Counter-Strike cover
FranchiseHalf-LifeSeriesCounter-Strike

Counter-Strike

Critic score2 critics
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First release
Nov 09, 2000
Engine
GoldSrc
Genres
Shooter · Warfare, Action
Platforms
PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac, Linux

Counter-Strike is a team-based multiplayer tactical first-person shooter in which players join either the Terrorist or Counter-Terrorist side and compete in objective-based rounds. The primary game modes involve bomb defusal and hostage rescue, played across designated maps. Players purchase weapons and equipment between rounds using money earned from eliminations and completed objectives, and eliminated players must wait until the next round to respawn. Originally a fan-made modification for Half-Life created by Minh Le and Jess Cliffe in 1999, it was acquired by Valve and released as a standalone retail product in 2000, becoming one of the most influential first-person shooters and spawning multiple sequels including Counter-Strike: Source, Global Offensive, and Counter-Strike 2.

Also known as Counter-Strike 1.6, CS1.6, CS, Half-Life: Counter-Strike
… See more, 反恐精英, hl.exe

Attributes

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Details

Storyline, release dates, time to beat, age ratings, modes, links, keywords

Release dates
PC (Microsoft Windows)
Nov 09, 2000
Mac
Feb 14, 2013
Linux
Feb 14, 2013
Time to beatIGDB · recorded
Main Story
9h
Main + Extras
15h
Completionist
761h
Game modes
Multiplayer
Perspective
First person
Keywords
modern warfare, bloody, gravity, competitive, death
… All 69, soldier, military, steam, special forces, online, hostages, stacking, esports, user generated content, explosion, digital distribution, throwing weapons, modern military, scatological humor, human, polygonal 3d, shopping, wasd movement, non-player character, sniping, falling damage, melee, stat tracking, in-game map editor, instant kill, friendly fire, respawning, cheat code, terrorists, banned, multiplayer scoreboard, hotkey, suicide, controversy, mod origin, valve anti-cheat, particle system, weapons swap, multiplayer lan, team deathmatch, guerilla warfare, camera control, kill streak, linear gameplay, meme origin, camping, dedicated servers, inverted controls, vent crawling, dual wielding, text dialogue, strafe-jumping, no respawn, greatest hits, objective-based team gameplay, machinima, professional gaming, pc to console port, team killing, bomb defusal mode, xbox 360 backwards compatibility, humiliation, game developers choice awards 2001, e-sports

At a Glance

Critic Score
70
Main Story (IGDB)
9h
Main + Extras (IGDB)
15h
Completionist (IGDB)
761h
OverviewHow it playsMediaCommunityBehind the gameRelated

Overview

Steam review summary

Steam users rate this Overwhelmingly Positive, 170,240 reviews in all languages, recorded 16 October 2026

Valve's summary of Steam user reviews. Valve counts only reviews from purchases on Steam, not key activations, and leaves out review periods it has marked as off-topic. It isn't part of the CritScore score.

Review summary: SteamSteam data provided via the Steam Web API (opens in a new tab)Not affiliated with Valve →

Multiplayer

  • Online multiplayerSteam · 16 Oct
  • Shared or split screen PvPSteam · 16 Oct

Feature data: SteamSteam data provided via the Steam Web API (opens in a new tab)Not affiliated with Valve →

About storefront and compatibility information

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