Counter Strike: Global Offensive has been with us for just over a decade. Its beginnings were humble, perhaps even infamous, thanks to a rather surprising exit from the hands of Hidden Path Entertainment. Shortly thereafter, Valve took the reins and spent the rest of the decade perfecting Global Offensive until it became the tactical multiplayer shooter par excellence. Those who initially hesitated and stuck with previous versions of the game, be it 1.6 or Source, gradually switched to Global Offensive until millions of people flocked to Mirage or Dust II every day to aim for heads.
Now, suddenly, none of that exists. Suddenly, without the request of a large part of the community, Global Offensive disappeared and was forcibly replaced by Counter Strike 2. It may have been a controversial move, and the sequel presents us with a somewhat bare product with fewer modes and maps than Global Offensive. But the skeleton we have here is already admirable thanks to the complete transformation that Counter Strike undergoes when moving to Source Engine 2. Below, we tell you about six great improvements that make Counter Strike 2 the perfect framework for the next decade.
Bulk pairs
Without a doubt, the biggest new feature of this sequel is the new smoke grenades. Gone are the Global Offensive smokes that the community learned to manipulate to be able to see from angles where enemies could be spotted. The new smokes always look the same for each player, expand to fill the gaps around them, and react to shots and grenades. The ancient strategy of blowing smoke into a bomb to defuse it can now be thwarted by a single frag grenade, exposing the poor counter-terrorist who fancied himself a master of stealth. In a game where the slightest change in smoke grenades matters, we can’t wait to see how the “meta” plays out among the pros.
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Graphical improvements
The new graphics engine cannot but deserve a significant improvement in graphics, and the truth is that CS2’s leap forward is significant. Of course, we will never talk about a game with the same accuracy of graphics as other great games of the genre, because it is important here that the game runs as smoothly as possible for the maximum number of players. But that doesn’t stop Valve from putting together countless pieces to breathe new life into the experience.. Inside the Molotov cocktail there is a liquid that reacts to movement and creates a new effect, weapons have new models, new effects for headshots, shine, reflections that were not there before… Everything is new without losing the essence of what is old.
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Normal maps, now prettier
Like the rest of the parts, the star of Counter Strike, its timeless cards, have also received proper care. Some of them, like Mirage, Dust II or Ancient, only received graphical improvements to bring them up to date with the rest of the engine. Others, such as Overpass or Inferno, received significant graphical improvements that completely changed their appearance. In particular, Inferno is now a small Italian town full of details, the evolution of its church is exemplary. What was once a small chapel now gives the impression of a large church, including echoing its sounds. Each map has small details in the lighting, which not only makes them look better, but also causes players to cast shadows in some places. This can be key to gameplay, letting us know where an enemy is coming from before they appear on screen. As a gameplay improvement, the invisible ceiling has been removed from maps, allowing for new ways to release smoke.
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A new weapon system
In the past, everyone started the game with the same weapon. Now we have to choose the ones we want to take to the battlefield before starting the game. This means that some weapons will be disgraced, yes, but it also brings with it new possibilities, such as carrying the same version of the weapon with or without a silencer, or carrying a desert eagle with a revolver. However, shotgun and LMG users may miss having people who can lend them to them while playing. Another addition taken directly from Valorant is the ability to return purchased items. A very useful application that reduces the time when we buy the wrong weapon.
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Prime mode
Finally, the new player search system could not be missing. The premier mode debuted in Global Offensive, but it returns here, having evolved and positioned itself as the game’s main mode. Search the game and you’ll soon be banning or picking cards. After about two minutes the game started and at the end we win or lose “ELO”. If we move up or down, we will see our position in the rankings with the possibility of placing ourselves on the leaderboard if we do well enough. The system works pretty well, although it remains to be seen how fair it is in the long run. Meanwhile, if we don’t want to play on the map we’re playing on, we can always choose ranked games on specific maps. We will have an individual rank on each map, which prevents those who own Mirage from facing people who only play Inferno when switching maps. On each map we will play against people of our level on each map.
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A new network system
Counter Strike is a game of absolute precision and speed. Each death usually depends on fractions of a second and millimeters of mouse placement. Therefore, it is extremely important that our personnel go where they are supposed to go, when they are supposed to arrive. Counter Strike 2 introduces a new “tick” system where instead of the server knowing what’s happening 128 times a second, each action has a unique marker that indicates when it happened. At the moment there are flaws like movement and knockback that don’t fit what Global Offensive had. But what it does achieve is that we never feel like we’ve made a shot that the game has denied us. Gone is the feeling that we pulled the trigger earlier than the game indicates. Shoot and whether you miss or hit is in your hands. It remains to be seen if Valve will be able to replicate the feel of movement and recoil on 128 tick servers.
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