New smoke grenades

In CS 2, smoke grenades will be completely overhauled. They will use dynamic volumetric particles that interact with the environment, react to light, gunfire, and explosions.

The new smoke effect will interact with other elements of the game, opening up new tactics. Bullets and grenades will accelerate the smoke, expanding or dissipating it. Smoke will spread through open doors and broken windows, descend and rise up stairs, flow through corridors, and mix with smoke from other grenades. The interaction of smoke particles with the overall lighting system will make the effect more realistic.

More information about the new smoke grenades can be found in the article.

Sub-tick system

Counter-Strike 2 uses a new tickrate structure that allows the server to instantly respond to players' actions. Previously, changes were only processed at specific intervals of time. Now, the server records the player's actions between ticks and calculates them as accurately as possible. This makes the game more responsive and ensures that the trajectory of grenades remains consistent.

More details about the new system can be found here.

Updated maps

The maps in the game have either been supplemented or created from scratch, making them cleaner, brighter, and improved.

For example, the Overpass map has been completely updated, using all the latest rendering tools and technologies available in Source 2.

Developers have demonstrated the new Source 2 lighting on the Nuke location, which brings realism to the maps. Thanks to physically accurate rendering systems, live textures, lighting, and mirror reflections are created.

Counter-Strike 2 includes classic maps with improved lighting and models, making the gameplay more understandable and readable. At the same time, players may notice differences in gameplay between CS:GO and CS 2, but the changes to the maps are not too significant.

Source 2 Tools

Community map creators will have access to the Source 2 toolkit and rendering functions, making it easier for them to create, experiment, and test their work. Additionally, the Workshop for items will be available for testing soon, so stay tuned for updates.

YOUR ITEMS IN A WHOLE NEW LIGHT

The items you have in CS:GO will be available in Counter-Strike 2, and thanks to the new features of Source 2, they will look more appealing. The game retains the previous skins, but some of them will have new, higher-quality models.

HD Effects

In CS 2, all visual effects have been improved. Thanks to the use of new lighting and particle systems in Source 2, a new type and behavior for water, explosions, fire, gunfire flashes, hits, bullet air trails, and other elements were created.

In Counter-Strike 2, visual elements are designed to convey maximum information to players. When bullets hit walls, visible markers appear on them that can be seen from a distance, and bloodstains correspond to the direction of the shot and disappear over time, indicating what happened.

Developers completely updated the explosion effects, fire, bomb glow, and many other visual elements in Counter-Strike 2. With the help of Source 2 capabilities and modern computers, we made the game environment more beautiful and logical.

In addition, the redesigned user interface in CS 2 provides visual hints about the player's status. The improvements not only add an aesthetic component but also convey important gameplay information to players.

Accurate audio

Developers have updated the sound design in Counter-Strike 2 to make it more realistic and informative. Sounds better convey the atmosphere of the surrounding world, they can be easily distinguished and provide more useful information to players. In addition, Valve has improved the balance of sounds to make the game sound more enjoyable.

How to get into the closed beta of Counter-Strike 2?

Limited testing of Counter-Strike 2 started on March 22, and not all Valve shooter fans will be able to try it out. The development team selects participants based on several factors, including recent play on Valve's official servers, trust level, and Steam account status.

If you are selected to participate in the limited CS 2 test, you will receive a notification in the main CS:GO menu. To begin the download, select "SIGN UP." After the download is complete, launch CS:GO and select the "Limited Test" option to play Counter-Strike 2. The developers have also stated that new players will also be invited to participate in testing, but over time.

Counter-Strike 2 will be fully featured with all the new functions in the summer. The closed beta will allow you to evaluate the game's capabilities and fix any bugs before its official release.