Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
CSGO update blocks new players from ranked, overhauls Vertigo
Steven Rondina
The newest Counter-Strike: Global Offensive update has arrived, bringing changes to matchmaking, another significant overhaul to Vertigo, and a number of other small tweaks. As part of a new “onboarding experiment,” CSGO newcomers will be forced to spend their first few games playing in casual and deathmatch modes until they hit Private Rank 2. This will prevent first-time players from immediately diving into ranked matchmaking. No details were given on …
Counter-Strike
Details on the next CSGO Major will be IEM Season XIV
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive fans are already looking forward to the next big event. While the competitive CSGO scene luckily has a lot of tournaments throughout each month of the year, the next big CSGO event that already has people talking is the Intel Extreme Masters Season XIV final in February of 2020. That is the next CSGO Major, which means it’s a premier tournament that holds a lot of weight. …
Counter-Strike
You can now play CSGO on your mobile device using Steam Link
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Thanks to the Steam Link, an app that brings PC games to smart phones and mobile devices, players can now theoretically run Counter-Strike: Global Offensive wherever they are while on the go. But there are a few important caveats to consider. CSGO doesn’t have an official mobile version. However, Steam Link allows players to play any game they own on Steam to then play on their phones or tablets. The …
Counter-Strike
Astralis reclaims number one CSGO ranking, dethrones Team Liquid
Steven Rondina
Astralis may not have taken first place at DreamHack Masters Malmo, but the event still proved to be a big win for the team. The four-time major winners have reclaimed the top spot in the HLTV global rankings. This shakes off some of the memories of a rough spring that saw the team slip down, and also speaks to how rough the last month has been for previous top team, …
Counter-Strike
Fnatic wins DreamHack Masters Malmo with victory over Vitality
Steven Rondina
Fnatic might just be a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive elite once again. Competing on home soil, the Swedish team took first place at DreamHack Masters Malmo by defeating Team Vitality 2-1 in the grand finals. The victory was a massive one for a Fnatic roster that underwent significant changes following several tumultuous months. The starting showdown on Dust 2 started off well for Vitality. A good opening in the pistol round …
Counter-Strike
Fnatic stuns Astralis in DreamHack Masters Malmo with 2-0 win
Steven Rondina
Fnatic might just be back at the top of the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive scene. The overhauled Swedish squad is headed to the grand finals of DreamHack Masters Malmo. The team punched its ticket there with a stunning 2-0 upset win over Astralis in the semifinals. On paper, the series was looking like it should be an ugly one for Fnatic, as the team was set to face Astralis on Overpass …
Counter-Strike
OG expanding into CSGO with new team including Aleksib, NBK
Steven Rondina
Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen has found a surprising new home in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. According to a report by 1pv, the former ENCE in-game leader is set to take on those duties for a new team sponsored by two-time The International Dota 2 champions OG. The star-studded lineup will also include Nathan “NBK” Schmitt, Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen, Valdemar “valde” Bjørn Vangså, and Issa “ISSAA” Murad. None of the players that are …
Counter-Strike
Report says Aleksib turns down $1 million from Complexity Gaming
Olivia Richman
Finnish Counter-Strike: Global Offensive star Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen allegedly turned down a $1 million deal to be Complexity Gaming’s new in-game leader for the next two years. Reporter Jarek “Dekay” Lewis declared that Complexity founder Jason Lake flew to Helsinki, Finland to have a face-to-face discussion with ENCE’s former in-game leader. Even though the source noted that the deal would make Aleksib one of the highest paid in-game leaders in …
Team Liquid out of DreamHack Masters Malmo after Grayhound Gaming loss
Nina Forneloza
Counter-Strike
Australian Couter-Strike: Global Offensive team Grayhound Gaming has beaten Team Liquid at Dreamhack Masters Malmo, eliminating them from the competition. Grayhound came into the tournament as massive underdogs, but instead scored another huge win over a North American team following their opening victory over ESL One New York champions Evil Geniuses. The first map, Mirage, saw Team Liquid punt the game in epic fashion. Liquid entered the match on a …
GeT_RiGhT, f0rest discuss NiP split at DreamHack Masters Malmo
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Counter-Strike
For the first time in years, Patrik “f0rest” Lindberg played an official game without Christopher “GeT_RiGhT” Alesund. Ninjas in Pyjamas has played its first game of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive following the deactivation of GeT_RiGhT. The longtime duo discussed this on Twitter, and seemed to get a bit emotional in the process. “10.5 years [playing with] with f0rest. Going to be very special to see him play his first game without …
America passes Sweden in total prize money won in CSGO
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
