A Very Sub-par, Single-player Focused Counter-Strike
Counter Strike: Condition Zero sounded somewhat appealing to me on paper - a single-player focused story that could weave a tale within the CS universe. What I encountered instead was a boring, repetitive story mode with predictable mission structure and brainless enemy AI.
The campaign, from what I played, is very disappointing. There doesn't seem to be any coherent plot, so you're just running around doing single-player missions for no reason at all. The diversity of tactics that fuel CS gameplay is so watered down that it frankly doesn't even exist. It plays like a poor version of an original "Call of Duty" title, but at least in those games you have some sort of consistent mission and theme. Here, its essentially a mission pack that proves itself to be fairly basic, boring, and asinine.
There is very little character design, and the levels are appear muddy and washed out. There are cliche hostage rescue missions, escort mission, and "sneak in unnoticed and take everyone out" type missions. The game is flavorless - it functions, but there is no soul behind it.
The audio is at least pretty good, even despite the other technical limitations. With more polish and work put into this title, it really could have served as a stand-out, smash-hit for Ritual, Turtle Rock, and Valve, but alas it was squandered and remains as a very forgettable CS experience. In the end, I would Not Recommend playing Counter-Strike: Condition Zero unless you are a very big CS fan and are desperate for some old-school content.
Final Verdict: 4/10 (Below Average)
Counter Strike: Condition Zero sounded somewhat appealing to me on paper - a single-player focused story that could weave a tale within the CS universe. What I encountered instead was a boring, repetitive story mode with predictable mission structure and brainless enemy AI.
The campaign, from what I played, is very disappointing. There doesn't seem to be any coherent plot, so you're just running around doing single-player missions for no reason at all. The diversity of tactics that fuel CS gameplay is so watered down that it frankly doesn't even exist. It plays like a poor version of an original "Call of Duty" title, but at least in those games you have some sort of consistent mission and theme. Here, its essentially a mission pack that proves itself to be fairly basic, boring, and asinine.
There is very little character design, and the levels are appear muddy and washed out. There are cliche hostage rescue missions, escort mission, and "sneak in unnoticed and take everyone out" type missions. The game is flavorless - it functions, but there is no soul behind it.
The audio is at least pretty good, even despite the other technical limitations. With more polish and work put into this title, it really could have served as a stand-out, smash-hit for Ritual, Turtle Rock, and Valve, but alas it was squandered and remains as a very forgettable CS experience. In the end, I would Not Recommend playing Counter-Strike: Condition Zero unless you are a very big CS fan and are desperate for some old-school content.
Final Verdict: 4/10 (Below Average)