Counter-Strike: Condition Zero

Rating:
Summary: Was it worth it?
Review: So, we were first told about Counter-Strike: Condition Zero back in 2000, when Counter-Strike was still a GOOD multiplayer gamer, not ridden with as many hackers, and definitely not flooded with annoying high-pitched kids telling eachother off through the voice chat feature.

As you would expect from my anger witnessed in the above paragraph, I stopped playing the game. I waited and waited to get CS:CZ, the messiah of the Counter-Strike title. So, it just so happens that the game gets pushed back a few months, and then to the next year, and then the year after that. After a while, I lost interest in the game and just assumed it would never come out; I was wrong.

So, out of no where, Counter-Strike: Condition Zero appears on the shelves of game stores everywhere -- and at a pretty unbelievable price! What's there to lose? I picked up a copy and ran home with it -- ditched my important work I had to finish at home and saved it for later, now it is Counter-Strike time! I load it up and what do I get? Well, first, for all you Linux users, it was VERY hard to get emulating correctly on WineX. If you are a Linux user and a member of the WineX community, look at the message boards because there are now posts on how to get the game running correctly. So, once I get my emulation problems out of the way, I was up and running with my game. Impressed? No, I wasn't even close to impressed. Graphics haven't improved even close to what I would have expected them to in this day and age. New content? A little: You get a few different weapons, some fixed bugs, a few new multiplayer maps, and a single player addition to the game. So, on with the single player:

It's awful. And unlike many games such as Unreal Tournament 2003, graphics were NOT saving this gameplay fault. It's not very easy to explain really, but all you do is play the role of a counter-terrorist leader trying to take down a terrorist organization from committing random acts of crime. No depth to this story here, this is no Max Payne. Overall, the single player is not a great addition to this dying mutliplayer title.

Could anything, oh ANYTHING save this game from getting one star? Something sure did save it! Multiplayer, something I haven't got into yet, is a bit out of the ordinary for Counter-Strike players. First, it DOES NOT use that AWFUL 'steam' program to connect to servers. Thank god. Second, it has implemented a nice little feature that STOPS HACKING ALMOST COMPLETELY OUT OF SIGHT!! Thank you for this, because the cheaters on Counter-Strike ruined the game for everyone, and this is the one feature of the game that I thought was worth the four-year wait. However, not much has changed at all as far as GAMEPLAY goes in the multiplayer version of this game; still your plain ol' terrorist vs. counter-terrorist game trying to defuse the bomb or rescure the hostages or whatever. And a note: if you hate Counter-Strike like I do for the same REASONS that I do (the ANNOYING, and IMMATURE players, especially all the little children with terrible net-ediquet), you will NOT be satisfied in this game. Why? Oh, simply because there's MORE of them in the Condition Zero game over the original game. Don't blow your money on this game as an excuse to leave the terrible playing environments found in the original, because this is no sollution in Condition Zero.

So, this game isn't technically advanced (in the areas of video OR audio), this game isn't offering a very stellar single player game, and the multiplayer game can be found with the FREE version of Counter-Strike minus a little of the non-friendly environments. What good is this game? Beats me. Overall, this game would have earned maybe three stars or MAYBE even four stars had it come out on time. But honestly, we DID NOT wait four years to get a game of such low quality.

Don't waste your money on this game. There's better games to be bought for this price range. You can try Max Payne 2, a great single player game. Or you can try out the warcraft series, a game I LOVE in the multiplayer scene. For a little bit more money, Unreal Tournament 2004 is possibly one of the best multi AND single player games I have EVER played in my LIFE. These are better options that will keep you occupied when you're bored and feel the need to play a video game.

Don't buy this. I hope my review has helped many concious-buyers out there :)

Rating:
Summary: average but dissapointing
Review: its not that bad of a game, but if u have the original cs dont bother. probably the best part of the game is the bot AI, sometimes they can do stupid things like kill hostages or jump off cliffs, but it is still impressive espeically on an old engine life half-life. the Ai is better than is some other games, for instance battlefield 1942. The slightly twitched graphics were also impressive, like more crates and better lighting in maps. the maps are also much more realistic with environmental changes, such as rain and realistic textures. the single-player mode wasnt that bad either, good for someone just starting out with counterstrike, but old veterans might stray.the deleted scenes were also mediocore. way 2 much bugs though and not really challenging but has interesting scripts and new weapons. Overall it was ok, but with other great shooters out there like unreal tournament and quake, it wasnt so impressive. 2 things i was mainly mad about. first the price, second no new weapons or skins in multiplayer mode.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I ordered this a year ahead of time expecting something more like HL. I was very disappointed with the "Match" format, the dash and shoot to a time schedule thing. I played it for a while the first day I got it and put it away in disgust. Call of Duty called me back.

