The Online Era and its consequences
We have delved into the current state of Counter-Strike and the ongoing Online Era and its consequences.
The Coronavirus has since its arrival affected the whole world and altered the way we live. The global pandemic and its severity have brought innumerable changes and transformations with it, and in the world of Counter-Strike, it's no different. It has meant that LAN events have been impossible to carry through due to restrictions and the danger of mass infection, which has resulted in, all Counter-Strike action being played solely online.
Difference between LAN and Online
Local area network or commonly known as LAN is a network system where all the computers are connected in the same network within a distinct area, with the example of LAN events in CS:GO often is being held in a stadium or arena.
Online events, is on the contrary being played over the internet with the players and teams located in different locations all over the world.
IEM Katowice 2020 was the last big LAN event before the 'Online Era' - Here the victors from NAVI lifting the trophy
Playing at home
One of the biggest changes has been that instead of playing all around the world in some of the biggest arenas in front of thousands of fans and supports, professional CS:GO players and teams have been constrained to play from home.
Playing at home has transformed numerous practical aspects for the professional CS:GO player. Rather than playing with a given and prearranged set up, the individual player now can play with his own computer, own mouse or his newly acquired pink headset.
Playing on their own internet connection means that players have to adjust to latency and a high ping count, which are the response rate between the server and your computer. This has a significant role for the individual player and their circumstances regarding what peeks and duels he can take during a match.
Nils "k1to" Gruhne has to let his noisy dog out of the room during a vital match against FaZe
The mental aspect
All these practical factors may seem irrelevant and trivial, but these are all very important aspects. It’s something that directly affects the mental state of mind. Playing at home in front of your own desk instead of playing in a huge arena with a massive audience offers a clear psychological change.
First of all, it removes a huge amount of pressure for the individual player because they are in a much safer environment where a potential failure won’t feel as hard as on LAN.
Something Marcelo “coldzera” David also gave his insight in at an interview last year.
“It’s much easier to play at home because you don’t have the pressure on your shoulder … and at the end of the day you will say that this was just one more game”
This is obviously different from individual to individual, as some players like coldzera described can be favoured by playing online in a more secure environment. Where a player with a different mental state, on the contrary, thrives under this exact pressure and someone who needs this big stage and a huge crowd to motivate himself and perform at his maximum.
BIG's superstar İsmailcan "XANTARES" Dörtkardeşis is a good example of a player who flourishes every time he plays online, always performing at a very high level. The Turkish player has never presented a yearly online rating under 1.20, and are by many considered as one of the very best online players in the world. Something he demonstrated in his strong performance at DreamHack Open Fall 2020.
Consequences of the Online era
The Online era has changed the power balance between the top tier teams and the lower-ranked teams. We have seen far more upsets where smaller teams have managed to take down superior teams because these before mentioned psychological factors as routine, experience and the ability to handle the enormous pressure a staging environment creates, has been removed.
Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo has given his views on this topic saying that the biggest consequence is for the future generation of Counter-Strike. FalleN believes that this will hurt the upcoming players in the future when the big LAN events return. The Brazilian IGL continues:
“Those players will never beat any good team on stage, because I think all those players even though they are excellent CS players, CS is a very mental game, and when they go to these atmospheres, they will feel the pressure, and maybe make some wrong decisions and that’s is the kind of stuff they won’t do when they play at home because the pressure isn’t there.”
See the full interview featuring FalleN, coldzera etc. expressing their thoughts on the exact topic.
LAN events is an extremely important factor for the CS:GO world, creating some of the most memorable moments in the history of the game, and something which has been hungered ever since its farewell last year. Counter-Strike isn’t complete without these events because it is exactly these events that unite the entire community down to the supporters and fans to the players and teams. Hopefully, the Counter-Strike world will soon see a LAN event again when the circumstances allow it.
When will LAN events and its important live audience return to CS:GO?
UPDATED 10th of April 2021:
