When I heard Counter Strike is soon getting a huge update, almost after a decade & that too for modern gameplay for console gamers as well – I’ve made up my mind to rush & buy the game. Soon after it’s released for PC players, the game made available for Xbox 360 & PS3 users as a downloadable content on Xbox Live Marketplace & PSN respectively. I am playing this game since the day it’s released & well, it’s a perfect time to explain my experience with Counter Strike : Global Offensive Review on Xbox 360.
Price on XBL : 1200 MSP (Approx Rs.1350 for MSP card buyers & Rs. 850 for Credit Card buyers! )
Download Size: 1.9 GB
Counter Strike: Global Offensive Xbox Review
First of all, I would like to say that CS: GO is not Counter Strike 2. (Not at all!)
It’s a new and improved version of Counter Strike transformed into the modern shooter & retains every entertaining aspect of the original CS Gameplay. No doubt, there are few really good additions to the gaming & advanced graphics as well as animation compelling to today’s new age gamers that brings back the glory of the CS 1.6!
Gameplay of CS: GO
The game starts of with same old gamplay style, that every one still loves & CS: Go retains its original excitement as it is & gives back the old gamers exactly what they wants. A very thin story line can be quoted as – “You are a part of team either terrorists or counter terrorists. You have to kill all the opponents or finish tasks in limited time such as planting/diffusing bomb or Rescue or securing the hostages”
Though the story line seems simple to those who have not tasted this spicy hot dish yet, let me warn you that all it takes to be dead are 3 bullets or 1 brutal headshot! But the game’s excitement specifically relies in dying itself, as after you die all you can do is be a spectator and watch your partners kill or get shot. You gear up for next round, try to seek revenge e of your killer and once you repeat the cycle, you are not leaving the game for hours.
The CT & terrorists squads have different and improved looks in most of the maps, which is a good improvement in Global Offensive. Like the previous CS game, it is very important where you aim and shoot the bullet. as if you are shooting on leg, you might need 4-5 shots to kill a man, 2-3 below shoulders & single shot on forehead! It’s quite unique with CS:GO that you should emphasize on during practice matches, because in first few days of playing, you ll end up getting killed brutally by your opponents.
As I recently bough new Xbox, I found walking and running around hard with console controller compared to PC, but within 2 days I was a pro runner but not the great shooter due to lack of practise. Now, after almost two weeks of playing – I am killing lot of crazy opponents & won several awards/medals as well. So if youa re already experienced FPS player on Xbox 360 with games like COD, Medal of Honour or Battlefield, You will find game play a sweet piece of cake, only difference being your health does not recover and you either die or win within 2 minutes.
The guns are stunning and awesome, you land in with less amount but as you get through your first game, you can buy most of good stuff. The recoil on all guns are improved and gives you realistic feel. But that might annoy you as a AWP sniper, as the lens auto-focus and recoil takes realistic time and you have to hide you head in that intense duration, or you might get a head shot yourself!
Conter Strike Maps
Counter Strike : Global Offensive puts back all those exciting maps back on the table with totally revamped graphics, which makes them more realistic. Dust, Office, Aztek, Nuke, Train & Dust 2 brings back the memories of old times and some of you might be still playing the CS 1.6 like I did.
As I said, all the maps are at their best and there are some quick improvements like addition of extra bridge in dust and so on. I only find Aztek just little blurry to shoot at longer distances but you can get over with little extra brightness on-screen.
Hitting through walls and wooden planks have changed a little bit, though it is present but it’s not visible anymore in Counter Strike : Global Offensive. Previously if you hit through wooden plans, the wood chips used to break apart & now it’s not that much visible.
Online Multiplayer Experience with Xbox Live
At first, I struggled for few minutes understanding who are bots and who are real players, as on PC you have to set up or connect server on Xbox live you are already connected with millions of XBL players and quick match will take you to multiplayer game directly.
There is a great sorting mechanism of Counter Strike : Global Offensive that puts you first with room full of bots of your equivalent skills. but soon after more quickplay players jump in, You are in the middle of online multiplayer where killings are more violent for newbies and pro rules the game. Though in quick match, it isn’t under control of who joining what game, as someday you are playing with Australians & someday with room full of Europeans.
Another multiplayer options are custom match, where you can select and customize the server for your buddies or play with friends lets you add your friends directly to the game or lets you join their game quickly. As Xbox live is paid service, the lag in the game is very rare, and you can enjoy the game at fullest extent even if you have 512 kbps broadband. Though if you are frequently planning to host the game I suggest you to get broadband connection of 1 mbps or higher. And as any usual online multiplayer game on Xbox Live, you can chat, talk, invite, kick out any gamer you want with voting system.
Though voting system is little bit very flexible & dominating, because if a new player somehow lands up against or with Pro gamers, They will kick you out because you are not performing well. So better you practice with offline mode first, before jumping in to multiplayer directly.
Offline Gameplay Improvements in Counter Strike: GO
There are supreme improvements for offline gamers, as Arms Race & Demolition rounds are specifically designed to improve upon your skills. You can choose from very easy to very hard bots to play with and trust me, anything over hard bots will kick your butt for big time.
In Arms race, You have to kill 27 opponents on the pre-designed maze like maps and first to kill that many bots is the winner. You don’t have gun choice and you get to play with all the weapons ad you move forward with kills. Similar with Demolition race, the only difference being you have to plant or diffuse the bombs real quick as the maps are smaller. (Arms race is similar in modern games such as Black Ops Gun Games, and now its in CS GO!)
You can then play classic competitive to get in to classic maps with bots and you will enjoy the game equally.
Verdict
‘Counter Strike : Global Offensive’ not just brings back the memory of old times, but it is the new version of the game, that brought millions of people in to the multiplayer gaming over a decade ago. Maintaining its uniqueness in today’s time, CS Go gives same thrill to old and new gamers on both consoles as well as PC.
The game is still tagged under beta where its makers Valve & Hidden Path Entertainment, have promised many improvements in near future targeting feature additions and resolving bugs, CS: Global Offensive is right now very enjoyable in overall gameplay. The most impressive factor remains its short life, which is fun playing again and again, But this allows users to play even if they have only 15 minutes of spare time. (Kind of no strings attached!)
The gameplay is superb, though hardcore gamers were expecting newer and higher number of maps, which might come as DLC in future. For its price point, Counter Strike : Global Offensive is worth every penny & must have in your Xbox Live collection!