Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
CSGO pro FUSiON passes away unexpectedly, shocking community
Olivia Richman
A well-known Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro player has passed away. Alex “FUSiON” Dincof died on January 3, 2022 at just 23 years old. Next month he would have turned 24. The details behind FUSiON’s passing remain unknown. FUSiON was an Italian player who started competing in CSGO at just 17 years old. While Italy isn’t often on the map in esports, FUSiON had already competed on the international stage. In …
Counter-Strike
CSGO skin tradeups explained, plus how to guarantee factory new
William Davis
Tradeups are a great way to get new skins in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, as long as you understand how they work. That’s where we can help. Opening new cases and ranking up your profile aren’t the only ways to get skins in CSGO. Tradeups are a volatile, but potentially very rewarding, option to get the gun of your dreams. But the rules for tradeups aren’t as simple as they may …
Counter-Strike
All you need to know about CSGO rank distribution in 2022
Steven Rondina
Even in 2022, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s ranks and matchmaking system is an absolute mess for a variety of reasons. But with a little work, it’s possible to break it down and understand how it works and how ranks in CSGO are distributed. Hackers remain omnipresent in CSGO, with recent numbers suggesting that players came across a hacker in every two to three games. Even worse, CSGO’s ranking system is downright …
Counter-Strike
Here’s what some of CSGO maps look like in real life
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s cut-throat maps aren’t all fictional. Here’s what some of these locations look like in real life. Valve has released dozens of maps in Counter-Strike, and real-life places have inspired most of them. The origin of these locations is unknown, but dedicated CSGO players can’t stop digging. We might have a few guesses regarding the whereabouts of some vital CSGO maps. Dust 2 is one of the oldest …
Counter-Strike
CSGO caster James Banks’ wife passes away during major
Nicholas James
Tactical shooter caster James Banks has announced on Twitter that his wife has passed away while the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Valorant caster is attending PGL Major Stockholm 2021. The cause of death has not yet been disclosed, but Banks has announced his intention to remain at the major despite the news. https://twitter.com/BanKsEsports/status/1453366805624410116?s=20 On October 27, Banks took to Twitter to announce that he had received news of his wife’s …
Counter-Strike
This is how much money CSGO’s top Twitch streamers make
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive boasts some of the richest streamers on all of Twitch, and it’s served as a jumping off point for a few of the platform’s biggest overall earners. Twitch recently suffered a massive data leak during which everything about the site was made public, from hidden moderation rules to the platform’s supposed source code itself. Included in that leak were exact figures related to the income of thousands …
Counter-Strike
Why do CSGO pros tilt their keyboards?
William Davis
You’d think CSGO players would try to take it easy on their wrists, but they’ll make exceptions for the sake of desk space. If you’ve seen professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, you might have noticed that many players tilt their keyboards when they play. The angle can vary, with some at a slight tilt and others nearly sideways. It doesn’t look comfortable to play like that, so why do CSGO pros …
Counter-Strike
All of the correct CSGO callouts for Cache
Steven Rondina
Callouts are critical on any Counter-Strike: Global Offensive map, and knowing how to coordinate on Cache is critically important. In theory, Cache is the most straightforward map there is in CSGO. It has two sites with a mid area that both sides have an equal shot at controlling. If the Ts can control mid, they get extra options for attacking the sites. The CT side can use mid control to …
A pro CSGO team just had their secret strat book leaked, again
William Davis
Counter-Strike
An outdated strat book made by Counter-Strike: Global Offensive titan BIG has been leaked online for fans to study. The book is dated from April of 2019 and is filled with BIG’s intended strategies for the ESL Pro League Season 9 competition. A link to the document was accidentally leaked on captain Johannes “tabseN” Wodarz’s Twitch stream shortly before the event. The list includes several utility setups and retake procedures, …
Here’s how to show FPS, ping, packet loss, and more in CSGO
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive feeling laggy for you? Unsure what the cause is, or if there’s even an issue to begin with? You can easily check if any such problem is server or hardware-based with these useful console commands. The Source engine console might seem like an antiquated feature, but it comes in handy for troubleshooting in CSGO. Even if you don’t have a problem, console commands can give you …
