When a streamer gets banned from Twitch, there is usually little information as to why a ban was handed out. The mystery behind Dr Disrespect's ban from Twitch , for example, still hasn't been solved. But former Twitch streamer James 'Phantoml0rd' Vargas, who was banned from the platform in 2016, has won a lawsuit against Twitch after unproven fraud allegations led to a permanent

Counter-Strike players have often found creative means of using the game's community map aspect with some CS:GO players recreating popular locations from franchises like The Witcher . Now, a Finnish newspaper called Helsingin Sanomat is using the same feature to share details about the war in Ukraine among Russian gamers owing to the title's popularity within the community. A custom-made map dubbed "de_voyna," a fictionalized Slavic city, was released today that aims to echo some of the cities that have been destroyed over the course of the war. More interestingly, the map contains images and voice recordings captured by the newspaper's journalists on the ground situation, all of which players can interact with in-g

It's currently unclear why Valve moved forward with these changes in France, in particular. So far France has not enacted any new regulations to account for loot boxes in video games, though French courts did recently rule that Steam has to allow users to resell their digital games . In 2018, the French online gambling regulatory body even assessed that loot boxes were not gambling under the country's current regulation. Perhaps Valve is using France as a testing bed or perhaps the decision is intended to shift discourse within the country or Europe. Either way, Valve certainly appears to be taking steps to protect the profits it receives from loot boxes amid the growing international controve

While this means that the second major event of 2023 has been canceled, the extended waiting period is expected to allow Valve to fine-tune the new game and ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience for players and fans al

One community-made Counter-Strike: Global Offensive map is seemingly offering Russians an alternative view of the war in Ukraine. While Valve's Counter-Strike has been among the most popular live-service titles to date, the game is currently seeing a notable uptick in interest thanks to the recent reveal that Counter-Strike 2 is officially in the works . Now, it appears one community is looking to leverage this popularity to shed light on the situation in Ukra

In any case, even though the Finnish newspaper's de_voyna map was launched in line with World Press Freedom Day to reach the millions of Russians playing Counter-Strike , it's worth noting that Valve wasn't consulted prior to the community-made map going online. So it will be interesting to see how long the downloadable map will remain online, should the company take any act

However, this isn't the first time a Valve product or service was indirectly involved in the war efforts. It was recently reported that the Ukrainian military is using the Steam Deck to remotely control turrets . Here, the Steam Deck runs a custom UI that allows the operator to be up to 500 meters (1,640 feet) away from the turret. The custom version is reportedly capable of installing any anti-personnel or anti-tank weapon as w

The war in Ukraine continues to make a distinct impact on many industries across the spectrum, including the gaming sector. Over the course of 2022, companies ranging from Take-Two and Ubisoft to Sony have restricted Russia from its services with others like Riot Games, Microsoft, and Epic even going on to raise funds for Ukraine. In one of the latest developments, one community is reportedly utilizing a CS:GO map in an effort to reach the Russian masses to report on the present circumstances of the

Players who would like to participate in the Competitive playlist in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive will first have to play unranked matches of Arms Race, Casual, Deathmatch, or Demolition until reaching level two. Then, they will be placed in one of several ranks to climb the competitive ladder. This guide will help players identify how many ranks there are in total and how the ranking system works in CS:

New players to the Competitive playlist will first have to win 10 games before they get ranked. This will place them in one of the ranks listed above, and many will most likely skip the first couple of low ra

Steam updated its guidelines for users to add more restrictions regarding online gambling, leaving the future of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive skin gambling uncertain a few months before the release of its highly anticipated sequel Counter-Strike 2 . These guidelines, gathered under the name "Steam Online Conduct," describes the activities Steam users cannot perform on Valve’s platform, such as posting illegal or inappropriate content, engaging in unlawful activities, or harassing other users. click through the following website page update to this policy impacts Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players, who are now unsure of the future of their skin gambling activit