CS:GO Operations Explained

Each different Operation in Counter-Strike showcases some of the most popular community-created maps that had been submitted to the Steam Workshop. While you could play on these maps anytime you wanted in casual matchmaking by ‘Subscribing’ to them on the Steam Workshop, they got full support on official Valve servers while the Operation was in play.

Originally, playing Operation maps on official Valve servers would require you to buy an Operation pass or join a friend who had one. However, they then allowed you to play on all Operation maps for free on official Valve servers. A portion of the proceeds that were made from Operation Pass sales would go to the creator of the maps.

Some of the most notable developments include Operation Bravo – where new maps Cobblestone and Overpass were first released and tested. Unlike other Operation maps, these were actually developed by Valve and went on to become official game maps and join the active duty map group. Similarly, the community-created map Cache also went on to become an official map not long after Operation Phoenix.

The revamped version of Train was first introduced in the Operation Vanguard map group before it was officially included in the game. Ancient was released and tested during Operation Broken Fang and was later added to the active duty map group to replace Train.

An Operation Coin is a rare and collectable token that was given to players who bought operation passes. This coin came in four very different variants, although it was initially limited to three before Operation Hydra. These variants ranged from bronze (the default one when you got a pass) through to Silver, then Gold – and finally Diamond. When you first bought an operation pass, you’d initially be given a bronze coin, but you could get better variants of the coin by accomplishing specific operational objectives.

Starting out with Operation Phoenix, the coin originally had an additional function as an ‘operational scorecard’ and, when inspected in a player’s inventory, the coin would show off various statistics that would reflect their activities and achievements during the Operation. However, this feature was removed with the introduction of Operation Shattered Web, wherein your coin simply displayed how many stars you earned and the missions you completed. However, everything statistical was removed from the coin during Operation Broken Fang – and the coin showed off none of your stats and achievements.

Beginning with Operation Breakout, the coin would also track the missions that had been completed as well as any competitive highlights achieved on active duty maps and operation maps for the duration of the Operation.

With the introduction of Operation Breakout, anyone who owned a pass was able to take part in the various operation missions. The operation missions were released in line with a specific schedule, and, as a player, you’d start off only being able to complete a set number of missions. However, you’d then be able to access more missions to complete after a set amount of time… and the number of missions you’d be able to do would increase over time. As soon as you activated a mission, you would automatically launch a ‘find game’ for that mission’s required game modes.

After successfully completing missions, you’d then be awarded experience points (XP)- and by earning these, you would start ranking up and become eligible for the various operation drops. Before the release of Operation Hydra, operation drops would happen on any normal Profile Rank rank-up. However, when Operation Hydra happened, Operation drops only happened when players earned 2,000 Guardian or Event XP – which are essentially XP bars that keep track of how many XP have been earned from Hydra Events and Campaign Missions.

Ever since Operation Shattered Web, CS players also started to earn stars per mission as well as XP. These stars would either be accumulated in Operation Shattered Web battle pass’ battle pass track – or, since Operation Broken Fang, could be spent in the Operation Shop. It was also during Operation Shattered Web that we were first introduced to the fourth tier of Operation Coins – the Diamond Tier.

You could track the parameters of a mission during matches on the official matchmaking servers. However, these would not be fulfilled if you didn’t complete the match. You could check the status of any active mission from either the main menu or by pressing the escape key when playing a match. That being said, it’s worth being aware that mission statuses aren’t constantly updated during a match and only reflect the mission status after the last match is completed.

When the operation had come to an end, all of the missions attached to it would expire and be removed from your inventory.

With the introduction of Operation Vanguard, anyone who owned an operation pass would have access to campaigns – and gain access to two base campaigns as soon as they bought a pass. The campaign system was put into place to replace the previous operation mission system – which was basically unlocking lots of different missions sequentially.

