Counter-Strike began life as a mod for Valve’s flagship first-person shooter experience, the Half-Life series. If history was a little different, Counter-Strike might have been born as a third-person isometric experience.
This time, there’s no need to rely on a time machine. Mark Mocherad, known for Dota 2 custom games such as Pure Reflex, has painstakingly recreated the quintessential Counter-Strike experience in the Dota 2 engine.
Besides the change in perspective and the low-poly map, Polystrike has CS:GO’s maps and user interface down perfectly. Players purchase equipment from the wheel menu, just like Valve’s tactical shooter, while the placement of the HUD will be immediately familiar to those who have dived into CS:GO.
The custom mod also allows for an isometric perspective, much like the base game Dota 2, or a straight top-down for more accurate aiming.
The mod has three iconic Counter-Strike maps right now: de_dust2, fy_pool_day, and cs_office. While it looks great, the game is still in closed beta, so it’s possible to find yourself stuck or take damage from forcing your way through Dust II’s double doors.
If you’re tired of watching VALORANT streams in hopes of getting your account whitelisted or if you’ve found yourself getting headaches from first-person perspectives, Polystrike might be a game you can pick up to experience CS:GO‘s famed gameplay in a new way. The game is available to play in Dota 2‘s arcade now.
