The free CS:GO 2 update is officially out now on Steam
Just as it looked like Valve would miss its promised CS:GO 2 release date, the Steam-maker quietly launched the multiplayer game revamp with no fanfare and no proper announcement. There was just an updated Steam page and a new trailer showing off some of the extensive overhauls Valve implemented in the decade-old game.
Within minutes of the announcement, SteamDB shows over 1 million players were logging into the game, and Steam hasn’t even fallen apart as a result. Well, not yet anyway.
“For over two decades, Counter-Strike has offered an elite competitive experience, one shaped by millions of players from across the globe,” Valve says in the Steam description. “And now the next chapter in the CS story is about to begin. This is Counter-Strike 2.”
“A free upgrade to CS:GO, Counter-Strike 2 marks the largest technical leap in Counter-Strike’s history. Built on the Source 2 engine, Counter-Strike 2 is modernized with realistic physically-based rendering, state of the art networking, and upgraded Community Workshop tools.”
CS:GO 2 includes new ratings and leaderboards, updated maps, and“dynamic” smoke effects, which sounds like a small thing, but it’s a pretty big deal. You can see some of this in action in the trailer above.
All your CS:GO items are supposed to make the jump to CS:GO 2, so you won’t lose anything once you download the update.
CS:GO 2 is a free-to-play game and only requires a Steam account. You can pay $14.99 to get Prime status, which matches you with other Prime players and gives access to Prime-exclusive items, drops, and weapon cases. All the items are cosmetic, so aside from the matchmaking, you aren’t missing out on anything that would alter your experience with the game.
