After signing up for access to the pre-release Beta for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive a number of months ago, I recently received access to the online sequel to one of the most popular PC shooters in the past ten years, and I can happily tell you that it's been worth the wait.
I was an avid fan of Counter-Strike: Source. Whilst I didn't play it as much as other particular users (sorry that I don't know precise movement instructions or location codes for each map guys, I guess I'm a failure at life, right?), I enjoyed it enough to keep going back to it for seven years. It was immensely enjoyable, offering a number of features that I felt made it stand out from other shooters. Tactically positioning yourself whilst conversing with your team in order to gain the upper hand in a shoot-out or creating a significant distraction in order to let your team-mates rescue some hostages was deeply satisfying, and when I heard a sequel was on the way, I was extremely pleased.
The first thing that struck me about Global Offensive was definitely the graphics. I know, I know, graphics don't make a game, but HOLY SHIT, SHINY! I mean, the beta comes with classic maps, including CS_Office, which I played constantly when I first got Source, and to see the familiar environment with a completely update graphics engine is enough to set me on nostalgia overload. A big change (in my opinion) also comes in the form of the weapon selection menus. Rather than giving us the previously established rectangular windows, with weapon purchase buttons laid out in order of power and price, we are given a wheel of sub-categories, such as Pistols, Heavy, SMG and Rifle. Whilst it isn't a drastic difference, it was certainly noticeable.
As for the gameplay itself, it's....well....Counter-Strike. I can't really think of a better way to describe it. The controls are all the same as before, the actions you take are the same. You still save hostages or defuse/plant bombs or merely shoot the crap out of anyone that comes around the corner. This is definitely not a bad thing. People sometimes want change, but Global Offensive certainly seems to be following the opinion that "if it isn't broken, don't fix it". Sure, there are changes to certain things. The cross-hair is different (though, you can switch to classic in the options menu), the team scoreboard looks different, but all in all, this is familiar to anyone who has played the previous installment.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is expected for release during Summer 2012.
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