CS-Nation

Covering the future of Counter-Strike
cs hold 'em
article: cs hold 'em
We've all seen it on TV, flipping past The Travel Channel or ESPN. We've all seen it in our friend's kitchens and our parent's basements with online gambling. Celebrities are playing it. Your mother may be playing it. Even your dog can play it! Is it Counter-Strike? Depending on what world you live in, possibly, but not likely. But more than likely it's the newest psedo-sport craze on the block: Poker.

One might ask, rightfully so, "Why are you writing about poker? Isn't this website CS-Nation?" Indeed, we're a Counter-Strike fan site, so why on Earth would I waste my time discussing the rise of poker? How on Earth could chips and playing cards have anything to do with this game? To be honest, it doesn't deal with Counter-Strike specifically, but eSports as a whole.

eSports has been a growing 'genre' for years now. Teenagers, and even some adults, who enjoy competition can do so by playing computer games. With the miracle of the Internet, eSports has fostered its own community and a massive following. But so has poker — Texas Hold 'em has a massive Internet following due to the quasi-legality of poker.

If you type poker into a search engine or just happen to be browsing any websites, chances are good that you'll see an advertisement for an online poker room. Since the majority of these rooms operate away from US shores, under 21 (but over 18) gamblers have a chance to make money. But why is poker so popular?

In short, because it has a small learning curve. "But Sublyme," you cry, "CS has a huge learning curve! I don't understand how you can make that comparison!" Competitively speaking, yes, Counter-Strike has a huge learning curve; however, poker is almost exactly the same in the fact that it's easy to pick up and entertaining to play amongst friends but very difficult — or even impossible — to master.


PWNED
Counter-Strike is said to be the most popular computer game in the world. Thousands upon thousands of servers are filled all the time with people screaming into microphones and firing pretend guns. For as many gaming servers as there are, I can almost guarantee 10 times as many poker tables are in play — both online and off.

What makes people play poker so much? To be frank, I lean towards human nature. Inherently, people like competition. Almost anyone can play in a satellite tournament (a small tournament in which the winner gets entry to a bigger tournament) for as cheap as $1. With some skill (and luck), it can be parlayed into a $10,000 entry to the World Series of Poker. If, by chance, the lucky entrant can outlast his field, he just may walk away $10 million richer.

Do you play poker?
Yep
Nope, mama said not to gamble
Poker? I hardly know her!
I'm a frequent poker player these days. I used to be hooked on Counter-Strike and playing competitively, but somehow it lost a lot of its flare for me. Why? Because I was investing a great deal of time into a game with too large of a field and not enough of a return.

Always a competitive person, I decided to invest more of my time into my card playing habit and be a more sociable person, which has lead me to become a pretty solid tournament player. I write for Team 3D on the side as well, and I've mentioned it in passing to Torbull that we need to create a 3D poker division, as that's where the real money would be at. He hasn't given in yet, but give me some time and you'll see KSharp on The World Poker Tour on The Travel Channel.

That's where events like the CPL and WCG come into play. Teams of amateur and professional gamers can pony up the money to play in a tournament and, if they're lucky, win a little something-something as well. There have been professional poker players for decades, if not longer, but professional gamers are still a new breed. Nonetheless, they go hand in hand, albeit with smaller cash purses for the gamers.

So what will make eSports realize its potential? Well, for starters, there is a bit of an issue in regards to hardware. Being forced to constantly update your video card and machine is a costly matter, and for the relatively small prize money that is offered in return, there is little long-term return on investment. Fortunately, there are certain games still in play which don't demand a high-end machine. The eSports boom in Korea is quite a testament to this, where Starcraft tournaments are huge and players are treated like celebrities.