Cover Image Courtesy: AzzyTheMLGPro | Thumbnail Image Courtesy: BBC
A problem that has plagued Counter-Strike for years has been the usage of hacks and cheats in the form of third-party software or game file manipulation. These cheats provide a significant advantage to the players using them. While Valve’s Anti Cheat often detects and bans cheaters from time to time, a part of the responsibility of making the game a better place lies with us community members, as we are expected to report such incidents when we come across them.
It’s been nearly a year since the famous ‘forsaken’ incident and we figured that now is as good a time as ever to remind the CS:GO community to be vigilant. Here’s a list of eight types of cheats and hacks that you should watch out for while playing Counter-Strike.
Note: AFK Gaming does not condone hackers. This video is not meant to be an advertisement for hacks and cheats, it is to make you aware of a player that might be cheating so you can hit the report button and do your part to make CS:GO a better game for everyone.
Wall Hack
First up we have one of the most common and widely used cheat called ‘Wall Hack’. Wall Hacks enable a player to see through walls and other such obstructions, enabling them to spot their opponents across the map and track their movements effortlessly.
Image Credit: Tobyscs
AimBot
Aimbot helps a player to aim more accurately, in simple terms it is similar to how an ‘aim assist’ works while playing an FPS game on a console. Its sensitivity and range can be further modified to suit any users need.
This is a really worrying factor because the freedom to tinker around with such adjustments gives a serious advantage to a seasoned or a professional player, in their hands this hack becomes close to undetectable if it manages to bypass the anti-cheat system.
Further modification of the hack has led to the development of ‘Trigger Bot’, this bot automatically fires when the user places his crosshair on the opponents. But this version of the hack is not preferred as it is easier to be detected, both physically by players and even through the anti-cheat system.
Image Credit: Unknowncheats
Spin Bot
Spinbot is by far the most annoying yet easily detectable cheat in CS:GO. Spinbot allows a player to spin around in circles at a rapid pace, this makes it impossible for the opposition to get a shot on the player.
The user basically gets a 360-degree FOV, and when combined with an aimbot can one tap anyone instantly. While the cheat is enabled, on the client-side everything looks normal but on the server-side, the character being controlled can be seen spinning like a Beyblade on steroids.
Mobility Hacks
Mobility Hacks provide an increase in movement speed, jump height, jump distance and also quicker weapon draw times when using guns like the AWP, AUG or Krieg. These buffs can be adjusted in different ways by anyone using this cheat.
Moderate usage of this cheat is hard to detect, but since even a minor increase is enough to provide a single second advantage to the user, this cheat is deadly as that small difference can be really crucial in a game like Counter-Strike. For example, a slight increase in movement speed allows the user to reach a spot or a site early to set himself up for a kill. Similarly, an increase in weapon draw time means a quicker flick shot with an AWP.
This hack can be further modified and can be used to walk through solid obstacles like walls and boxes, which is also known as 'Ghosting'.
All the options shaded in red belong to Mobility Hacks | Image Credit: EternityX
3D Box Hack
The 3D-Box Hack is a cheat that adds a cuboidal box shape around the opponents’ character model, making them stand out when trying to spot an enemy from a distance or through a tight corner.
This is a relatively minor hack when compared to ones discussed until now, while certainly a great tool that can be used by beginners to practise and improve their skills, but only in a practise server.
Image Credit: Guidedhacking
Full Removal
Full removal is basically going god mode on the opposition as none of the debuffs like recoil, bullet spray, smoke, flash, etc takes any effect on the user. The only drawback is that the user has to be a skilled enough player so as to use this to their advantage, as this hack doesn't improve a user's raw mechanical skills.
The most insane part about this hack is the ability to not get flashed or smoked. Users can simply pop back-to-back flashes and complete a retake by themselves while going one against five. Or his team can just smoke the whole bomb site, leading to an easy ninja defuse. The possibilities are endless.
All the options shaded in red belong to Full Removal | Image Credit: Cheater
Player Warnings
Player Warnings is basically a hack that works as an alert system, warning the user of upcoming threats, be it a player that is around a corner, or being spotted by the opposition. With how important sound cues are in a game like CS:GO, these warnings can actually be more of a distraction than an advantage for its users.
Extra Sensory Perception (ESP)
Consider ESP to be Wall Hack 2.0, as this cheat allows players to see the utility and weaponry held by the opposition, including their health and armour along with their position on the map.
In the hands of a seasoned IGL, this type of information is crucial as the skills of the players at higher levels are usually equal, with information and knowledge being the two important factors that determine the winner.
Image Credit: Aimforest
This concludes our list of cheats and hacks that one should watch out for in CS:GO, but there is something else which is as big of a problem as any of these cheats and hacks, Audience Hacks.
Audience Hacks
There is a need to be vocal about a big problem that has hit the CS:GO LAN tournaments hard. Technically this is not a software, a bug or even a hack, but it's the crowd itself, at least a part of it. What takes place is disappointing and is against the nature of how esports fans should conduct themselves.
These people use various methods like group chanting or holding up various placards and posters, to give away the position of a player. Valuable information about what site a team is going to attack is often written on these cards too, and though players might be too involved in the game to take notice of all such activities, with noise-cancelling headphones and their faces dug right into their monitors, it is still a pretty crappy thing for fans to do which poisons the spirit of the game.
The most recent example of this can be seen during the semifinal match between Liquid and Astralis at the ESL One: New York, where Peter ‘dupreeh’ Rasmussen took to Twitter to show how the crowd had let him down as he expected better from them.
To know more about these cheats and hacks in detail you can click HERE to watch a video that we have created.
