Counter-Strike

"If you have Xbox Live, get this game, otherwise don't bother"

Counter-Strike for the PC has brought months of entertainment and many sleepless nights to me. Counter-Strike for the Xbox has taken everything in the original CS, and perfected it for the Xbox. For those of you who don’t have CS for PC, but have an Xbox, this game is for you. Hell, even if you have the PC version I think it’s still worth it to get this game! Allow me to fill you in if you’ve never played CS: the players are split into two teams, the terrorists, and the counter-terrorists. Each team has their own unique weapons and different objectives depending on the map. For example, the terrorists try to bomb a targeted site with a C4, and the counter-terrorists try to prevent the site from being bombed. There are other scenarios (like hostage situations), but I don’t want to waste time going over that.

Offline Gameplay

I pity da foo’ who don’t have Xbox Live, I pity da foo’! This game shines the most online, and playing on single-player mode is fun for an hour or two, then it gets incredibly boring and the bots get very predictable. First off, there are four difficulties: beginner, standard, professional, and expert; respectively from easiest to hardest. When playing offline, the player competes against bots (AI controlled players) on the selected level. On beginner, the bots can’t tell the difference between their butt and a hole in the ground. On expert, they are god-like, I couldn’t get but a few kills on expert mode. Find the level that is best for you and get crackin’!

Online Gameplay

This is where that thing I said about sleepless nights kicks in. This game is unbelievably addictive. The second you start playing online, you will never want to play with those dumb bots again! Also, servers are set to a certain difficulty by the admin, so if you suck, you won’t be stuck with a bunch of uber 1337 players. The only real downside about the Xbox version is the lack of mods and customs maps, and of course the occasional screaming 8-year-olds. Hopefully somebody will eventually make a map-builder and/or mods. Until then, enjoy this game, it’s the most online fun you can handle without combusting.

Controls

Now for the controls. All the weapons in Counter-Strike 1.6 are in the Xbox port, the buy menu is MUCH easier to use than in the PC version, but then using the analog stick is a big pain in the ass compared to using the mouse. Overall, the pros and cons for the Xbox and PC versions weigh out evenly, and owning either version of CS is a great buy.

Graphics

I was hoping for a bit more than I got. All your favorite maps from the PC version were upgraded with incredible detail. The guns are more realistic-looking, and the player skins have been modified too. The only real complaint here is the blood sprays that look unbelievably fake.

Playtime/Replayabilty

You’ll be picking up this game a year from now. What else do you expect from an online game?

Overall Score: 7/10

Like I said before, this game is all the greatness of the PC version, but perfected in every way possible on the console. Go buy this game now if you have Xbox Live capabilities, seeming that single player is utter crap, you won’t regret it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/24/03, Updated 12/30/03