Curious what Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) is all about? Here’s all Information for the game from IGN’s latest video.

What is CS:GO?

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (also known as CS:GO or CSGO) is the third and latest installment in Valve Software‘s critically-acclaimed Counter-Strike series, which is arguably the most popular and successful multiplayer first-person shooter on the PC in history and has dominated the online action market for more than a decade.  It uses the Source engine and is slated for release in the first quarter of 2012 (in Valve Time that is), and will be available on PC as well as Xbox 360 (on the Xbox Live Arcade) and PlayStation 3 (on the PlayStation Network).  It is intended to appeal to both casual and competitive gamers.

The Basics

• Title: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
• Developed by: Valve Software, Hidden Path Entertainment
• Published by:  Valve Software
• Platforms:  PC, Xbox 360, PS3, Mac
• Game Modes:  Casual and Competitive
• Map Types:  Both defuse (de_) and hostage (cs_) maps will be returning
• Release:  Q1 2012
• Engine: Latest Source engine (Portal 2)
• Beta: first wave of closed beta keys to be given out at PAX and Eurogamer in late August / early September

Confirmed Features / Information

IMPORTANT:  The game is in pre-beta status at the present time and is still heavily under development, so many of these features may change before beta or release, but at the time of writing they were indicative of gameplay in the current build.  All facts can be sourced from the articles and videos in the reference list at the bottom of the page.

• Matchmaking system for teams and individuals (with Elo rating system)
• Focus on competitive 5v5 play and eSports
• Ranked servers run by Valve (Competitive mode only)
• Dedicated servers run by players (Casual mode only)
• LAN support confirmed
• Ranked / Ladder play for both individuals and 5 man teams (Competitive mode)
• Bullet penetration through some walls / materials / objects
• Classic CS gameplay – no ironsights
• Competitive and Casual modes
• Gameplay derived from both CS 1.6 and CS: Source with new twist
• Weapons have been rebalanced to make weapon selection more interesting (so that players use more than the typical AK, M4, AWP, and Desert Eagle)
• Beta is on PC only, starts in early September as a closed beta
• Defuse and Hostage maps
• Molotov grenades: create a pool of fire on the ground which slows movement speed of players crossing it and causes area of effect damage
• Decoy grenades: emit fake weapon firing sounds to confuse enemies about your team’s position
• New money system / weapon and equipment prices
• Kevlar and helmet cannot be purchased, are given at beginning of every round like ammo
• Ammo doesn’t need to be bought (like CS:S)
• SourceTV not currently a priority
• Forced DirectX 9 for everybody (for balance); DX10+ not supported
• Flashbangs behave like in 1.6 – if you face away, you aren’t blinded for very long
• Classic weapons return, but have been changed / rebalanced
• New shotgun
• New taser melee weapon – one use only, one hit kill
• New heavy machine gun rifle
• New pistols
• Models and hitbox sizes slighty reduced from CS: Source
• Valve wants to support cross-platform play (if permitted by Sony / Microsoft)

Confirmed Maps

• de_dust2
• de_dust – layout significantly changed (new paths)
• de_aztec – minor changes to layout
• de_nuke – some layout changes
• de_inferno – some layout changes
• de_train – only has one bomb site now
• cs_ hostage maps confirmed, but unknown which will be returning

That’s about it.