After completing a mission, you move along one of the non-linear tracts of the mission. There were some missions that were ‘Challenge Award’ missions, which award you with stars based on the difficulty of the mission – and you can use these to upgrade your Operation Coin.

• Green Rewards Missions (Easy): Award 1 star.
• Yellow Reward Missions(Medium): Award 2 stars.
• Orange/Red Reward Missions (Difficult): Award 3 stars upon completion.

In Operation Hydra, the missions – which are all Guardian missions, didn’t actually directly award stars anymore. Instead, your Guardian XP was tracked when playing the missions, and this tracked the number of Mission XP you earned throughout the operation.

As a player, you’d earn a star and an Operation weapon drop when you accumulated 2,000 Guardian XPs – up to a maximum of 7 stars. Any other stars you’d get from the various Operation Hydra events. In addition, completing an event would track your Event XP – and you’d receive a star and an Operation drop (which will alternate between a Weapon Skin and a Weapon Case) for every 2,000 Event XPs you get, up to a maximum of 18 stars.

The campaigns list out every single individual mission right from the beginning, so you’re able to see exactly what each mission’s objective is – and what your potential reward would be for completion. Before Operation Hydra was released, missions would only be unlocked on a daily basis – even though you’d be able to see all the missions right from the start. However, Operation Hydra removed the time limits, so there was no longer any need to wait around anymore for campaigns to be unlocked.

Ever since the release of Operation Bloodhound, campaigns came with storylines that unlock as you work your way through the various missions.

They can cost anywhere between $2 up to $14,99 – although they are usually around $5.99.

But Are They Worth It?

This depends on your budget – and how much you like the game. They’re great for fans because you get rewarded for playing the game. They also encourage you to play more often, train more often – and get more used to the game… which makes it well worth it.

So, if you love the game and want to spend more time playing, then yes. If you’re not sure about it – then you could be wasting your money.

How Many Operations Have There Been in Counter-Strike Global Offensive?

There have been 11 CS:GO Operations, starting from Operation Payback in 2013 up to Operation Riptide in 2022.

Here are all the different operations to date…

Operation Payback

From April 25, 2013 to August 31, 2013, this was the very first Operation – and highlighted seven maps (four Hostage Rescue and three Bomb Defusal maps). You’d need to spend 10 hours on them to get a Silver Coin or 50 for a gold coin.

Operation Bravo

Next was Operation Bravo – which ran from September 19, 2013 to February 5, 2014, which started out with eight maps. But after the Winter Offensive Update, another two were introduced – the Overpass and Cobblestone.

This Operation introduced skins collections to the games. Bravo skins were available to all via Operation Bravo Case drops, whilst Alpha skins were only available to Coin holders. To get a silver coin, you’d need 10 hours of play on the maps with 5 competitive wins, while you’d need to play 30 hours on the maps with 10 competitive wins. You could play in Casual mode, Competitive and Deathmatch game mode.

The Cache map was introduced in this Operation – and Overpass and Cobblestone maps also remained in play.

We got a lot from Bravo in CS2 (perhaps even the most out of all CS:GO operations). Cache was one of the community maps, and it became official. Cobblestone and Overpass also remained in the game.

Operation Phoenix

Then was Operation Phoenix, which was similar to Bravo and ran from February 20, 2014, to June 11, 2014.

There was an Operation Phoenix Case which only dropped for anyone who bought the pass – but there were no new skin collections released.

Operation Breakout

On July 1, 2014, came Operation Breakout, which ran until October 2, 2014, and the main focus of this one was unique CS skins. It introduced four new collections – Cache, Overpass, Cobblestone and Baggage – along with the Operation Breakout case. We also saw changes to the Coin progression, which was based on completing missions – 5 for Silver and 10 for a Gold coin. You could also get random skins by completing missions.

Operation Vanguard

From November 11, 2014 to March 31, 2015, we had Operation Vanguard which had seven maps – five of them Bomb Defusal.

