In a bid to reignite interest in 1.6 and spruce up the competition and looks of the game, the ESL have decided to add two new maps to the map-pool for the upcoming IEM Season Six.

It's a move that has been talked about many times in the past as spectators and fans grow more and more tired of the same dull map pool played at tournaments around the world. In the past many of the teams playing have strongly disagreed with the inclusion of various new maps, however for the first time we have seen most people unite, realising that something must be done to keep the game fresh after 12 years.

The organisers behind the Intel Extreme Masters have struck a partnership with the ESWC, e-Stars Seoul and Dreamhack which will see both de_mirage and de_forge added to the competition map pool for each event. They have also been getting feedback from various top level teams and feel confident that both maps are well balanced and fit for top tier competition.

Various luminaries added their thoughts on the decision:

"For years we have been seeing the same Counter-Strike 1.6 maps over and over again. In the past it was impossible to add a single map because teams would not train them if only one event would use it during the tournament. Now with this initiative we hope that teams are able to practice and play some new maps. I personally hope that other organizations out there are willing to follow our initiative." - Camille Versteeg, Head of Competitions ESWC

"Counter-Strike 1.6 is still the most popular game at DreamHack festivals, qualifiers and events. Last year we started to use de_mirage to give the DreamHack tournament some extra flavour - now we're very proud to team up with ESWC, ESL and eStars Seoul to announce the official map pool for the upcoming DreamHack Winter 2011. This kind of co-operation is important for the future growth of eSports." - Tomas Hermansson, Head of Esports DreamHack

"We are really happy that we don't do this step alone but in cooperation with ESWC, DreamHack and eStars Seoul. With the help of several professional teams we all together agreed on this new mappool for our upcoming tournaments and I hope that there will be some more cooperations in the future. We are all competitors but we still need to work together to help our beloved eSports." - Alexander Nehr, Tournament Director CS1.6 ESL

The map pool is now:

de_mirage
de_forge
de_tuscan
de_train
de_dust2
de_inferno
de_nuke