Counter-Strike vs Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Counter-Strike is an FPS strategy game from Valve (2000) while Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is an FPS strategy game from Valve (2012).
Quick answer: Counter-Strike rates higher, 8.8 to 8.4 on the GamingPickz Score, and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is the cheaper at Free.
What each one is
Counter-Strike is filed under FPS and Strategy. In contrast, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive under FPS and Strategy.
Play the world's number 1 online action game. Engage in an incredibly realistic brand of terrorist warfare in this wildly popular team-based game. Ally with teammates to complete strategic missions. Take out enemy sites. Rescue hostages. Your role affects your team's success. Your team's success affects your role.
For over two decades, Counter-Strike has offered an elite competitive experience, one shaped by millions of players from across the globe. And now the next chapter in the CS story is about to begin. This is Counter-Strike 2.
Story, characters and reception
Reception
Counter-Strike is considered one of the most influential first person shooters in history. The series has a large competitive community and has become synonymous with first person shooters. As of August 2011 , the Counter-Strike franchise has sold over 25 million units. (Wikipedia)
Reception
Reception Counter-Strike: Global Offensive received generally positive reception from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic . Since the game's release, Global Offensive has remained one of the most played and highest-grossing games on Steam. The game has remained very popular since release, reaching a new record of 1. (Wikipedia)
At a glance
| Counter-Strike | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 8.8/10 | 8.4/10 |
| Steam rating | Overwhelmingly Positive (97%, 261,499) | Very Positive (86%, 9,826,211) |
| Critic aggregate | 88/100 | 83/100 |
| Price | $9.99 | Free |
| Install size | — | 85 GB |
| Steam Deck | playable | playable |
| Released | 2000 | 2012 |
| Developer | Valve | Valve |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Counter-Strike vs Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Counter-StrikeFPS strategy gameCounter-Strike: Global OffensiveFPS strategy gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Counter-StrikeAction, FPS, ShooterCounter-Strike: Global OffensiveFPS, Shooter, CompetitiveThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Counter-Strike ✓Score 8.8 · 97% on Steam · 88 criticCounter-Strike: Global OffensiveScore 8.4 · 86% on Steam · 83 criticThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Counter-Strike261,499 reviewsCounter-Strike: Global Offensive9,826,211 reviews · 1 add-on · 85 GBReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Counter-Strike$9.99Counter-Strike: Global Offensive ✓FreeRead live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Counter-StrikePlayableCounter-Strike: Global OffensivePlayableValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Across the rounds a number can settle, it is level at 1 each. Which one is "better" is the part no figure decides, so we leave it to what you want from the two.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueCounter-Strike and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The higher-rated of the two: Counter-Strike (GamingPickz Score 8.8)
- The cheaper right now: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (Free)
- The safer bet by weight of reviews: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (9,826,211 reviews)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
ActionFPSMultiplayerShooterTeam-BasedFirst-PersonCompetitiveTactical
Where they differ
Classic1990'sOld SchoolSurvivalScore Attack1980s
Online Co-OpCo-opWarDifficultTradingRealistic
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Counter-Strike is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is demanding, for players who want a challenge.
System requirements, side by side
| Counter-Strike | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum GPU | — | Video card must be 1 GB |
| Minimum CPU | — | 4 hardware CPU threads - Intel® Core™ i5 750 |
| Minimum RAM | — | 8 GB |
| Install size | — | 85 GB |
Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Counter-Strike · Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 4 accessibility features for Counter-Strike and 6 for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
If you like one, also try
Common questions
How different are Counter-Strike and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive in scope?
Counter-Strike has drawn 261,499 Steam reviews. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has drawn 9,826,211 Steam reviews, ships 1 add-on and installs in 85 GB.
Is Counter-Strike or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Counter-Strike rates higher (8.8 to 8.4). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Counter-Strike or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive?
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is cheaper right now at Free, against $9.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Should I get Counter-Strike or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive?
Counter-Strike rates higher, 8.8 to 8.4 on the GamingPickz Score, and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is the cheaper at Free. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
All comparisonsHow we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.