Misc CS:CZ/Steam questions.

[Dave_07]

Hey all,

General questions really,
First off, The CS:CZ launch party was recently held, so it can't be too long before the final version is released to the general public. (The screene's look gr8 btw, I like the sheild idea) Will the final game be retail only or could you download it, like and update so-to-speak ? Oh aswell, is cs:cz a mod of hl1, a fully stand alone party, ie you don't need hl to play it, or is it a mod of hl2 ? If it's not a mod of hl2/hl1 and is a fully standalone ver, will it be compatible with hl2 when it is released, Valve maybe releasing and update to make it compatible with hl2 possibally ?

Also im abit puzzeld over this cs 1.5 and 1.6 stuff, I understand 1.5 = none steam, eg played as a mod of hl, & 1.6 = the steam version, and they are not inter-changeable.
However when trying to locate servers to play on, through the 1.5 ver, in the "Internet games" server list section of 1.5, gives zip. No servers found, also the same with tfc etc. Has Steam fully taken over now as the only method of playing these game types now then ?
I haven't read any news of it anywhere.

Ps, what ever happed to the GameSpy platform for playing above mentioned games ??

Cheers, Dave.

[directhex]

number 1, CS 1.5 and 1.6 have a number of gameplay differences. you're right about 1.6 being Steam only though. The old WON servers (for 1.5) haven't been shut down yet as far as I know, but everybody more or less has migrated onto the new system now.

CS:CZ is a Half Life mod, but a commercial one -and therefore it is likely tocome in standalone form much like retail Counterstrike or Blue Shift.

You can't buy it for a while yet, and it will be available for purchase on CD or directly via Steam (i.e. they charge you less & you just get a CD Key, downloading all of the content as requred automatically).

As with part of the premise of Steam, you don't need everything to play a Steam game. if you're licensed to use a particular Steam title (let's say Deathmatch Classic) then Steam will let you get it (after you give your license i.e. HL CD Key) and it works on its own - the only dependancy is Steam. CSCZ will appear in there as well, and HL2 will appear alongside it.

As for gamespy, that still exists & works fine with old Half Life-based systems or new Steam based ones. or use al alternative app like All-Seeing Eye

[unrealrocks]

CS:CZ - Is based on the HL1 engine and is a standalone product AFAICS.

There is roumous of a CS2 which will be on the HL2 engine although I'm not sure if this is true!

[Dave_07]

As cs:cz has online playability, is it going to replace the old cs then ? eg versions 1.5/1.6 or is it just gonna be another game that can be played along side the old cs (1.5/1.6)
What are the game play differences between 1.5 & 1.6 ?

Also is Steam to become the new WON then ? eg The new main major engin or method of playing ALL sierra hl like (first person shooter) online games ? It's either steam or nothing... apart from the other smaller server browsers eg All seeing eye, gamespy arcade etc, which don't offer the kind of support a valve/sierra produced server browser dose.
As I thought steam was more of a side step to something greater, for the mean time.

Dave.

[directhex]

all the games still need a master server, and the WON master server has had its death warrant signed - after the WON server goes down then no WON-based games will work anymore, Gamespy or not.

CS:CZ isn't going to replace CS 1.6, it's another product on the same franchise, mjuch like Unreal & UT.

the current Steam client is pretty unfinished, a more final client will be released at the same sort of time as CSCZ in preparation for HL2

[Dave_07]

What problems still remain in steam ?

Cheers, Dave.

[directhex]

high memory requrements, lack of store, noted performance issues with the new HL1 engine that Steam uses

[Dave_07]

Lol the hl1 engine is the core of steam, you would think valve would have put off release of steam untill they got a seemingly fundamental part of it right.
And high mem requrements is sign of bullky opperation..
another thing which is usually fixed early on in patch releases, and yet it still remains.

How long do you guys thing it will take valve to get steam to a acceptable standard ?

Dave.

[directhex]

as long as they need, really. patches are released weekly, and things have certainly improved since release

[G4Z]

sorry accidental post, igonre/delete