Rating:
Summary: with those life like graphics
Review: i reacon this game is a breakthrough. The grapics are excellent, there are more weapons than the other counter strikes and if you havent got it GET IT . The A.I. will blow you away litterally. So just get it

Rating:
Summary: Laaaaaaame
Review: In hindsight, I don't know why I was so amped about this coming out. The deleted scenes component is buggy and not very challenging or exciting. I could have beaten the game in a day if it hadn't crashed on me every hour and a half. As for the single player CS mode where you team up with bots, that is somewhat fun and interesting and the only reason why this review gets two stars... but after a couple of rounds you realize you'd rather play with real people instead of bots who do the same thing over and over again. I'd rather play regular CS or perhaps work on Day of Defeat somemore. This company needs to put more time into creating something worth buying, not just a rehash of BAD games that came before it.

Rating:
Summary: For online practice only
Review: This is a good game for practicing (or beginning) online CounterStrike, if you are into that. You really can't call this a simulation by any means as the game play is frantic, with the your "bot" enemies jumping all over the place (too much caffeine I guess) You have to "buy" weapons and ammo at the start of each level or mission, which is a real pain as you only get a few seconds to do this. And speaking of time, you are on a timer to complete the missions, so no thinking at all here, just "run and gun". If you are looking for a simulation, go get Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield instead, its a far superior game.

Rating:
Summary: Casual CSer Reporting!
Review: Well Just wanted to say, Im not a hardcore CS player, however I do enjoy playing. CS CZ I was told would suck and blah blah, This can be true if your a hardcore onliner, However for you casuals there, This is great! The bots talk to you to report, the terrorists play nice so it isnt gonna be a pushover! I think my only issue is that I dont lead my bots right, so they end up dying! But the game also allows human mode bots.. where some can even go rouge and run off and shoot without following orders.

Next off, I belive this included the ORIG CS in there! I dont know.. Installed it on a new PC and after steam did its thing, I had CS and CS CZ to play! =D

I wouldnt say the game is worth 40$ however as it is CS still.. But for offline mode, its fun, graphics are great and abit of a better interface. Just be sure you have a nice video card to play.

Anyways just wanted to report. Dont listen to everyone so quick, I know it seems addicting to me to play on old maps and have a mission. ^^

Hope this helps you somewhat, but just try it and youll enjoy, or just play old CD from it. =)

Rating:
Summary: System Requirements---READ THIS
Review: First of all, Counter Strike is most certainly one of the best games out there. The action is continuous and the reply value is superb. However, if you have a Pentium III do not buy this item. I've got a III at 1 GHz and it's simply not fast enough to run this game. I'm not talking about a little bit of lag during online play. I'm talking about conditions like a continuous lag spike of over 4000 the entire time you play. (If you play counter strike, you know how impossible these conditions are.) Therefore, this game is impossible to play if you don't have a P IV. Just keep this in mind before you purchase.

Rating:
Summary: CS CZ CSucks
Review: Look: I LIKE CS. I hadn't played it in awhile, and I heard that they were coming out with a single player version. "Awesome!" I said-- imagining a game featuring the action and mechanics of CS with the in-depth missions of a Rainbow Six. That's the way it was pitched to me, at least, before it bounced around several companies.
So today, I see CS CZ in a store for the first time (which I now chalk up to my ignorance; not its launch). I buy it . . aaaaand-- the single player blows. No new weapons. Mildly improved skins. More importantly, there are no 'missions', per se-- just ridiculous parameters set on existing maps.
You thought you liked "Italy"? Well, try to play it as regular CS with bots, only-- the only way you can advance is by killing 4 guys with the AWP, 4 with the desert Eagle, and rescuing ALL the hostages. Oh, by the way-- at least five or six times, you'll be rescuing the hostages, when one of your own teammates will take a gratuitous kill on the last terrorist as you head down victory lane, sending you right back to the beginning.
The AI is great-- it starts at 'drooling retard' (your teammates will wander in front of you, oblivious to your fire) and works its way up to 'Assisted Living' (If your teammate hears an opposing player approach, and the opposing player opens fire, they MIGHT ACTUALLY shoot back). However, the terrorists have one setting: "Wall Hacker".
I haven't tried the multiplayer yet, but I didn't buy it for the multiplayer-- that I can just download for free (with the purchase of half-life).
I bought this game for a cool single player counter-terror experience, and if that's your aim-- er . . play something else. This game blows.

Rating:
Summary: what?
Review: this is insulting. people-download the mod for half life. do not pay for this.