Counter-Strike: Classic Offensive maps revealed

The creator of Counter-Strike: Classic Offensive (CSCO), ZooL, has revealed the initial set of maps that will be featured in the project's upcoming release. The announcement comes just days before the anticipated Wednesday launch of the mod that aims to bring back elements of classic Counter-Strike games, particularly CS Source.

Counter-Strike: Classic Offensive has been developed as a mod for CS:GO, meaning which, a local install of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is required to run the game. In recent developments, ZooL mentioned that the game could run from the same app-id as Counter-Strike 2 but then revealed that the project would also come with it's own launcher to make things easier.

Legend: Top left

• White logo: Full remake

• White + Orange: Map edited from Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

• White + Purple: Map edited from Counter-Strike: Source

Zool's map reveal gives players their first look at the game's color palette in terms of content variety. The selection appears to focus on delivering authentic recreations of classic maps and game-modes that were popular in previous Counter-Strike iterations.

Counter-Strike Classic Offensive is expected to arrive this Wednesday, though it remains unclear whether this will be a playtest or the full release. The project has generated significant interest among long-time Counter-Strike fans for its promise to recreate the feel and gameplay elements of earlier titles in the franchise.

In a Valve-esque post on X a couple of days back the official Counter-Strike: Classic Offensive account (@csco_dev) asked "What are you doing next Wednesday?" resembling a post from the official Counter-Strike account ahead of Counter-Strike 2's full release. Valve however, did not follow through with their post and delayed Counter-Strike 2's full release by a couple of days.

The timing of this unveiling suggests final preparations are underway for the Wednesday release. For many veteran Counter-Strike players, CSCO represents an opportunity to revisit the gameplay mechanics and map designs that made the earlier versions of the game so beloved.

Having initially given the green light to keep working on the project while adhering to the Source Engine Distribution Guidelines, Valve allegedly pulled the mod's Steamworks page and retired the project from the platform without a word with the developers. ZooL's post at the time, gained a lot of traction.