The initial announcement of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive gave us the hope that we could all get along; that you there with your hand-build Intel i7 rig could be playing with a friend who might be sat on his sofa, starting at his giant television, holding a joypad. I wanted that, you (maybe?) wanted that, Valve initially wanted that. Now Valve do not want that. Speaking to Joystiq, Chet Faliszek told them it was because they need to frequently update the PC and Mac versions more frequently.

The beta has proved we want to update not just the beta, but the game itself post-launch frequently on the PC. To do that we need to separate the platforms so one doesn’t hamstring the other. So for that, we have removed the idea of cross-platform play — essentially make all platforms stronger by not mixing them.

That’s understandable. Plus CS is so finely balanced it’s constantly in flux, and I can’t see how something tuned for PC and mouse in the very specific, delicate way that CS is could ever be replicated on the PS3 anyway. At least not in a way that could make cross-platform play competitive.

Anyway, here’s a screenshot of de_lake. I think you’ll find… wait… make it big.



Now look to the bottom left, the truck in the corner. What is he doing?



Is he cleaning the car? Walking like an Egyptian? Playing on an invisible pool table? Did he think the camera couldn’t see, and break into a little dance? I’m so emailing Chet. I will solve this mystery. In the meantime, feel free to check the pixels yourselves.