Counter-Strike started out as a Half-Life mod that was so successful that, VALVE, (Half-Life Publisher), released it to retail shelves. But you can download it for free from http://www.counter-strike.net/. You do not need half-life to play counter-strike. It is an independent program.


Game Play:
When you first go on-line and enter the counter-strike multiplayer menu, there are hundreds of servers to choose from, as well as over 20 maps to play on. Once connected to one of your choice, you are given an option to play as The Terrorist Forces, or The Counter Terrorist Forces. There are usually between 4-16 players per server. You start out with money that you spend on weapons and other military objects such as flash bangs. Once your team has purchased all they need to go, the game commences and you are off. If you are on the counter terrorist forces, your main objective is to save the hostages from a certain location or to stop a bomb, by eliminating the other forces with a complete arsenal of weapons like rifles, shotguns, sub-machine guns, etc. Your team must communicate and figure out a strategy to stop the opposition. That's what separates Counter-Strike from other mindless "see em' kill em'" games like Unreal Tournament. Counter-Strike is overall an awesome and fast paced game with a true multiplayer/military environment.


Technology:
The counter-strike games runs off the superb Half-Life engine which happens to be one of the most easy and versatile engines out there. You can find many servers that host up to 32 players in one game which makes for extreme gameplay. Even though Counter-Strike is a mod in itself, there are actually mods for counter-strike such as Wanted, which is a old western approach to the "Counter-Strike" environment!

Out of the Half-Life series, Counter-Strike is the best multiplayer experience!!


Recommended: Yes