Video Game Developed in Dorm Room Earns Billions

At Simon Fraser University near Vancouver, British Columbia, few people were aware of the legend that was unfolding in a simple dorm room. Minh Le, a student majoring in computer science, combined his passion for gaming with his extraordinary knowledge of computers and created a video game called Counter-Strike. Little did he know that this first-person shooter game he had developed for fun would earn him billions of dollars and become one of the most influential games in history.

“I just wanted to make a game that was fun to pick up and frag out,” Le said in a recent video interview.

However, Counter-Strike didn’t become popular immediately. The game started out when Le realized his interest in “modding,” or changing the code of other popular games to create new ones, which were sometimes variations of the original game.

The most crucial innovation Le made was the multiplayer format used in the game. Unlike most shooter games at the time, players didn’t have infinite lives in Counter-Strike. If you died in the game, you were eliminated from the round and had to wait until it was over.

“That concept was so critical to what made Counter-Strike so fun,” Le said. “It just really gave the game a sense of urgency. Like, your life mattered — and players played differently knowing that.”

Officially released in the fall of 2000 by Valve Corporation, Counter-Strike spawned a half-dozen sequels and an esports vertical that continues to generate billions from the sales of cosmetic weapon skins. It has influenced decades of shooters and is known to be one of the most important video games ever made.

Word about Le’s new game got around so fast that Valve Corporation, a video game company, emailed him saying how it was impressed. The company even offered Le a job, making sure to accommodate him as a student with a remote contract.

With Valve’s support, Le enhanced Counter-Strike by improving its functionality as well as adding components, such as new maps and better graphics. The refined game had fewer bugs and a more robust infrastructure to make it run smoother. With these final tweaks, the company officially launched the game in the fall of 2000, leading to six sequels and billions of dollars.

Even 25 years later, Counter-Strike’s influence is still remarkable. Hero shooter games such as Valorant and Overwatch demonstrate Le’s multiplayer format, while Call of Duty has a bomb defusal mode completely inspired by Counter-Strike. The game also played a crucial part in the esports market, attracting competitive players from all around the world for the past 24 years.

Source:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/18/arts/counter-strike-half-life-minh-le.html