Project Space (Final)

Bantol, Ken

Pessin

English 114B

5/13/12

Space in Counter-Strike

            Every person in the world has a limit. Bodybuilders and athletes are physically gifted and seem to be able to do almost everything using their bodies, but they still have their own limits. Dancers and actors who perform and entertain audiences around the world are seen as free moving individuals, but they too have limits that disable them from going any further. This limit that almost acts as a boundary to every person in the world is called space. Space is the most underrated aspect of life because nobody notices it any longer. A house is made up of walls that divide one space from the other, but no one ever notices these boundaries any longer. These boundaries separate areas for the purpose of privacy, safety, but most importantly, to limit each person’s free willed in an area. Instead of walking a straight line diagonally, one must maneuver around the walls and that person cannot do anything about it. These walls in the house are like rules that one must abide by. In the past two decades, technology has risen to the top of the media and entertainment field because of the futuristic developments that always seem to amuse people. One of these futuristic developments is the video gaming industry. Kids and adults play video games to relieve stress and experience a creative and imaginative world that they are controlling with their own actions. But even these creative and imaginative worlds have boundaries or limits that cannot be broken by the player. These rules and regulations are created by space which comes to show that space is still a big aspect in video games just as much as in reality. One of the greatest games ever created and developed is Counter-Strike. It was developed by Sierra, now known as Valve, and is owned by the gaming company, Steam. It is a first person tactical shooting game that portrays the on-going reality of war between terrorists and not-terrorists. A player can choose between two teams to play with, Counter-Terrorists and Terrorists, and a spectator mode in which a player is allowed to roam around the match or the round and observe the ongoing match between the two teams. This game is played in maps that have two bases for each team and the space they must work within to beat each other.

            Counter-Strike is considered one of the greatest games ever made. It attracted many kids and teenagers, like me, right when it was released in 1999. It was the perfect game that every person was looking for. It gave them full control of a character and it was violent and perfectly portrayed how a gun is held, fired, and used. But even Counter-Strike has limits that are caused by the space provided in the maps. In the game, there are many walls that are called blind spots that disable a player from seeing the opposite player with enough time to gather himself to aim and shoot perfectly. This is why it takes a while to master the skills and aim fast and accurately at the same time. These walls are a big aspect of the game because it makes it very hard for a player to aim accurately and with a fast speed to hit the opposing player. In the video cited below, at 0:03 seconds in to the clip, we see a perfect example of walls being used in the game as a limitation or a boundary for the player. He cannot see the opposing player hiding behind the wall thus he is not aiming at a target. But once he sees the enemy come out, his fast enables him to avoid getting shot and gets the enemy with one shot from a sniper rifle (running and aiming with a scope with a sniper rifle is very hard to do and is not recommended unless you are a great marksman in the game). The wall impairs the sight of the player by hiding blocking the other part of the map where the opponent is hiding. Clearly, space is a big aspect of the game as shown in this game play.

            Another example of walls being used in space of the game is in the 0:25 second mark of the video above. The player respawns (New Round starts) in his own respected base. In this clip, we see the player buy his sniper rifle and positions himself at a spot that allows him to shoot the opponent crossing from his base to the bomb site. This spot is covered very well by the walls that it takes less than half a second for the player to see his opponent cross. The wall clearly makes a major impact on the use of space in the game because it limits the player from having all the time he needs to get settled and shoot at the opponent. The space acts as a rubric or a basis of what the player is offered or given by the game, and the player must adjust to this level of comfort. By getting used to this space, the player enhances his skills and reflexes and is able to shoot accurately in a fast speed.

            In life, we are given disadvantages that limit us from doing things that others can do. Short people have a harder time dunking the basketball than tall people, but it doesn’t mean they can’t dunk at all. The disadvantage of being short just gives them a harder time to accomplish the goal. In Counter-Strike, there are many special features that an opponent can use to their advantage against another player. One example that we can see from the video above is at the 0:32 second mark. The player is blinded by the opponents flashbang which is a grenade that releases a strong ray of light that blinds everyone who sees it explode in the air. This flashbang puts the player shown above in a disadvantage because his vision is gone completely. As mentioned before, the walls already impair the vision of the player greatly, and this flashbang makes it worse. This impairment makes it harder for the player because not only does he have to withstand the effects of the flashbang, the walls are still covering his sight right after the flashbang wears off. But as the player above shows, anything is possible and even if a person only has the slightest chance, he or she can accomplish it. The player withstands the flashbang and its aftermath effect alongside the wall, and he kills the opponent with a no scope. In life, a person has disabilities and disadvantages that others don’t have. Either physically or mentally, anyone can overcome these burdens. Whether it’s students who are mentally challenged or physically challenged and still receive their diploma, whether it’s athletes who do not have the same genetic blessing others have, or a person who comes from a poor socio-economic class and is still able to compete with others richer than him or her, we have all proven that disadvantages can be overcome, just as the player in the video shows.

            Video games are used by many to as the cause of this generation’s “dumbing down”. They attribute video games as waste of time and non beneficial to a person’s life and learning. But as shown in the gameplay provided in the video above, reality is portrayed by the video game. Space limits everyone from doing everything freely. Walls are used as boundaries in life just like in Counter Strike where it is also considered a boundary for a player. They impair the vision of a person in real life such as in the video game. Disadvantages that people experience in real life are also shown in the video game. Space is the most crucial aspect of daily life and it is the same in the video game, Counter Strike.