Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
Avangar coach talks Berlin Major finals berth, mother watching CSGO
William Davis
In the battle of the Cinderella stories at the Starladder Berlin Major 2019, Avangar reigned supreme over Renegades. Avangar defeated Renegades 2-0 and will move on to the Grand finals to face the victor of Astralis vs. NRG Esports. For Renegades, the tournament is over. Avangar have been the statistical underdog throughout the tournament, but coach Dastan “dastan” Akbaev doesn’t see his team that way. “I know that we can …
Counter-Strike
AVANGAR earn spot in Berlin Major finals by beating Renegades
Steven Rondina
Avangar is the first entrant into the StarLadder Berlin Major. The Kazakh team took a strong win over Renegades in the semifinals, winning 2-0. Renegades started off Mirage strong with a successful pistol round and conversion, but a pair of losses stemming from early frags by Dzhami “Jame” Ali allowed Avangar to even the score. Both teams started to get aggressive in hopes of asserting dominance, with Renegades doing quick …
Counter-Strike
Godsent returns to esports by merging with The Final Tribe
Steven Rondina
A recognizable esports brand is making a surprise return. Godsent is being resurrected by Swedish esports organization The Final Tribe. A Counter-Strike: Global Offensive brand largely built around former Fnatic players, Godsent previously ceased operations in 2018. “The Final Tribe…today announces the official merger with the Swedish CSGO brand Godsent, founded in 2016 by Swedish three time major winner Markus “Pronax” Wallsten,” the organization said in a statement. “The Final …
Counter-Strike
dev1ce talks Astralis on Vertigo, Renegades and Avangar upsets
William Davis
Astralis took down Team Liquid in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Starladder Berlin Major, and Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz seemed to be very pleased with his team’s performance, specifically with their new approach to tactics. dev1ce spoke to WIN.gg on his team’s performance on Vertigo, a surprise pick that ended in a 16-8 stomp in their favor. “We had a lot of time to prepare,” dev1ce said. “We didn’t really know …
Counter-Strike
Vitality eliminated from Berlin Major after upset to Avangar
Steven Rondina
One of the favorites to win the StarLadder Berlin Major has been eliminated. In the quarterfinals of the Champions Stage playoffs, Avangar defeated Team Vitality in impressive fashion. Though Vitality was regarded as the better team, Avangar was able to impose their will and keep the pressure high en route to a 2-1 victory. The first half suggested that game one on Mirage would be a tight one. Vitality scored …
Counter-Strike
ESL Pro League rules could bring team exclusivity to CSGO
Steven Rondina
Big changes could be coming to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s professional scene. According to a report by Dexerto’s Jarek Lewis, the ESL Pro League is going to begin imposing heavy exclusivity requirements on participating teams in an effort to limit their ability to participate in other events. “Beginning January 1st 2020, all member teams of Pro League shall not play in other Counter-Strike leagues,” the terms read. “This means non-Valve sponsored …
Counter-Strike
Renegades run over ENCE to kick off Berlin Major playoffs
Steven Rondina
Renegades are on fire at the StarLadder Berlin Major. The Australian squad made a statement win in the opening round of the Champions Stage playoffs, shutting down ENCE Esports with a 2-0 series win. The bracket-busting loss sends ENCE Esports home in 5th-8th place. Renegades got off to a hot start on Mirage with a successful pistol round on the T side. But a B rush in the seventh round …
Counter-Strike
seized announces free agent status as Vega Squadron falls
Olivia Richman
Denis “seized “Kostin is officially a free agent. The announcement came after his being placed on Vega Squadron’s transfer list last month. He joined the team in April when Vega was attempting to rebuild its roster. But it didn’t look like the addition of seized had done much for the struggling side over those four months. The announcement came soon after Dmitry “Dima” Bandurka also declared his free agent status on …
Freakazoid goes public with professional CSGO return tease
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Ryan “freakazoid” Abadir might be getting back in the game. The veteran player took to Twitter and simply stated, “I’m coming back.” Though he did not offer any further information on his plans, this suggests that he is set to return to professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. This is welcome news for Freakazoid’s fans. Though he is best known for his one-year run with Cloud9, Freakazoid has been a steady presence …
NiP investigation supports ownership, some fans aren’t satisfied
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
WESA has released the findings of its investigation into Ninjas in Pyjamas. Ian Smith of the Esports Integrity Coalition looked into the many negative allegations made against Ninjas in Pyjamas following an explosive interview involving former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player Robin “Fifflaren” Johansson. The investigation covered almost every claim made against the organization in the months since, including mishandling of its Dota 2 team, lies made to operational staff, and …
HellRaisers benches entire roster after poor major performance
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
