“The non-lethal flashbang grenade temporarily blinds anybody within its concussive blast, making it perfect for flushing out closed-in areas. Its loud explosion also temporarily masks the sound of footsteps.”―Official description
Flashbang Grenade in Counter-Strike 2
The flashbang grenade, a key tactical tool in the Counter-Strike series, is made from a mix of metal oxidants like magnesium or aluminium and an oxidiser, typically potassium perchlorate.
Unlike other grenades, players can carry two flashbangs in most games. In Deleted Scenes, players can carry three. In Global Offensive's Classic Casual mode, only one flashbang can be acquired, while in Classic Competitive mode, players can get two. However, if a player's inventory already includes three other grenades and one flashbang, they cannot pick up another, as the maximum limit is four grenades.
Functionality
When thrown, the flashbang explodes after a short delay, emitting a bright flash that blinds all players within its line of sight, including teammates, regardless of the "friendly fire" setting. This results in a temporary white screen that also obscures the HUD. In Counter-Strike: Source and later versions, this effect includes a frozen afterimage of the player's last view before the flash.
Players not directly looking at the flashbang or those at a distance can still be briefly blinded. The explosion causes no physical damage and does not hinder players' actions. From Counter-Strike: Source onwards, players affected by the flashbang also experience temporary deafness, hearing only a ringing sound.
The duration of the blinding effect varies depending on the distance and angle from the explosion. Maximum blinding occurs when the explosion is close and within the player's direct view. The flashbang's effects are not influenced by the player's monitor aspect ratio.
Advanced Effects and Strategies
In Global Offensive, an update on October 23, 2013, introduced a third-person animation for blinded players, showing an arm partially covering their eyes, which does not affect their ability to use grenades or weapons. Spectators will see a white overlay or a circular symbol indicating the flashbang's effect duration. On GOTV, an icon of an eye with a cross and the word "blinded" appears.
When bots are blinded in Condition Zero and Source, they often stop shooting and seek cover, whereas in Global Offensive, they tend to spray bullets while retreating. Bots generally do not avoid flashbangs.
In Deleted Scenes, flashbangs are used by Terrorists with infinite grenades, and NPCs blinded by them cannot attack for a short time.
Tactics
- Quickly looking away can minimize the blinding effect.
- In tight corridors, flashbangs are difficult to avoid, even if players look away quickly.
- Use flashbangs in closed spaces to disorient enemies, making them easy targets.
- Flashbangs are effective against campers, who might shoot blindly after being flashed.
- Throw flashbangs in areas with suspected enemy presence to blind them and gain an advantage.
- Use flashbangs from behind when enemies are distracted.
- Avoid peeking when throwing a flashbang; instead, throw it without exposing yourself.
- Utilize wall-bouncing to throw flashbangs without exposing yourself, but be cautious not to flash yourself or teammates.
- If cornered, use a flashbang and retreat.
- Do not assume a flashbang's detonation means it's safe to rush in; skilled enemies might avoid being blinded.
- Be cautious with bots in Source; they often shoot blindly when flashed.
- A "pop-flash" can blind enemies quickly if thrown perfectly around corners.
- Combine smoke grenades with flashbangs in confined areas for greater effectiveness.
Bugs and Trivia
- In GoldSrc games, blinded players could still see through scopes and access certain UI elements; this was fixed in Source games.
- In GoldSrc, the flashbang model is a retextured CS Grenade, resembling the M7A3 CS gas grenade.
- The flashbang in Global Offensive is modeled after the M84 stun grenade.
- In Beta 1.0, flashbangs behaved like Half-Life grenades, even allowing cooking, but this feature was removed.
- During Counter-Strike Beta, the flashbang was briefly renamed the Concussion Grenade and dealt damage.
- Real-life flashbangs can blind for up to 20 minutes, significantly shortened in the game for balance.
- The flashbang was the cheapest grenade before the introduction of the decoy grenade in Global Offensive.
- In Global Offensive, demo recording cannot be initiated while blinded.
