Valve announces Counter-Strike 2 as a free upgrade

Valve officially revealed Counter-Strike 2, the sequel/upgrade to its popular esports first-person shooter, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. It brings the original game to the Source 2 engine, with each of the original game’s maps having been rebuilt for the new title. It launches in summer 2023 as a free upgrade for CS:GO.

In addition to the announcement, Valve also released three videos detailing the changes players can expect to see in Counter-Strike 2. Smoke grenades now create a dynamic, volumetric smoke cloud that interacts with the environment and can be dispelled by bullets and grenades. It’s also updated the servers’ architecture with sub-tick updates, so that players no longer have to worry about the in-game tick rate.