Counter Strike Vs Call Of Duty Comparison

Both Counter Strike and Call Of Duty are one of the biggest multiplayer FPS games to show on the market. Counter Strike first appeared as a mod for Half-Life back in 1999 and was officially released in 2000, while the first Call of Duty was released in 2003. 

Surely CS has been a huge influence on all modern FPS games and likely has inspired CoD developers as well. But, it’s been more than 20 years since the first iteration of both games and today, these two games are vastly different!

So, let’s have a look at the CS: GO vs COD debate and figure out those differences and maybe even conclude which one is better.

Before we can get into the mechanical differences between the two games, first we need to consider the price.

Counter Strike: Global Offensive, now Counter-Strike 2 is free. Anyone with Steam installed on their computer (and with a Steam account) can download and enjoy almost every feature the game offers. However, you can also purchase the CS Prime Status Upgrade for about $15 on Steam, but more on that later.

Call of Duty, on the other hand, follows the game industry standard of the $70 price tag. However, Activision releases new CoD titles almost yearly (sometimes bi-yearly) and every new CoD title is priced at a premium of $70. 

So, if you want to enjoy the new CoD campaign story or multiplayer, you will need to fork out $70 every time. Fortunately, though, Warzone, CoD’s most popular game mode, is free! So, if you want to play Warzone only, there’s no need to buy the latest Call of Duty unless you want to level up your weapons quickly.

Previously, we mentioned Prime status, so let’s explain in detail what exactly that entails.

Prime status activates item drops, XP Gain, competitive ranking, and premier rating. Item drops include skins, graffiti, and weapon cases. Skins change the appearance of in-game weapons (as well as equipment and characters) while cases can be opened with a key (bought for $2.50) to receive a randomly picked skin that’s part of the particular case. 

These items can also be sold on the Steam Community Market which can be valued anywhere from a couple of cents up to thousands of dollars.

Many CS players also consider that Prime Status also acts as a filter for cheaters from their matches since most cheaters use the free-to-play version of the game.

Whenever you see anyone talking about why CS: GO is better than CoD, you’ll often see mechanical skill mentioned. And, they wouldn’t be wrong, because CS’ aim and mechanical skill ceiling is much higher than Call of Duty, and we’ll explain exactly why.

Movement Inaccuracy

Movement inaccuracy is one of the most important gameplay mechanics a CS player must learn to hit their shots. Movement directly influences the accuracy of a weapon. So, any kind of movement like running, walking, or jumping will negatively affect your accuracy.

If you want to hit those headshots every single time, you will need to let go of the “W” button and stand still while spraying. More advanced CS players utilize “counter-strafing” to improve their accuracy. 

This is done by moving in one direction, releasing the movement key, and then tapping the movement key to move in the opposite direction. This stops the player character and returns the weapon’s accuracy. For example, you want to peek at a wall on the left, so you hold A (left) and when you spot an enemy, let go of A (left) and immediately tap D (right) to stop the character, and then you shoot.

Call of Duty, on the other hand, isn’t anywhere near as punishing, so there’s no need to learn advanced mechanics like counter-strafing. Of course, there is a bit of movement inaccuracy, but, in most, you will be able to hit accurate shots all while jumping, moving, sliding, and even while in free fall.

But, this kind of movement also allows for a much more fast-paced gameplay, so trying to hit very quick enemies can prove a challenge.

Projectile Travel Vs Hitscan

Another big difference when looking at the Counter Strike vs Call of Duty argument is how guns work, or rather, their shots.

Counter Strike has a system called hitscan. With hitscan, whenever you press the button of your mouse, the shot will immediately connect with its target. There is no projectile that travels from the gun to the target.

Call of Duty on the other hand has a projectile/bullet travel system. This means that the bullets from your gun take a certain amount of time until they reach their target. With bullet traveling time, hitting shots can be a bit more difficult, especially in long-distance engagements.

For example, if you see an enemy running in the distance, you need to consider the bullet travel which means you will need to shoot with a lead (in front of the target) rather than exactly at the target.

That’s why sniping with the AWP in CS: GO and CS2 is so much easier than trying to hit an across-the-map sniper shot with a Kar98K in Warzone.

Movement inaccuracy is one of the most important gameplay mechanics a CS player must learn to hit their shots. Movement directly influences the accuracy of a weapon. So, any kind of movement like running, walking, or jumping will negatively affect your accuracy.

If you want to hit those headshots every single time, you will need to let go of the “W” button and stand still while spraying. More advanced CS players utilize “counter-strafing” to improve their accuracy. 

This is done by moving in one direction, releasing the movement key, and then tapping the movement key to move in the opposite direction. This stops the player character and returns the weapon’s accuracy. For example, you want to peek at a wall on the left, so you hold A (left) and when you spot an enemy, let go of A (left) and immediately tap D (right) to stop the character, and then you shoot.