Shocking the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive community, HellRaisers has benched their entire roster. This dramatic change comes after a poor showing at the StarLadder Berlin Major. HellRaisers ended the New Challengers Stage with a disappointing 1-3 record, losing to FURIA, AVANGAR, and Vitality. It didn’t seem like their new roster, finalized in April, had improved the team’s performance. Christian “IoWel” Garcia Antoran and Zygimantas “nukkye” Chmieliauskas will be benched just four …
Chaos releases Swedish CSGO roster, reportedly adds Rush, Steel
Steven Rondina
News
Chaos Esports Club is looking for a fresh start in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. The organization has announced the release of its Swedish roster and indicated it is planning to start over in North America. “Starting today we will be parting ways with the current Chaos Counter-Strike roster. The teams contracts have expired and we’re opting not to renew as we look to reposition within the scene,” the organization said in …
denis rejoins Sprout, replaces mirbit for ECS Pinnacle Clup
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
Denis “denis” Howell’s return to Sprout has completed the organization’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster. denis left for BIG just under four months ago, replacing Johannes “nex” Maget while he took time off due to wrist issues. The 25-year-old CSGO pro attended four LAN events as BIG’s AWPer, despite previously playing primarily as a rifler. While the team actually did well at these events, denis didn’t seem too upset about leaving …
Conquer Gaming seeks to raise the bar for new esports organizations
Jared Wynne
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive continues to dominate the first-person shooter marketplace, as it is constantly bolstered by fresh faces, supportive brands, and of course Valve’s own devotion to continuously updating the experience for both players and viewers. The competition is far from easy, but new teams emerge each year to demonstrate their considerable skills. While they savor each minute of esports stardom, their audiences also sitting back and watching the action …
Report indicates Zeus to be replaced at Na’Vi after September
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Counter-Strike
Natus Vincere is allegedly looking for a replacement for their Counter-Strike: Global Offensive captain, veteran player Danylo “Zeus” Teslenko. According to an article published by Dexerto and multiple sources that are known to reporter Jarek “DeKay” Lewis, Na’Vi is scouting for a player that will replace Zeus after the conclusion of the StarLadder Berlin Major and BLAST Pro Series: Moscow 2019 later this month. Although there is no official confirmation …
StarLadder Berlin Major playoffs opening matches, predictions
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Only eight teams remain at the StarLadder Berlin Major. The Legends Stage has officially wrapped up and with that, the Champions Stage playoffs will soon begin. The last leg of the event will be competed under a single-elimination tournament format. The eight remaining teams were seeded and matched based on their Legends Stage records, weighted further by a dynamic ELO used by StarLadder. The Berlin Major playoffs bracket is officially …
Draken blasts Ninjas in Pyjamas, claims they lied to CSGO team
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Counter-Strike
More and more former players are coming out to air their grievances with Ninjas in Pyjamas. William “draken” Sundin has opened up about his most recent run with Ninjas in Pyjamas, which lasted just one month. According to Draken, NiP CEO Hicham Chahine and coach Faruk “pita” Pita lied in regards to his status with the team. Speaking on Twitter, Draken accused NiP of offering him a permanent spot on …
Team Liquid make Berlin Major playoffs by edging Mousesports
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Team Liquid locked up a spot in the StarLadder Berlin Major playoffs, but it did not come easy. The favorites to win the tournament scored a hardfought win over Mousesports in the final round of the Legends Stage. That sets them up with a top-eight place in the tournament, but it remains unclear if they can live up to the high expectations pinned on them. The opening game on Mirage …
100 Thieves headed to Berlin Major to start building new CSGO team
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Counter-Strike
American esports organization 100 Thieves will be returning to the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive scene. After teasing a return to the game in July, 100 Thieves founder Matthew “Nadeshot” Haag is looking to make those plans to reality. The former Call of Duty pro tweeted that he will be in attendance for the final days of the StarLadder Berlin Major to meet and scout CSGO talent. “I am so damn excited …
Astralis loses longest CSGO major game, beats CR4ZY anyway
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
Astralis are heading to the StarLadder Berlin Major playoffs, but they had to take an incredibly long road to get there. Though the team advances out of the Legends Stage with a 3-1 record, they will likely end up having played more rounds of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive than any of the teams that head to round five. That’s because Astralis competed in its second quintuple overtime game of the event, …
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.
