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    Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (PC)

    Bretteo
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    Post by Bretteo Wed Apr 09, 2008 10:32 pm

    When Counter-Strike: Condition Zero was first announced three years
    ago, it seemed like a decent enough idea. The definitive first-person
    shooter mod was at the height of its popularity, so having a
    single-player game based on the winning formula sounded like a good way
    to win a new following and perhaps entice even more people to venture
    online. However, those who have been reading up on the game over the
    years know that development has been a bumpy ride. The duty of making
    Condition Zero has practically been passed around more than the
    collection basket at Easter Mass. What started internally at Valve
    Software quickly moved to Gearbox, then to Ritual Entertainment, and
    finally over to Turtle Rock Studios. Given such an unusual development
    path, Condition Zero is surprisingly enjoyable, thanks mostly to some
    remarkable artificial intelligence. Unfortunately, the game will be
    remembered as a victim of its own delays. While the core gameplay is
    timeless, Condition Zero's release is overshadowed by no fewer than
    three technologically advanced, highly anticipated shooters, which all
    cast a harsh light on what is essentially a 6-year-old game--albeit a
    classic one.

    By now, most FPS fans at least know what Counter-Strike is and have
    likely played it or have seen it. For those of you who have recently
    been paroled from a lengthy incarceration or have awakened from a coma,
    Counter-Strike is a team-based tactical shooter that pits terrorists
    versus counterterrorists in round-based match play. In the game's
    current incarnation, there are two game types--bombing and hostage
    rescue. Bombing maps require the terrorist team to plant and detonate a
    time bomb in one of two bombing areas while the counterterrorists guard
    these sites. Hostage rescue involves having the terrorists guard
    computer-controlled civilians while the counterterrorists try to rescue
    them. In practice, both game types often result in one team or the
    other being eliminated in bloody, fast shoot-outs.
    Players earn money based on their performances in the previous
    rounds, and with this money, they can buy weapons at the beginning of
    each subsequent round (and those who survive the last round keep their
    guns). The game's arsenal is based on real-life weapons, including
    Desert Eagle pistols, pump-action shotguns, AK-47 assault rifles, and
    even some exotic equipment, like tactical shields that deflect bullets.
    Single-player Condition Zero is just like the multiplayer
    version of Counter-Strike that's been played for years, only your
    teammates and the enemies are replaced by computer-controlled bots. You
    assume the role of the commander of a counterterrorist force, and you
    choose your teammates from a menu of named bots. The bots vary in
    skill, aggressiveness, choice of weapon, and tendency to cooperate with
    the rest of the team. Those with greater skill and more-powerful
    weapons cost more points to hire, but you'll earn points steadily as
    you make your way through the game's campaign.



    Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (PC) 533806_20040323_embed002

    Players earn money based on their performances in the previous rounds,
    and with this money, they can buy weapons at the beginning of each
    subsequent round (and those who survive the last round keep their
    guns). The game's arsenal is based on real-life weapons, including
    Desert Eagle pistols, pump-action shotguns, AK-47 assault rifles, and
    even some exotic equipment, like tactical shields that deflect bullets.
    Single-player Condition Zero is just like the multiplayer
    version of Counter-Strike that's been played for years, only your
    teammates and the enemies are replaced by computer-controlled bots. You
    assume the role of the commander of a counterterrorist force, and you
    choose your teammates from a menu of named bots. The bots vary in
    skill, aggressiveness, choice of weapon, and tendency to cooperate with
    the rest of the team. Those with greater skill and more-powerful
    weapons cost more points to hire, but you'll earn points steadily as
    you make your way through the game's campaign.



    Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (PC) 533806_20040323_embed003

    The campaign is divided into six "tours of duty," each of which
    consists of three maps, thus offering you a total of 18 maps for
    gameplay. Most of the maps are drawn from Counter-Strike's classic
    collection, so veterans will be familiar with classics such as Dust,
    Aztec, and Italy. Some of the maps have been tweaked greatly, however.
    For example, Militia is now vastly different from the map longtime CS
    players are familiar with. The above-land approach from the
    counterterrorist spawn area to the house has been shortened and adorned
    with additional rocks to hide behind, thus making life more difficult
    for terrorist snipers. A handful of new maps have also been included,
    like Stadium, a multilevel demolitions map that features a lot of
    narrow hallways and stairwells. Fastline should also be new to PC
    players, since it was borrowed from the Xbox version of Counter-Strike.
    It's a very small bombing map, set in a Tokyo subway, that encourages
    quick rounds and a frenetic pace.
    Beating each map requires you to win at least three rounds
    against the terrorists, and you must be ahead of the terrorists by at
    least two successive wins while also completing a number of special
    challenges. These challenges usually involve getting a certain total
    number of kills, getting kills with a specific weapon, rescuing
    hostages, and/or winning a round under a certain amount of time. You
    don't have to complete all these challenges within the three rounds, so
    if you're beating the terrorists 3-1 and still have a challenge left
    unfulfilled, the match will continue until you've satisfied all the
    requirements.