Call of Duty, on the other hand, isn’t anywhere near as punishing, so there’s no need to learn advanced mechanics like counter-strafing. Of course, there is a bit of movement inaccuracy, but, in most, you will be able to hit accurate shots all while jumping, moving, sliding, and even while in free fall.

But, this kind of movement also allows for a much more fast-paced gameplay, so trying to hit very quick enemies can prove a challenge.

Another big difference when looking at the Counter Strike vs Call of Duty argument is how guns work, or rather, their shots.

Counter Strike has a system called hitscan. With hitscan, whenever you press the button of your mouse, the shot will immediately connect with its target. There is no projectile that travels from the gun to the target.

Call of Duty on the other hand has a projectile/bullet travel system. This means that the bullets from your gun take a certain amount of time until they reach their target. With bullet traveling time, hitting shots can be a bit more difficult, especially in long-distance engagements.

For example, if you see an enemy running in the distance, you need to consider the bullet travel which means you will need to shoot with a lead (in front of the target) rather than exactly at the target.

That’s why sniping with the AWP in CS: GO and CS2 is so much easier than trying to hit an across-the-map sniper shot with a Kar98K in Warzone.

Recoil is the kick created by a weapon when it is shot. This real-life occurrence is also present in most FPS games including CoD and CS.

In Call of Duty, the recoil is usually considered to be mild to moderate, so even beginners don’t have too much trouble controlling it. What’s more is that recoil can be reduced on most weapons by applying certain attachments such as barrel, grip, optics, muzzle, and stock.

By making a combination of the right attachments, you can get rid of almost all of the recoil of one weapon. Gun recoil can also see changes from season to season or with new CoD releases. So, if one gun had no recoil in Warzone Season 3, it may have a lot of recoil in Season 4.

Valve, on the other hand, practically never adjusts the recoil of CS: GO weapons. There are sometimes minor adjustments to damage, but that’s about it.

The recoil in CS2 is also considerably greater when compared to CoD games. The most infamous is the AK-74 recoil pattern, known to be one hardest guns to use in any game.

The biggest reason why CS: GO is better than COD, at least according to a lot of CS players is the need for strategy, tactics, team play, and communication. 

Generally, in Call of Duty, players look to use their individual skills to win games, there isn’t a lot of strategy involved. Players focus more on the amount of kills they get rather than winning the match. This way they quickly level up their guns and profile while improving their aiming skills.

But, unlike multiplayer COD gamemodes like Domination, Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, etc. Warzone does require a bit more strategizing. In Warzone, players with teams of two, three, or four are faced against hundreds of other players, so communication is definitely needed to win the battle royale.

However, in Counter Strike, most players play the Bomb Scenario/Bomb Defusal gamemode which puts two 5-player teams against each other for a total of 24 rounds. In every round the Terrorists (team 1) aim to plant the bomb on site A or B, while Counter-Terrorists (Team 2) aim to prevent the bomb from being planted or aim to defuse it.

Every round lasts for 1 minute and 45 seconds, so there is little room for error which means proper teamwork is needed. Teammates need to give each other information at all times, consult on certain strategies, throw grenades at the right positions, and just generally help each other. 

Of course, winning CS matches based solely on individual skill is possible, but proper teamwork is always preferred over a good aimer.

Because of this very high skill ceiling in Counter Strike in terms of strategy, movement, aiming, and teamwork, it has one of the biggest and oldest esports scenes in the world with tournaments being held almost every month throughout the year. It’s only behind League of Legends in terms of popularity!

Call of Duty has its own Esports league, but it’s nowhere near as popular.

If there is one thing Call of Duty does considerably better than Counter Strike, that’s the progression system. While in CS you have to focus on improving your individual skill to see progression, Call of Duty offers several progression systems.

In Warzone for example, you can get XP through various efforts like quests, daily or weekly challenges, and more to earn XP which leads to unlocking new weapons, perks, killstreaks, and even skins. There is also a progression system for every weapon you use as well. The more you play with one particular weapon, the more weapon XP you will get which unlocks various attachments and skins.

Furthermore, CoD differs from CS because it gets new content frequently. Roughly every two months, CoD gets a new season, and with it gets new weapons, skins, challenges, and even maps! And, with every new Call of Duty release, Warzone gets a huge revamp.

In comparison, CS gets game-changing updates every 4-5 months or more. Map pools are also rarely updated, so make sure to get used to replaying the same 7 maps! Major updates or game revamps happen in 3, 4, or more years. The biggest revamp CS ever got was the release of Counter-Strike 2, after 11 years of CS: GO

However, it’s important to note that CS does have a lot of community content and maps. The community does get very creative, so make sure to check out this content since it’s free!

So, Counter Strike VS Call of Duty, which one is better? Well, there is no clear winner. CS definitely has a higher skill ceiling and increasing your competitive ranking is much more rewarding. Also, truly mastering CS takes thousands of hours.

However, if you enjoy more casual play, fast-paced gameplay and you quickly get bored of replaying the same content, Call of Duty is for you!