Valve has released a major update for Counter-Strike 2. The patch launched Premier Season Five, added Cache to the Active Duty Map Pool in place of Overpass, revamped C4 explosion damage, updated the Arsenal, added new community maps, and upgraded the engine code to the current version of Source 2. The full list of changes was published on the official Counter-Strike website.
Premier
Premier Season Five has kicked off in CS2. The main change for the season is the update to the active map pool: Cache has been officially added to the Active Duty Map Pool, while Overpass has been removed from the rotation.
Now players can test strategies on Cache in Premier and climb the ranks on the new version of the map.
Gameplay Changes
Valve has completely overhauled C4 explosion damage on all official defusal maps. Now, damage is calculated not instantly across the entire zone but through a pre-calculated simulation built into the compiled map.
After detonation, the shockwave quickly spreads from the explosion's center across the map. It weakens around corners and doesn't pass through walls, so at a certain distance, a player can survive based on their position. Additionally, the game now shows a preliminary damage estimate through a blinking health bar before the explosion.
Valve also fixed a bug where picking up dropped weapons through the buy menu sometimes didn't complete.
Arsenal Update
Two new weapon collections have been added to the Arsenal, created as a result of the recent community Call to Arms: Spy Tech and Arabesque.
Additionally, two new sticker collections have been added to the game: Fruits & Vegetables and Auto Racing.
Meanwhile, the Train 2025 and Sport & Field weapon collections are no longer available in the Arsenal. The same applies to the Sugarface 2 and Elemental Craft sticker collections.
Workshop
Valve has updated the "Custom Paint Job Extended" feature. Now, item creators can use a separate overlay mask texture.
There's also the ability to independently configure UV mapping randomization for the mask and albedo. This change expands the tools available to skin creators and gives more control over how custom paint jobs will look in the game.
Map Scripting
New scripting tools for maps include Instance.QueueAfterThinks, Instance.OnWeaponDrop, and CSWeaponBase.GetOriginalOwner.
Valve also fixed a crash that occurred if the name in Instance.RegisterCheatCommand matched an existing command.
Additionally, errors during the CompileModule phase now include the file name and line number. This should simplify troubleshooting when loading scripts.
Support for legacy vts-assets has been removed.
Engine Update
The engine code has been updated to the latest version of Source 2. Valve did not disclose additional technical details in the changelog, so this change should be considered an internal engine base update.
Map Rotation and Adjustments
Community maps Warden, Stronghold, Alpine, and Sanctum have been removed from all modes.
Boulder, Fachwerk, and Shelter have been added to Competitive, Casual, and Deathmatch.
Debris and El Dorado have been added to Wingman.
Various clipping fixes have been made on Cache.
On Dust II, a pixel gap outside Tunnel has been fixed, and clipping in this area has been improved.
On Inferno, clipping on top of mid has been fixed to remove the possibility of a pixel boost.
Other Fixes
Developers have reduced the performance load when opening the scoreboard. This should decrease FPS drops when players check statistics during a match.
Valve also fixed a bug where material blending effects disappeared when zooming in. As an example, developers mentioned dirt on barrels on Banana in Inferno.
Another change concerns stickers: the precision of their rotation in the application interface has been increased to half a degree. This will allow for more precise crafting adjustments.
The previous major seasonal update for Counter-Strike 2 was released with the start of Premier Season Four. At that time, Valve brought Anubis back into the active map pool in place of Train, changed the map itself, buffed the MP7 and MP5-SD, reduced the price of the PP-Bizon, added new collections to the Weekly Care Package, and updated the list of community maps. More about that patch can be read in our article.
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