All of the correct callouts for the newest CSGO map, Ancient
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
Many players are still not entirely familiar with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s dark and leafy competitive map Ancient. Learning the proper callouts for this new map might help you climb the ranks faster. Not understanding the map may hinder your ranked progress. Callouts are a basic and instrumental part of any shooter game as they help bolster team play and communication. It’s incredibly crucial that you keep your mic active to …
CSGO streamer Anomaly accidentally reveals face during stream
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Anomaly is best known for opening CSGO knives, freaking out about them, and staying completely anonymous the entire time. That last bit flew out the window during his most recent stream. The YouTube and Twitch star planned for a massive live stream where he would open over 4,000 CSGO cases in one 24-hour sitting. The stream is part of a sponsorship deal with CSGO skin trading website Skinbaron. However, a …
All of the map callouts you need to know for CSGO’s Inferno
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive maps like Dust 2 and Mirage are fairly straightforward, with attackers being funneled into chokepoints to sites and defenders needing to work angles and utility to keep them safe. Then there’s Inferno. While other maps have simple callouts based on locations or specific props, Inferno is completely different. The classic map has an abundance of nooks and crannies that all have different names, and even the larger …
All of the callouts you need to know for Mirage in CSGO
Steven Rondina
News
Though Dust 2 is the most popular Counter-Strike: Global Offensive map in the game’s history, Mirage has nearly been able to keep up with it among pro and casual players alike. Because of that, anyone who queues for every defusal map has a pretty darn good chance of winding up on Mirage. That means that it’s always a good idea to brush up on the map’s proper callouts. Mirage is …
All of the correct Dust 2 callouts in CSGO
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Learning the correct callouts in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is vital if you want to improve in the game. One of the best things about CSGO is the depth of the tactical aspect of the game. You can always learn new things and improve. If you want to get better on Dust 2, then this guide is just what you need. Here are all the different callouts on the map, as …
Twistzz in talks with FaZe Clan after leaving Team Liquid
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
Former Team Liquid star Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken is gearing up for the next chapter in his Counter-Strike: Global career. Reports suggest that the player is in negotiations to join Marcelo “coldzera” David on FaZe Clan. The Canadian player has been out of the spotlight for quite a while now. However, a report by DBLTAP claims that he may be coming back to the servers in a FaZe Clan jersey. …
Here are all the ways you can download Source 2 right now
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
Valve’s community is on fire about Source 2, and there are already a number of ways for users can tinker around with it if they know where to look. Source 2 is the next version of Valve’s Source engine, and it’s an upgrade in many ways according to those who have seen the full suite of tools. For everyday users to try their hand at Source 2 and the Hammer …
How to download and play YPRAC maps, the best aim maps in CSGO
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
With WIN.gg’s new guide to aim mapper YPRAC’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive training maps, players can practice almost everything they need to get better at CSGO. Getting better in CSGO is just like getting better at anything else, which means that consistently practicing CSGO’s aim and movement styles are the keys to winning rounds and ranking up in CSGO, and there are a ton of options for players to use to …
Pronax sends alarming tweets from hospital, updates fans
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro Markus “Pronax” Wallsten alarmed his followers when he sent out a string of concerning tweets late Sunday night. On August 23, Pronax tweeted that he “needed help” after his coworkers had “invented lies” about him, resulting in him needing a lawyer to get out of a mental hospital. Jag behöver hjälp i Malmö, mina egna kollegor har hittat på lögner om mig, och jag behöver …
What is the rank distribution in CSGO in 2020?
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s rank distribution is set in stone, and that means it may be harder for some players to rank up. In 2015, Valve recognized there was an issue in the way that players were ranked in CSGO. Their data showed that there were many more players populating the higher ranks than there were the lower ones. In response, Valve instituted one of the most controversial changes to CSGO’s …
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.
