25 years of "Counter-Strike": from mod to world domination
"Counter-Strike," a mod that dominated LAN parties at the turn of the millennium, is celebrating its 25th anniversary. It's one of the most successful mods ever
The first beta of "Counter-Strike" was released 25 years ago.
(Image: Valve)
You have to love underdog stories, especially in the computer and video game industry. Games like "Stardew Valley" or "Minecraft", which were developed over years of blood, sweat and tears by dogged lone fighters and actually managed to take the world by storm. Doesn't happen frequently, of course. But when it does, the impact is all the more noticeable.
"Counter-Strike" is another such case. Today, it's rather hard to imagine. The latest installment, "Counter-Strike 2", is the undisputed king of online shooters, having topped the Steam charts since its release on September 27, 2023 – with more than a million players online simultaneously at any time of day or night. This was not always the case, as the beginnings of Counter-Strike could hardly be more modest.
The young student Minh Le had already made a small name for himself in the "Quake" modder scene towards the end of the 90s under the name "Gooseman". The 1998 release of "Half-Life" and its graphic style inspired him to develop a "cops and robbers" mod with a more realistic visual approach. Minh took care of everything that had to do with the game itself: programming, 3D models, parts of the map design. Meanwhile, his friend Jess "cliffe" Cliffe not only ran the official website for the game in development, but is also the voice that is constantly heard on both sides in the first versions of "Counter-Strike".
However, the mod wasn't even called that at first: according to a conversation between the two via ICQ on March 15, 1999, names such as "Counterrorism", "Strike Force", "Frag Heards", "Counter-Terror", "Terrorist Wars", "Terror-Force" or "Counter-Terrorist Forces" were among those discussed. The latter was originally Gooseman's favorite, but cliffe objected that the name was a bit long. As a result, "Counter Strike" was quickly agreed upon.
The humble beginnings
After a few weeks of tinkering, the very first beta of "Counter Strike" was released for free on June 19, 1999. It contained one game mode (Hostage Rescue), one character model each for police officers and terrorists who still looked confusingly similar, nine weapons and four levels: "cs_siege", "cs_mansion", "cs_wpndepot" and "cs_prison".
Very modest beginnings - but the result hit the online shooter scene like a strategically well-placed bomb. Spurred on by the overwhelmingly positive reaction, Gooseman, cliffe and some modders from the "Half-Life" scene, who took care of the level design, pumped out one extended beta version after another over the following months: The most popular CS map by far, de_dust, only came into play with beta 4 (November 5, 1999), together with the matching bomb defusing game variant. Even if the explosive device could still be placed freely in the level. In the meantime, Gooseman even toyed with the idea of integrating vehicles and stationary guns. However, both plans were quickly abandoned as they were incompatible with the functioning game principle.
"Counter-Strike" turns 25 (12 Bilder)
All this hullabaloo naturally attracted the attention of Valve, the company behind "Half-Life" - who quickly hired the "Counter-Strike" team, whereupon the game was officially released under the Valve banner from Beta 5 onwards. The final beta 7.1 was released on September 13, 2000, and was practically ready to go. As could be seen shortly afterward in the official release version 1.0, which saw the light of day on November 9, 2000.
The old cat-and-mouse game
With version 1.0, "Counter-Strike" was available in two versions: firstly as a regular free download, a hefty 82 megabytes thick. And secondly as a complete package called "Half-Life: Counter-Strike", which bundled the main program with the "#1 played online action game" and other extras on one CD.
The gameplay was very different from the vast majority of shooters available at the time, most of which followed the familiar "aliens are overrunning the earth, someone should stop them" design credo. Right from the start, "Counter-Strike" took a more realistic approach: terrorists against law enforcement officers (such as Navy Seals, SAS or GSG9): The one trying to do evil (holding hostages, blowing things up), the other doing their best to stop them. Both parties play very similarly, but their respective goals could hardly be further apart. And you have to be blind to have even the slightest chance in the online game. In any case, coordinated teamwork is essential - "Counter-Strike" is not a game for lone warriors seeking fame and glory.
B43B6
Every round begins with a shopping trip: Pressing the "B" button opens the shopping menu, where you can stock up on things that go bang - at least as long as your account allows. Because pistols, machine guns, shotguns, smoke grenades or bulletproof vests don't grow on trees, but have to be bought at a high price. The money required for this is earned both for successfully completing rounds and for fulfilling individual objectives, such as safely escorting hostages to the rescue zone or defusing the explosive device. However, as the countdown to the end of the round starts ticking away from the very first second of the game, and you only have a few minutes to complete your mission, it's better not to get too caught up in the shopping frenzy. Essential at this point are the keyboard shortcuts, which become second nature in no time at all: Anyone who has spent more than a few minutes with "Counter-Strike" will probably remember what "B43B6" and "B42B6" stand for*.
This unexpected economic system brings with it interesting tactical trade-offs, as you constantly have to balance spending on the weapons you currently need with your long-term savings goal: Do I settle for a weaker model this round so I can potentially afford my favorite weapon next?
Alternatively, you can pick up the guns of fallen enemies, but you have to throw away your own weapon. Because unlike in the "Dooms" and "Duke Nukems" of this world, the backs of the "Counter-Strike" figures only hold one primary weapon, one secondary gun and four grenades. As well as the knife, of course, for an absolute emergency or an accelerated sprint.
*B43B6 = purchase of the M4A1 Carbine plus extra ammunition. B42B6 = the same for the AK47 on the terrorist side.