This is the crux of the event, where the top 16 teams will whittle down to just eight. If you bought the Paris Major pass, …
CSGO hacker dies to a dumb mistake even with cheats on
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
Cheating is one of the most frustrating parts of free shooters like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. This made it all the more satisfying when a blatant hacker was met with some karma. After being around for over 10 years, CSGO has become riddled with cheaters. You’ll probably encounter one at least once every few matches, especially if you’re on non-prime matchmaking. Unfortunately, Valve hasn’t come up with an impactful solution to …
FACEIT launching ID verification to fight against smurfs
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike matchmaker FACEIT is notorious for its smurfs, but the host is confident that it’s found a solution with ID verification. Smurfing is one of the most frustrating parts of grinding competitive games, and CSGO is no exception. Many players look to third-party matchmaking platforms to avoid disguised high-rankers, but even they don’t have a perfect solution. That’s a problem that FACEIT is trying to fix with ID verification for …
CSGO shatters records with jaw-dropping player count
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
The Counter-Strike 2 release date is unknown, but that doesn’t stop millions of players from tuning into their favorite FPS title — 1.8 million players, to be precise. CSGO has been breaking and making new records all through 2023. Thanks to CS2 leaks and reports, the game’s audience is as active as ever, waiting to try out the classic FPS in modern Source 2 visuals. Even though Valve has been …
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.
