Valve, Counter-Strike, macOS, and How Not to Relaunch Software
Published on SepĀ 28, 2023 (updated SepĀ 29, 2024), filed under misc (feed). (Share this on Mastodon orĀ Bluesky?)
Counter-Strike isāat the moment, wasāa multi-platform game (Windows, macOS, Linux, SteamOS) and one of the most popular online games.
Earlier this year, Valve, maker of the Counter-Strike game series, announced Counter-StrikeĀ 2 (CS2).
A months-long testing period followed, during which Valve presented a fantastic overhaul of the game (my take from following the development, particularly thanks to coverage by 3kliksphilip and TheWarOwl).
Yesterday, on September 27, rumored but still somewhat suddenly, Valve released Counter-StrikeĀ 2, replacing the gameās predecessor, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) on Valveās Steam platform.
But
Valve shipped only a Windows version.
And put something unplayable on all other systemsĀ *:
Without notice, without a way to go back to CS:GO, without a way to decently emulate the new versionāand also without a clear path forward.
Right now, all that āworksā is a hacky and sketchy way to even get to and sell oneās paid game inventories (which can be worth a fortune)āa way thatās furthermore limited because the funds are by default tied to playersā Steam Wallets (i.e., can only be used on Steam).
(Counter-Strike means millions of dollars of revenueāactual moneyā, Valve controls the economy, and a part of the player base just lost access to the game and a way to use and meaningfully manage their inventories. Like that š«°)
Jekyll and Hyde
What was likely a suspenseful happy end to a long wait of the Windows player base, has turned into one of the worst relaunches ever for every other player, creating and fueling anger and mistrust.
That is, on the Windows side, Valveās release of Counter-StrikeĀ 2 must have been one of the most exciting ones to follow in a long time.
But on the macOS side, itās one of the worst software relaunches Iāve ever seen. Itās easily the most drastic and disrespectful one. And itās one that raises many serious questions.
What I find most annoying, however, is that even without knowing the actual product, engineering, and legal decisions, itās clear that much here could have been mitigated throughācommunication.
Ultimately, how you relaunch your software is not the pointāitās if and how you respect your users.
Iāve been a regular Counter-Strike player on macOS since the beginning of the pandemic, and Iām curious how Valve is going to manage this brewing storm. Like other players, Iāve reached out to them on their channels, butāhave not received a response now received a non-answer, in that Counter-StrikeĀ 2 would not be available on macOS āat this time.ā
Update (October 1, 2023)
There is a mailing list on Google Groups, cs2macos, to discuss. (Email the group at cs2macos@googlegroups.com, or log into your Google account to join the group.)
Update (October 7, 2023)
Thereās still no communication from Valve. The document What you can do details some steps macOS players can take. (It does not provide legal advice.) Feedback and contributions are welcome, preferably via the list as previously mentioned.
It seems useful to reiterate the main problem, lack of communication: If macOS players had known that Counter-Strike on macOS was not to be supported anymore, or would not be supported long-term, they would have stopped or not even started playing the game. Itās also unlikely they would have spent any money on purchasing anything in or for the game. Valve making the game unavailable/unplayable without notice made this impossible, advantaging Valve, and disadvantaging macOS players.
Update (October 10, 2023)
Valve officially pulled the plug on Counter-Strike on macOS. [ā¦]
* Thereās also a Linux version of Counter-StrikeĀ 2, but that one doesnāt seem to be working reliably. There are numerous reports on sound issues, with audio being crucial in Counter-Strike. Focus of this post is on Counter-Strike for macOS, but I might edit and update the post as I learn more.
About Me
Iām Jens (long: Jens Oliver Meiert), and Iām a web developer, manager, and author. Iāve been working as a technical lead and engineering manager for companies youāve never heard of and companies you use every day, Iām an occasional contributor to web standards (like HTML, CSS, WCAG), and I write and review books for OāReilly and Frontend Dogma.
I love trying things, not only in web development and engineering management, but also in other areas like philosophy. Here on meiert.com I share some of my experiences and views. (I value you being critical, interpreting charitably, and giving feedback.)