"Counter Strike: Global Offensive" just got an update that would be beneficial to the community.
The growth of the esports industry over the past few years has been a sight to behold. Through all of the changes, "Counter Strike" has been a constant, even as "Counter Strike" transitioned into "Counter Strike: Global Offensive."
With that growth came significant investment from sponsors, event runners, teams, and more.
As is the nature of such a thing, especially in decentralized esports like "Counter Strike: Global Offensive's" money can in turn lead to cheating. Now, Valve is doing what it can in order to respond, including addressing a recently discovered exploit, as posted on their Twitter account.
'Counter Strike Global Offensive' Update
In 2020, the Esports Integrity Commission announced an investigation into a cheating scandal within the "Counter Strike: Global Offensive" esports scene, according to Game Rant.
Participants of the ESL and Dreamhack tournaments were using a newly discovered bug that is tied to "Counter Strike: Global Offensive" to take advantage of the game.
More specifically, the coaches for several major teams were using the spectator bug in order to share some information about enemy positions with their team.
The full nature of the exploit has never been detailed publicly.
The discovery of the bug would normally lead to 37 parties being sanctioned because of abuse of the exploit on 96 different maps. Those initial punishments ranged from nearly four months banned from competition and coaching, to being banned up to 36 months, as was the case of Hard Legion coach MechanoGun.
However, Valve then stepped in and laid down even harsher punishments, ultimately permanently banning four coaches for repeated offenses that were judged particularly egregious.
Now, Valve is back with the next step of its response to these "Counter Strike: Global Offensive" cheating offenses.
A new update issued by Valve enables tracking for coaches for game replays, PCGames reported.
Replay viewers will now be able to see where coaches are spectating from, as well as what they see. It does not prevent anyone from using an exploit, but it does offer a much simpler method for maintaining accountability.
As for the exploit, it is unclear whether Valve has already solved the issue.
The reason why the exact nature of the exploit was never shared publicly is likely because it allowed Valve to solve the exploit, and track its use without the cheaters knowing. Valve might have fixed the issue, or replaced it with a tracking mechanism.
At the very least, Valve wants "Counter Strike: Global Offensive" players and esports fans to know how serious it is taking this issue.
What is 'Counter Strike' About?
"Counter Strike: Global Offensive" is like the prior games in the "Counter Strike" series. It is an objective-based, multiplayer first-person shooter.
Two opposing teams, the Terrorists and the Counter-Terrorists, compete in game modes to repeatedly complete objectives, like securing a location to plant or defuse a bomb, and rescuing or capturing hostages.
At the end of each short round, players are rewarded based on individual and team performance with in-game currency to spend on other weapons or utility in subsequent rounds.
Winning rounds generally rewards more money than losing does, and completing map-based objectives, including killing enemies, gives additional cash bonuses.
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Sophie Webster
