VALVe Software's Jess Cliffe: I'm proud to put out a Counter-Strike game that is very well rounded. We've got classic CS gameplay with intelligent bots. A story driven, cinematic type CS game with Deleted Scenes. And of course, all of this seems to build up to that moment when you've cut your teeth with the CS bot and finally go online to show your friends your training hasn't been for naught.

As with Counter-Strike, we plan to continue to support the title with new updates that make the game better and better.

Turtle Rock Studio's Michael Booth: We are very happy with our bot artificial intelligence - it is one of a kind. What we are most proud of, however, is that Condition Zero is *fun*, and allows an audience that either could not or would not play the online CS game to enjoy the addictive gameplay of Counter-Strike.

Jess Cliffe: The CZ 1.1 update contains a new "Buy Package" system for quickly buying favorite load-outs, a new "Tour of Duty" Mission Creation Kit, new weapon / player models, and new audio. The mission creation kit will allow community members to customize their own "Tour of Duty" campaigns with everything from custom skins, to new objectives, to new levels. We have also added new challenges not seen in the CT mission that allow modders to make Terrorist missions, and to include VIP missions in their Tour of Duty. These missions can be easily zipped up and sent to your friends or the whole CS community.

Jess Cliffe: The soundscape of Counter-Strike is a very important aspect of the game's identity. To deviate too far from that AK-47 roar that we've all come to associate with CS would be a pretty clear mistake. That said, we have taken the original audio source and given the sounds some oomph and general cleanup. The game sounds won't sound all that different, just better. Beefier.

Jess Cliffe: You can define four separate buy packages. Keep in mind that each package can contain fallbacks in case you're running low on cash. We wanted to present the buy packages in a way that wasn't intimidating - our playtesting indicated that four packages is just right.

Michael Booth: We knew we had to leverage the existing fun of Counter-Strike itself, and our strong bot AI. From that foundation, the game we designed is pretty close to what we actually shipped. We collaborated heavily with Valve and Ritual, and iterated on the game until we got it right.

Jess Cliffe: Yes, the feedback we get from our players always shapes what we release in updates. We are very lucky to have a large following who is only a click away on our forums. This allows us know very accurately what our users want and expect. Personally, I read every piece of feedback e-mail that I receive - and consider it very helpful and important.

Jess Cliffe: Just like all of our games, we will continue to update Condition Zero.

Jess Cliffe: K9-Units... with laser beams. I'm kidding...

Michael Booth: We have a few interesting things on our... radar... but I'd hate to be held... hostage... to what is mentioned here...

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The Condition Zero patch will be released tonight, April 28th!