Counter-Strike used to have a custom mode where players would dig tunnels through stone cubes to find other players that they would then kill. I can't for the life of me remember the name of this mode (looking around comes up with custom maps about tunnels instead), but it was a great time, and one Halo fan has inadvertently started bringing it back to life with Forge.

DanTheBloke showed off the prototype on the Halo subreddit, calling it "a potential gametype revolving around digging tunnels and bases through a block separating the two teams". The key difference between this and the old Counter-Strike mode is that rather than shooting through the blocks, you have to place explosive charges. These then detonate remotely to continue the path.

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The risk with this mode was always that you'd accidentally dig into someone's tunnel and begin an unexpected, unprepared gunfight. You'd typically want to avoid these unplanned encounters, but there was a rush in switching out the pistol frantically to quickly get the jump on whoever you'd found. Usually, this was a free-for-all, rather than team-based, but the general premise is the same.

However, while in CS anyone can break the blocks to get through and form tunnels, this mode will require 'miners', as to avoid any performance hiccups. As it stands, there are two per team, making four total. This will also ensure that the map doesn't rip apart too fast. By the end of CS games, you'd likely find yourself in a giant, vast, empty space with only a few blocks still dotted about, shooting across to enemies. That's where this Halo mode will inevitably differ, being more tactical and team-focused. Miners will have to work together to carve a path that will help their team, rather than aimlessly hoping to find a random player.

Right now, this custom mode is a prototype, but if its popularity across Counter-Strike is anything to go by, the final version could well be a hit among players. It's a huge shift from the typical FPS gameplay of running around pre-built maps and finding good spots to take advantage of, slowly creeping around hunting players. You're instead making your own map, one that's different every time. And there's no cover once you break into another person's tunnel.

The similarities certainly look like an accident (FPS' are a flat circle, after all), given that DanTheBloke doesn't mention Counter-Strike at all. Instead, they said that they played Ace of Spades, a blocky battle builder, which may have served as inspiration. Others likened it to Blockland, Brickforce, Tunnel Wars, Minecraft, Rock and Stone, and more. But really, it's Counter-Strike, trust me. Given that Halo Infinite fans have also brought in game modes like Surf (where you glide along triangular surfaces), it's only fitting that more of CS continues to bleed in.

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