Popular weapons in CS 1.6

This article is going to cover the topic of the most popular and the most often used as well as the most efficient weapons in Counter-Strike 1.6. In it, we will explain to you as much as we possible about what weapons are the most useful in the game and in what situations. CS has a wide variety of all kinds of different guns and to a novice player this could potentially either cause a bit of anxiety or may simply lead to a poor choice and hence inability to perform to the heights of their abilities.

Although it's important to remember that every weapon in the game may have its uses in certain scenarios, there are a few that are the most commonly used due to their efficiency and versatility. And today we're going to talk precisely about these types of weapons so that you know exactly what choice to make in any particular circumstance during the game. We are going to start with the most popular pistols and then gradually move to a more heavy weaponry gradually covering all sorts of commonly used machine guns and rifles.
It's a smart idea to start with the default pack: knife and a pistol. However, given each team receives a different pistol we will be talking about USP and Glock. Firstly, a knife, the most common weapon of the game which you can't actually get rid off, in other words it's undroppable, so you will be carrying it no matter what. Now, the knife can be used only in a very close combat because it can only reach an enemy who's in an arm's distance from you. The main advantage of using a knife is the amount of damage it causes on the secondary attack: 65 to the body and an instance kill to the head or back.

Keeping that in mind, chances are you will either not be able to hit a person in time if your enemy is carrying a firearm or you will only get one hit which may not be enough to eliminate them. Therefore, avoid using it at all costs aside from when you don't have a different choice. Yes, a knife kill may look «cool» or «humiliating» but there's no reason for showing off while the chances are you'll be the one killed and laughed at afterwards. So, remember never to use it until you're 120% sure you'll succeed (for example if you're right behind a clueless enemy, which can still turn into a disaster if they suddenly move or look back). Moving on to the default pistols. A Glock is a default pistols of the terrorists team and it carries a 20 bullet round which may sound like a lot but the fact is, it doesn't cause much damage so you'll probably have to empty a cartridge just to kill an enemy. Given, a two-three bullets to the head will bring you a frag but you'll have to possess an excellent aiming skill for that. Another important thing is that you should only use this pistol in close to medium combat otherwise it's pretty useless on long distances. So if you're in a possession of this gun make sure to be careful and the better option would be to get a better one.

USP on the other hand (default counter-terrorist gun) is an excellent handgun. It carries a 12 bullet round and has a fast firing speed. It's aim is pretty precise and it could be used for any type of combat including long distances. It causes a pretty decent damage and normally one or two bullets to the head will gain you a frag. You don't normally need to upgrade to a better pistole if you already have USP. However, we also have to talk about the most powerful pistol in the game: Desert Eagle. It's a very popular choice and is widely used, sometimes even as a substitute for a rifle or a machine gun. It carries only 7 bullets in a clip but it does so much damage that normally two of them to the body is enough to eliminate an enemy. Needless to say one bullet to the head is a «night-night». It has a fairly slow firing speed and reload will take a bit of time so be very precise with it and aim carefully. Don't chase a headshot by wasting your bullets, instead point it at the body. Also, keep in mind, if you're using it as your primary weapon, don't get to cocky and risk a collision with multiple enemies at the same time, especially if they're carrying machine guns.

Now it's time to talk about the automatic rifles. The most popular ones that are widely used on all kinds of map types are Ak-47 and M4A1. The first one you can buy playing as a terrorist while M4A1 you will find in a CT's buymenu. Still, you can always pick both of them up after a death of an enemy or a friend. Although they are considered similar in efficiency they are very differently handled. Both of them have a 30 bullet round and a similar reloading speed. Ak-47 however draws more damage than a M4 but at the same time it has a much bigger recoil. Therefore never fire Ak-47 non-stop, instead fire two or three bullets at a time and if you have a decent aim, hunt for a head. M4A1 on the other hand draws a smaller damage but it's more precise having a much smaller recoil. You can fire it pretty much non-stop and still hit your target. However, avoid using a silencer unless you're playing it stealthy. Silencer not only raises the recoil, it also lowers the damage. Other than that, normally Ak-47 or M4A1 is a personal choice and they both provide a similar level of opportunities on the battlefield. We recommend building a decent skill with both of these guns as these are the most popular weapons in the game out of all.

Now we move to the sniper rifles and out of all available choice the most common is AWP. This is second to most powerful weapon in the game (first being Leone 12 Gauge Super which is a shotgun that obviously only used in short distance combat and isn't popular enough to include in this article) and it's also the most precise one. There's a whole special technique that needs to be learned in order to handle it, but we shall cover it in a separate article. Just remember to never fire it without zooming first and always make sure you're stable and not moving while doing it. It has a 10 bullet clip and a really slow reload rate as well as a very slow firing rate. Still, one bullet to the body is a frag on the scoreboard. If you're a novice, we recommend not buying it unless it's an AWP map where you will obviously have to use it. Otherwise, get yourself an AK or an M4 which will serve you the same as long as you're careful enough not to get shot by a sniper, so be careful around long distance combat during the later rounds. We would also like to add that this rifle is the most expensive weapon in the game, so getting it on a fully stacked server on a regular map may not be a smart investment because once you're killed you probably won't have much money left to get yourself some other weapon in the next round.

These are the most popular and the most used weapons in Counter-Strike. If you're finished reading this article, now you're aware of how to use them and in what situations. We recommend downloading some training AIM maps from our Maps section and practicing your aiming with all of them. Some maps will allow you to train precisely with Ak-47 and M4A1 while some will be perfect for improving your pistol skill, including Glock, USP and Desert Eagle. It's very important that you learn how to handle them and get used to them because they are pretty much all of what you'll be using on the battlefield.