Teamwork: The Essence of Victory

Most people are aware by now of how important teamwork is and how it is one of the greatest qualities amongst many professional teams in a wide array of sports, but in regards to CS:GO, you may find that being a 'team player' is a lot more difficult than you may imagine. That is due to the heavy reliance on several different types of players. Time and time again you are almost guaranteed to find yourself paired up with toxic players whose main objective is to be the ''star player'' and for some reason believes that he is not only the entry fragger, but also the lurker, awper, AND strat caller. This mentality is not only the reason why many games are lost, but also why the experience as a whole is unfavorable. Counter-Strike, as well as many other multiplayer games, rely on some form of teamwork in order to be successful, and while this may seem pretty simple at first, many do not use teamwork at all while they play, and this is by far the most detrimental factor in the outcome of a match.

The reasoning behind this mentality being so detrimental is the way it affects the rest of the team, especially when a team consists of multiple people whose main objective is to look the best instead of using teamwork to make sure a game is won. Many times you will find the star player calling strats that only cater to their style of playing, if he even does, and in my experience this is the biggest reason behind many of the failures for some people. The issue with this is that sometimes it can become virtually impossible to convince that star to step down and play it safe or assume only one position, and this brings you to the greatest flaw with matchmaking in just about all team-based online games. Teamwork requires a bond between players.

Several times will you find people who are unwilling to listen to a strategy, tell you they don't want to be coached, and sometimes will just not even listen. While you shouldn't be barking orders at other teammates, sometimes players will ignore a good strategy for whatever reason and I find this to be a constant recurring theme with players who lose matches. But what if everybody is working together? Often times you will feel yourself unable to successfully win rounds even though you feel as if everything is working out, and nine times out of ten I always am able to pin the failure on poor teamwork and planning. So here are a few quick ways that you can spot check yourself, and make sure that the next time you matchmake, you bring a solid teamplayer to the table. You may find that you could change quite a bit after all.

Assign roles at the start of the map.

Coming across this in a regular matchmaking game is close to non-existent. Roles are very important because it keeps everybody on track. Most of the time players will seek to play their best role when the topic is brought up, and it's a fantastic way to get organized pre-match. This also will minimize the amount of times that your team accidentally buy multiple AWPs, or do not affectively buy grenades when eco-ing. Often times you will find that people do not talk until the beginning of the first round, and instead spend the first round in silence spawn killing. Which leads me to the next tip.

Use the warm-up for strategic planning.

Perhaps another reason behind many losses are players who haven't initially warmed up until it's too late. The time allotted at the beginning of a match is beneficial in many ways. Most importantly, this time allows for you to form a temporary, if not permanent, bond with your fellow players. When everybody is afraid to interact with each other for whatever reason, you are almost guaranteed to get a match that is performed very sloppily, disorganized, and, most importantly, lacks teamwork. So instead of quietly keeping to yourself during this time; try interacting. I can almost gurantee that I will be saying the first few words at the start of each game, and for a good reason too. Valve has even removed all-talk at the start of a match, making it tremendously easier to share strats and assign roles in which will cause the game to be far more enjoyable in the long run. So next time you are in a warm-up don't just mindlessly spawn kill, but instead consult with your teammates on what would be a good pistol round strategy. The first pistol round is always the most important as it always starts the momentum you carry throughout the rest of the game, and having a great plan in action is the greatest way to assure success in the long run.

Listen to your teammates.

Another aspect that ties in with the short temporary bond you get with another stranger is the trust factor. It's often hard to trust in another person when such little time has been given to interact, but is often another cause of many failures as a team. For example: Player A calls a strat, and player B doesn't trust that it will work. So what does player B do? Typically they will run off and do whatever has worked in casual, forgetting that he is on a team and as a team they must work together to be successful. This is one of the greatest flaws I have come across while trying to solo queue. Most of the time you have no other option, but to reason with that 'rogue player' or adapt to how he is playing and use it to your advantage. If time after time you feel that whoever is calling the strats is incompetent, than instead assume the position and swap instead of becoming this 'rogue player', because in the long run, that would be even more detrimental. I can't stress enough how important working as a team is, and while encountering these players is the hardest thing about trying to work as a team, the only thing you can do is adapt and overcome.

Don't be reluctant to be that support player.

Most of the time teams will not pick a support player. In fact, I have gone over 200+ matches through all the ranks, and have found that almost nobody will support another player unless asked. I rarely have teammates who offer a drop or a pop flash without being asked. Often players are actually unaware of their surroundings or what their teammates have bought during matches, and perception is the key to outplaying your opponent. Instead of pop flashing in a teammate as he is about to rain bullets, players are a lot more comfortable with playing by themselves and are in the general mindset of only doing things to help themselves out. Instead of working as one big machine, you are left with several more inefficent smaller ones. The support player is also a very important role to take. You are often the foundation behind many great plays, and often are overlooked as being one of the great factors behind them. This role will is so often overlooked due to it being the dullest of the roles, but it is one of the many things you can do as a team that will give you a clear edge over your opponent (especially considering the fact that they likely are lacking that support role).

Try to communicate not only effectively, but efficiently.

One of the easiest ways to be an effective team player is to make sure that your communication isn't mediocre. Rounds are occasionally lost due to information that was acquired, but not received. This is due to the ignorance of how you should actually communicate, and how it affects each round. Try to keep information short and sweet, but mention any key points you would want to know if you were the unaware teammate. Key points would include: damage dealt, number of enemies, location, direction, bomb carrier/bomb dropped, and any other information that that may pop up that you find useful. While this may sound a lot at first, simply saying "three long A, 1 lit 50, planting" will cover any information that they will possibly need to know other than certain locations they are holding you can manage that. Another point to remember is to make sure that you are not mumbling, too quiet, or constantly repeating yourself. These factors can also be detrimental to how effective your communication to others is. Try not to repeat yourself unless you feel it's very necessary. The reasoning behind this is that when you have a full team of players constantly repeating call-outs, it becomes very hard to sort out certain information while under pressure.

If all else fails, at least encourage each other and make it a pleasant experience.

Everybody by now has encountered that other player who believes that Counter-Strike is much more than just a game, and they may start to take things too seriously and become upset with their teammates. If there is anything to take away from this article, do not be this guy. Realize that your teammates are also humans that are trying to enjoy a game which you both clearly like. Often this aggressive behavior only causes your results and teamwork to plummet, sometimes to the point where it's even non-existent, and clearly nobody likes having to deal with a player who values a game over other humans. Always try to make each game as enjoyable not only for you, but for the rest of your teammates. Who knows, you might end up making a few friends along the way.

If worse comes to worse and you do end up stuck with a team of players who deliberately play without communication and teamwork, the best you can do is to remind yourself that the best way to play is not to join them, but to still do what you can to assist each other and help out. Regardless of how badly one game may go, you can always just mark it down as a loss and move on. Lastly, if you ever find that nothing is ever going your way and you are positive that it isn't you causing it, try inviting friends and starting up your own matchmaking team. This can almost guarantee the use of teamwork in every game you play due to the already existing bond. You may find that over time, with some practice and know-how, you may climb to ranks you never have thought imaginable.

Are you into fantasy leagues? Then check out AlphaDraft and put together your allstar lineup!