North American Counter-Strike hit a serious milestone following ESL One New York. According to Esports Earnings, the total winnings of American players in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has eclipsed that of Sweden. This places the United States second overall in CSGO earnings, behind only Denmark. As of this writing, the United States sits at $9,249,654, while Sweden trails by a narrow margin at $9,171,578. While there may be some jockeying for …
s1mple, ZywOo, Twistzz, dev1ce among Esports Awards finalists
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Counter-Strike
The Esports Awards have announced finalists across all categories and opened the public vote. Finalists for the esports PC player of the year and esports PC rookie of the year awards feature mostly League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players, with more of the rookies playing Fortnite. Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken (CSGO) Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz (CSGO) Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev (CSGO) Luka “Perkz” Perković (League) Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng (League) Rasmus …
EG crashes out of DreamHack Masters Malmo days after ESL NY win
Nina Forneloza
Counter-Strike
Evil Geniuses, the Counter-strike: Global Offensive champions at ESL One New York, have been dumped out of Dreamhack Masters Malmo mere days after lifting that trophy. On September 30, Evil Geniuses stood on the stage as victors holding the ESL New York trophy aloft. This marked a year since a team not named Astralis or Team Liquid had been victorious at a Masters level event. Evil Geniuses had announced themselves …
EG and Liquid absorb early losses at DreamHack Masters Malmo
Nina Forneloza
Counter-Strike
Evil Geniuses caused quite a stir last week in announcing their return to both League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. They then set the esports world aflame when the newly branded CSGO team defeated Astralis 3-1 at ESL One New York, but that hasn’t helped them to avoid an early stumble in Malmo, Sweden. Evil Geniuses originally started in CS in the early 2000s and eventually shut down their …
nexa and huNter join G2 Esports after breakthrough with CR4ZY
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Counter-Strike
G2 Esports has signed Serbian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive duo Nemanja “nexa” Isaković and Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač as the team goes global. After 3 years of being a French-only team, G2 has decided to open its roster towards international waters. The organization is doing so by signing nexa and huNter, both of whom will be transferred from CR4ZY. nexa will serve as G2’s new in-game leader, while huNter is taking on …
WINNERS League Season 3 approaches as top teams set to collide
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
The talent pool in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is deeper than ever before, but rising stars don’t always get their opportunity to shine. One of the core goals of WINNERS League is fixing that by giving developing hopefuls a clear path to the top of the competitive scene. WINNERS League has three divisions for talent at each stage of their careers. Rookies and players looking to work from the ground up …
OpTic Gaming upset Team Liquid at DreamHack Masters Malmo
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
OpTic Gaming came to DreamHack Masters Malmo to prove themselves. In their first match against Team Liquid, the underdog team dominated the competition. The one-sided match concluded with OpTic Gaming victorious, 16-9. This came as a shock to the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive community. Team Liquid had just come off of a third-place finish at ESL New York, a big event where OpTic trailed behind in fifth place. Team Liquid is …
Semmler teases a potential return to broadcasting CSGO
William Davis
Counter-Strike
Auguste “Semmler” Massonat, current Overwatch League caster and a former Counter Strike: Global Offensive caster beloved by many fans, could soon return to his roots during the OWL offseason. Semmler dropped a cryptic hint in a Twitter reply to a CSGO fan pining for a Semmler return, saying that the fan in question could soon see his wish answered. “Might not have to wait too long to hear me again,” …
Cache creator reveals final changes to map before big debut
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Fans finally got a look at the updated version of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive map Cache at ESL One New York. But that wasn’t the final version of the map. After receiving some thoughts and critiques from pro players, Cache creator FMPONE took to Twitter to detail some more tweaks to the map that he has in the works. Many of these changes are fixes to minor visual and technical issues …
CSGO fans debate Terrorist and Counter-Terrorist name changes
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
While long-time Counter-Strike: Global Offensive fans don’t bat an eye at the game’s use of “terrorists” and “counter-terrorists,” these can be polarzing words to people outside of the CSGO community. Once again, the CSGO community is questioning if the names should be changed. This time, ESL’s vice president of pro gaming suggested using the terms “offensive” and “defensive” instead. A poll on Twitter currently has over 26,000 votes, and the …
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.