With this Operation, coin progression was based on stars – where you’d need 3 for Silver and 4 for gold, and you could get these stars for completing campaign missions. This was the first Operation with campaigns –

• Vanguard
• Weapons Specialist
• Maghreb
• Eurasia Theater

However, there was only one case – the Operation Vanguard case from which you could get the P2000 | Fire Elemental.

Operation Bloodhound

From May 26, 2015, to September 30, 2015, we had Operation Bloodhound. This one saw the change in the structure of campaigns – with the introduction of storylines on the Marksman and Revolution campaigns. You could also get exclusive drops when you ranked up. The number of stars you needed for upgrading coins increased – 9 for Silver and 14 for gold. However, there were also new ways to get them – with new mission types (Assassination and Guardian).

This one had 6 maps – although only one was Hostage Rescue, and there was an extra map dedicated to the Guardian co-op.

Operation Wildfire

Operation Wildfire was available between February 17, 2016 and July 15, 2016. There is one map in this Operation that is worth looking at… the new, improved version of the Nuke map. There were nine maps in total – one Hostage Rescue, One Co-Op plus seven Bomb Defusal maps.

The coin system stayed the same, and you could get stars from the two campaign missions – Wildfire and Gemini.

Operation Hydra

The next operation was Operation Hydra, which was available between May 23 and November 13, 2017. This was one of the most important Counter-attack operations. This one introduced three new CS game modes – Wingman, Weapons Expert and War Games. You could also earn special XPs and item drops for this.

In total, it had nine maps – five Bomb Defusal, two Hostage Rescue, One Flying Scoutsman and one Wingman. There was also a change in the Coins gradation – and the Diamond Coin was added to the Bronze, Silver and Gold. It took 5 stars to get a Silver Coin, 18 Stars for a Gold Coin and 25 Stars for a Diamond Coin.

Operation Shattered Web

Then, we had the famous Operation Shattered Web, which was available between November 18, 2019 and March 30, 2020. This one had just three maps – Bomb Defusal, Frying Scoutsman and Danger Zone (Battle Royale game mode.)

This had a reward system that was more similar to Battle Pass than the others – you’d get something when you reached a certain number of stars. One of the rewards was a then-unique addition to the game – Agents.

This had no campaigns -and you got stars for completing missions and to upgrade coins, you’d need 33 missions for Silver, 66 for a Gold Coin and 100 for a Diamond Coin.

Operation Broken Fang

From December 3 2020 to May 3 2021, was Operation Broken Fang – and the tradition of the diversity of maps continued. It had 8 maps with 5 different scenarios – 2 Wingmen, 2 Bomb Defusal, 2 Co-OP, 1 Hostage Rescue and 1 Danger Zone.

You’d get stars for completing the weekly missions and could decide what you wanted to spend your stars on – graffiti, cases, Agents, etc. The cost of the different coins stayed the same, and new game modes were introduced: Broken Fang Premier and Retake. It also introduced three new collections – The Ancient, The Control and the Havoc.

Operation Riptide

Finally, we have Operation Riptide, which was available between September 21, 2021 and February 21, 2022… and it was the last Counter-Strike: Global Offensive operation before CS2 was released. This one had 5 maps with 4 scenarios – 2 Wingman, 1 Hostage Rescue, 1 Bomb Defusal and 1 Danger Zone.

You also needed the same number of stars to upgrade your coins and there was a system of earning and spending your stars that was similar to Broken Fang.

There were also new game modes introduced, Team Deathmatch, FFA Deathmatch, Short Competitive and Private Competitive. It also re-introduced some of the classic collections including 2021 Train, 2021 Dust II, 2021 Mirage and 2021 Vertigo.

So, hopefully, you know everything about CS:GO operations – how they worked, the missions, campaigns, coins and maps – and how much they have added to the game throughout the years. Will there be any new operations in CS2? Who knows, but hopefully they won’t be a thing of the past… and will be even bigger and better than before!