While essentially not a MMO, there is no doubt CS:GO has various similarities with the many online shooters available. Back in the CS 1.6 days, I skipped school just to play the game (I ain’t exactly a model kid) and had tons of fun despite always being labeled as a “camper”. I was afraid the new CS:GO will make too many changes, but once I started, I never fail to get a minimum of 5 games each day.
Unlike Diablo III where the game mechanics were overhauled to fit bursting egos while ignoring gamers, CS:GO retains almost all the functions I can remember from my past experience, which is over 10 years ago. Yes, some maps were given slightly new layouts, such as an extra stairs and walking plank in the Dust map, but these are minor tweaks which can be digested quickly.
The new updated graphics is amazing, while not up to those you see in Unreal 3 or Cry 3 games, it is still top-notch in my books. The environment and updated weapon designs do a convincing job in pulling the gamers “into the game”. New to the shooter genre? Just start by playing with the easier bot modes, which I am actually doing now. One negative thing though, it seems games are limited to 5 Vs 5. I am sure I had 10 Vs 10 the last time I played in bot maps…
CS:GO is currently scheduled to launch on 21st August 2012, on Valve’s Steam platform of course. Pricing is not confirmed, although the 15 USD tag is floating around. No matter if you are a newbie to the shooter genre, someone who likes to play shooter games casually, an old player looking to get back to the game and genre, looking for a game to play with your friends or perhaps even overwhelmed by Call of Duty or Battlefield, CS:GO is definitely a good game to get. More videos on my YouTube channel here (link).
