[floatleft]http://www.snackbar-games.com/images/reviews/counterstrike/cover.jpg[/floatleft]It’s always interesting to see how a game does when it is ported from PC to console. Sometimes it fails and sometimes it does really well, it just depends how well the game stands up to its flaws. In the case of Counter-Strike (CS) for the Xbox, it had both positive and negative aspects to balance it out. Most gamers will frown upon the idea of making a popular FPS PC game into a console game. Why you ask? Everyone knows that FPS games are historically much better on PC than on a console. The use of a keyboard and mouse lends itself to better controls, graphics, online multiplayer, and sound are all aspects that seem to be superior in most cases on a PC than a console. CS had these aspects going for it until “PC GAMER” came along and ruined it for everyone. This and some other reasons are why CS for Xbox is a much better played on console than PC.

Dissecting CS is not all that hard if you think about it. The PC version, which is about four years old, was a mod for Half-Life’s online multiplayer. The mod brought new weapons, gameplay, and maps to the Sci-Fi dominated FPS world at the time. CS is a game that is played with two opposing teams, The Terrorist and The Counter Terrorist (CT’s). The game has two multiplayer modes, demolition and hostage rescue. The terrorists prevent the CT’s from breaching their compound and rescuing the hostages by taking them to an extraction point in hostage rescue. Demolition splits the CT’s to defend two sites from being bombed by the terrorists. The terrorists have a designated bomb holder that must plant the bomb at a certain location. Once it’s in place, you must prevent the CT’s from breaching the area to diffuse the bomb. Counter Strike has long been a favorite game of everyone’s favorite, PC GAMER. The Xbox version of Counter-Strike has had a face lift in graphics, new maps, and an effective ANTI-PC GAMER LOCK. You are probably asking yourself “What is he talking about PC GAMER? What does that mean?” I will to get that shortly folks, I need to get some of the other things out of the way first.

[floatright]http://www.snackbar-games.com/images/reviews/counterstrike/ss03_thumb.jpg[/floatright]Being an original CS PC gamer, I was eager to get my hands on the Xbox version of this game. Hearing that new maps and a new single player mode would be added, I was anticipating its release. There are seven new maps that are included with the original seven that were ported from the PC version. The weapons and the method of purchasing the weapons has not changed a bit from its PC counterpart. The more people you kill, if you diffuse a bomb, if you detonate a bomb, if you rescue a hostage all result in gaining additional cash for better weapons.

A feature that they decided to add to the Xbox version of CS, was the online multiplayer mode through Xbox Live. This game is all about the online multiplayer by a large margin. Through Xbox Live, this makes CS un-hackable when playing with others online. Unlike its predecessor, there are no cheat codes or mods that you can input to get one headshot kills, walking through walls, god mode or any of the other numerous hacks available for the original game. Playing the PC version was one of the most frustrating experiences on earth. Many PC GAMERS would hack CS and make others playing experiences miserable. PC GAMER is the person who sits at home and plays countless hours of CS or any other game under the sun, using cheat codes, and ruining other gamers experiences. The Xbox version prevents people from having a miserable time playing CS.

If you are new to the CS world, don’t fret. The single player mode will allow you to get adapted to the world of CS. You can customize the difficulty and the number of bots you want to play against. Playing CS is quite fun and the controls are very easy to learn. Try not to compare CS to that of Rainbow Six, Splinter Cell, or even Ghost Recon. CS is a shoot em up game that is fast paced and fun. Stealth is not a factor in this game, but execution and team work are big factors in this game. The more teamwork, the more exciting and enjoyable the game gets.

[floatleft]http://www.snackbar-games.com/images/reviews/counterstrike/ss05_thumb.jpg[/floatleft]For you FPS shoot’em up fans, this game would most definitely suit your needs. CS provides a fast paced game with an enjoyable online multiplayer. CS still stays true to its roots and succeeds to bring great FPS action to the Xbox. With Xbox Live, CS has made it expandable for downloading new maps and additional content. Overall, Counter-Strike delivers great multiplayer gaming with exciting fast paced run and gun. This is a title that must be in your FPS library for you run and gun fans, my suggestion is to “GO, GO, GO!!” To your nearest EB Games and get your copy. “ROGER THAT!!”