Half-life

This was an OK guide....not the best guide out there...and I found that everything in the guide is good EXCEPT the walkthrough. Well, the walkthrough gets you through the game but is just so confusing and makes it harder to navigate.

I was VERY impressed by all the data charts that the guide had to offer, and all the gameplay techniques that the guide gave off. So many tips and hints to the game that I couldn't find very many other places. It was quite impressive actually.

All enemies detailed, and their stats are shown for each difficulty level and how many shots it'll take to down an enemy with each weapon. It also tells you their attack rate, attack speed, and attack range.

The weapons list is exceptionally detailed but it would've helped more if they'd talked more about a weapons potential and more moments of where to use it. It does tell how fast a weapon fires and tells about the power and they mention where you find it and even give you history about it in the walkthrough.

Now the bad. The only really bad thing about the guide is the walkthrough for both "Half Life" and "Decay". Because the walkthrough was pretty bad I subtracted two stars. See, it would've helped a lot if they didn't do the walkthrough in a step-by-step format. They should've used the point A to Point B format. With the walkthrough being step-by-step its easy to lose track of what the staff is talking about. Like if you do one step then you get stuck and you don't know how your supposed to get to the next. Also, the maps, yes detailed and even show you where enemies are, doesn't point out ammo and new weapons. Yes items are detailed but you have to read the text to find weapons and ammo.

The walkthrough for Decay was obviously rushed. Each level is on one page and they have no maps and screens are out of place. Easily this can get you lost if you don't keep reading while you play. All the basics of Decay and such they explain quite well.

Overall, a step-by-step walkthrough wasn't necessary. Instead they should've had point-to-point based walkthrough. This would've helped more as the maps couldn't be used that well. But they did cover all the secrets so I'll give them that but because the walkthroughs are confusing only 3 stars.

The good
+Nice enemy and weapons appendix
+Nice techniques and suggestions
+Guide has a good sense of humor (most VERSUS guides do)
+Nice detailed rendered maps

The bad
-Step-by-step walkthrough is poorly written
-Fuzzy screens
-Decay walkthrough has no maps
-Don't locate weapons and ammo on maps
-They don't really "guide" you from one step to the next

If you're new to Counterstrike, then this book is a pretty good bet. Lots of information to *introduce* you to concepts like podbots, scripting, control settings, etc. Some of the information is for advanced play in leagues or whatever, but if you're looking to just increase your frag count at the early stages, this will help.

Yeah, some information is outdated, but the general concepts are all there, and then you can get more info from web sites, faqs, etc. Concepts listed in the book like shooting through boxes, etc aren't always obvious on the web. Yeah, you can get the same info online, but this is a nice reference with the maps and all. If you've got a couple bucks to blow, go for it.

On the other hand, nothing beats experience so get out and PLAY!

Later.

Counter-Strike Official Strategy Guide gives tips on what guns to use and how to use them. It also gives special strategies for each map, even if a player is playing on a public server.
This book's greatest strength addresses guns. The authors do a wonderful job of explaining how to use them, eg: with the MP5, aim for the shoulders, the enemy's head will move downward to give an easy headshot. It does have three errors I found:
A. It says the G3 is available to only the CT's (p42). The G3 is actually only available to the T's.
B. The book states that it takes a couple headshots, depending on what gun you use, to disable an opponent. This is wrong, one shot for any gun, excluding the glock, in a specific place will disable an opponent.
C. The last issue I would like to address is the TMP. The book idicates that the gun is bad and doesn't aim well or deal enough damage. I used it and got a 32 to 8 ratio. (pretty good for me)
The book overall helped me a lot. Before, I used to randomly pick a gun. Now, since I've read the book, I buy guns depending on my money and the way they handle, not their pictures

I'd just like to point one thing out! OGC is a cheat! Anyone who uses OGC are Cheaters! This book has made me a Kill:Death 8:1 ratio player, from 3:1. Only morons wouldnt be able to gain from it!

The guy that wrote the review up there is a cheat through and through, so therefore would much rather turn his n00b hack on then try and learn something from great players.

I strongly suggest this book as i found it very helpful!

What drew me to this book was the setting. I live within 10 miles of the Rocky Flats Plutonium Processing Plant. However, the story goes downhill from here. At over 300 pages, I expect a book to build to suspense. However, the book does not get going until well after page 200! (Yes, I'm a glutton for punishment)

This is a story of what happens when a unnamed terrorist crashes a small airplane into the plant, and the resulting consequences. The book was written well before 9/11) Because the book takes so long to even get to this story, the detail that should be ther are minimized, almost to the point that the story was a after thought. If I could give this book zero stars, I would have.