Introduction

Rise to the top

You've finally caved in and let your friends talk you into trying out this whole Counter-Strike fad. If you're a longtime FiringSquad reader, you've probably made the transition between FPS games before. Switching from Quake 2 to Quake 3 wasn't that much of a stretch, but it's taking a little longer to adjust to Counter-Strike.

I've lost count of how many times an old Quake buddy has icq'd telling me how bad he is in Counter-Strike and asking for advice on how to improve. We decided to put together a little CS strategy guide for all the players that are new to the game.

For this guide, we're going to assume that you've had previous first person shooter (FPS) experience, but you should still be able to follow along if CS is your first FPS.

The lethal close range AK-47

The lethal pouncing M3

More intense

If I had to hazard a guess as to why many players have difficulty adjusting to CS, it's probably due to the quick fights, and the random weapon recoil. An assault rifle in CS fires around 11-12 rounds per second. It only takes three to five rounds to kill an opponent. Fights between good players can last for less than half a second. Not surprisingly, a fight between a single good player and a newbie also lasts for less than half a second.

Counter-Strike is kind of like clan rocket arena, but more intense because it's a lot easier to die (imagine playing Q3 rocket arena, but starting with only fifty health and no armor). Add to that the seemingly random nature of the weapons in CS and you have a very frustrated Quake player. Any good FPS player can become a good Counter-Strike player. You just have to learn to adjust.

The finenakedwhitechick...

Meets her match

Learning the flow

Once you begin to understand the weapons and how to use them, you'll be able to survive the initial firefight and play longer into each round.

Only then will you start to get an idea of how each round flows, how deaths and player movement on both sides will affect your strategy, what dangers to look out for, and what you need to do to stay alive and help your team win the round.