    The challenges vary with the difficulty level, as does the rate at
    which the terrorist team ramps up in skill and number. At the easiest
    difficulty level, you'll have few prerequisites, and the ones that are
    there are simple to accomplish. At the expert difficulty level,
    however, you'll be asked to perform some particularly tough feats, such
    as getting a knife kill and surviving the same round. For veterans of
    CS, the normal difficulty level won't be much of a challenge, but the
    two higher difficulty levels offer some pretty decent challenges,
    thanks to the surprisingly good bot AI.


    Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (PC) 533806_20040322_embed004

    The bot AI in most first-person shooters is laughably bad.
    Counter-Strike provides even more challenges for programmers who are
    attempting to design capable bots because of the relatively complex
    tasks these bots must perform. At any rate, we were pleasantly
    surprised by how clever the bots on both sides were in Condition Zero.
    Teammates communicate with you constantly by voice by telling you where
    they are, what they're doing, and if they've spotted an enemy. If the
    bomb carrier falls, bot CTs know to camp the dropped bomb, and the
    remaining terrorists are aware that they need to pick up the bomb to
    complete the mission. Terrorists on hostage rescue maps know that once
    a certain amount of time has elapsed, patrolling or camping hostage
    rescue points is an important strategy. They'll also plant bombs behind
    boxes and other defensible positions. All the bots seem to be
    programmed to know each map intimately and will crouch on top of good
    spots or will lie in wait behind strategic corners, just like an
    experienced human player would. Even more remarkable is that you'll see
    bots breaking windows and jumping down from high ledges to purposely
    reach other areas more quickly--even at the expense of incurring a bit
    of falling damage.
    The bots aren't infallible, though. Occasionally you'll spot
    one getting hung up temporarily on some geometry. We've also seen the
    terrorist bots abandon planted bombs, thus allowing CTs to sneak in and
    defuse them without a fight. To be fair, we've also seen many human
    players make the same boneheaded mistakes over the years. Overall, the
    bots are remarkably human--and varied--in their behaviors. Some
    teammates will respond to your commands, while others insist on forging
    their own paths, which isn't terribly different from human teammates
    either. It's too bad there's no way to play as the terrorist side on
    these maps, but assuming you're willing to retry the game on higher
    difficulty settings after beating it on normal, there's decent value
    here.
    Adding to the game's aesthetic significance is the fact that a
    special "deleted scenes" mode has been included. These deleted scenes
    actually comprised the single-player campaign that Ritual was working
    on before game development was handed off to Turtle Rock. While the 12
    missions here are pretty fleshed-out--with scripted sequences and dense
    amounts of action--the deleted scenes, as a whole, feel like clichés.
    To anyone who's played shooters for years, the deleted scenes seem like
    flashbacks to the shooters of 1999 and 2000, so you'll immediately know
    why Ritual's project was canceled. While it's nice to have this extra
    content, your decision on whether to buy Condition Zero shouldn't hinge
    on it.



    Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (PC) 533806_20040322_embed005

    As far as multiplayer goes, the game is the same Counter-Strike that
    most of us have been playing for years. There's not much else to say
    about it other than that it's still the world's most popular shooter
    for a very good reason--it's got a classic, timeless design. However,
    the fact remains that it's still a freely downloadable mod for
    Half-Life owners, so it's difficult to say that multiplayer here is
    much of a value-added element.
    The highlight of Counter-Strike: Condition Zero is clearly the
    bot AI. The bot behavior, while not perfect, is remarkably lifelike.
    And at the higher difficulty settings, it will provide at least a
    decent challenge for most shooter fans. Unfortunately, you're limited
    to playing as the counterterrorist side in the tour of duty campaign.
    While some maps have been prettied up a bit, the graphics are still
    basically the same as ever, which is to say, they're dated. At least
    the sound has held up well and is still great. In the end, Condition
    Zero is a product that will appeal most to those players who haven't
    tried CS yet (and how many of them are there?), those who don't want to
    deal with the hassles of playing the game online, and those who just
    want to have some offline practice. For those of you who are already
    playing Counter-Strike online (let alone finished with playing
    Counter-Strike online), there isn't much reason for you to own
    Condition Zero, because it's basically the same thing you're already
    playing.


    Last edited by Bretteo on Sat May 10, 2008 8:47 pm; edited 1 time in total
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    Post by DeTekT Fri Apr 11, 2008 8:03 pm

    really good game this but source is better Wink
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    Post by Hybrid Wed May 07, 2008 11:26 pm

    Nice Very Happy
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    Post by Bretteo Wed May 07, 2008 11:39 pm

    Thanks
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    Post by Hybrid Tue May 13, 2008 9:20 pm

    No prob
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    Post by clmmlv Fri Jun 13, 2008 2:22 am

    is this game really cool or what?
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    Post by Zabraton Thu Jul 03, 2008 11:28 pm

    I have played it but i prefer 1.6!
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    Post by Bretteo Fri Jul 04, 2008 8:06 pm

    Yeh it isnt bad, but other versions are pretty good aswell. if your going to play the game i wouldnt pickthis version of it personally.

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