During his talk about Steam’s new account security feature Steam Guard at the CeBIT Computer Expo in Hanover, Germany, Valve co-founder and managing director Gabe Newell was asked if Valve was making Counter Strike 2.

Strangely, Newell was adamant in avoiding the question, an answer that would have many pro-gamers anticipating a true sequel to an “outdated” game. Ever since being released in 1999 as a modification to the then popular game Half-Life, the game has amassed millions of players, with many teams in the pro-gaming world starting out and earning a living playing Counter Strike. The series has had it’s criticisms over not releasing anything important to the game, sans one expansion pack (Counter Strike: Condition Zero) and one transfer over to a new game engine (Counter Strike: Source, basically retaining the same core game-play, but moving to a better and upgraded Source engine). Many wonder if Valve can pull off a true sequel, or even a total revamp of the series, Team Fortress 2 for example, with a new game release that will improve over the standard, but reliable, game-play mechanics of Counter Strike.

Though apprehensive in his response, Newell hinted that Valve has some plans for Counter Strike 2. More or less, he stated that right now they are completely focused on their existing intellectual properties: Portal 2, which comes out on the 18th of April; and more surprisingly, Defense of The Ancients 2 (or DoTA 2 as it’s more commonly known). And yes, DoTA 2 does exist, and yes, Valve are still working on it, details and release date still forthcoming. Only till after those two games come out will Valve focus on creating a true sequel to Counter Strike.

Info [via HLTV.org and Andrew Clark]