Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO) is a multiplayer first-person shooter video game developed by Hidden Path Entertainment and Valve Corporation. It is the fourth game in the Counter-Strike series and was released for Windows, OS X, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 in August 2012, while the Linux version was released in 2014.
The game pits two teams against each other: the Terrorists and the Counter-Terrorists. Both teams are tasked with eliminating the other while also completing separate objectives. The Terrorists, depending on the game mode, must either plant the bomb or defend the hostages, while the Counter-Terrorists must either prevent the bomb from being planted, defuse the bomb, or rescue the hostages. There are nine game modes, all of which have distinct characteristics specific to that mode.
Global Offensive has matchmaking support that allows players to be matched with others for competitive and casual games. A competitive mode exists in the game that is available for players who have attained the rank of Private Rank 3 or above.
The competitive mode pits players against each other in team-based matchmaking. It is similar to Counter-Strike: Source's competitive mode, with a few notable changes:
Players now have a total of three minutes to complete a round, down from five minutes.
The number of rounds in a half has been decreased from fifteen to thirteen.
The bomb timer has been decreased from forty-five seconds to thirty-five seconds.
The respawn time for players has been decreased from five seconds to three seconds.
Players now only receive full ammo at the start of rounds, and not when they respawn.
The buy menu has been disabled in Competitive mode.
The warm-up period has been removed in Competitive mode.
Players can now vote to have a match restarted if there is a player disconnection or
an unforeseen technical problem.
The UI has been updated to show the player's rank and score, as well as the team's score.
The scoreboard now shows the players' ranks.
Players now have the ability to mute other players in matchmaking.
The matchmaking system has been updated to better match players of similar skill levels.
Players will now be able to queue for Competitive matches in any game mode.
The game mode for Competitive matches has been changed to 5v5. The map pool has been
updated for Competitive matchmaking.
Global Offensive has a ranked matchmaking system which is similar to the elo system in other competitive games. The game also has a casual mode and a Demolition mode. In casual mode, players automatically receive body armor and defusal kits and gain bonus rewards for each round that they win. In Demolition mode, players take turns attacking and defending two bomb sites, with each round lasting for two minutes.
Global Offensive also features a number of new weapons and equipment not seen in previous installments, most notably the molotov cocktail and the Zeus x27 taser.
