“All Aboard!” CS2 14.11.2024 Update

“All Aboard!” — these were the last words of Valve’s twit about their recent update, which speaks a lot about its fulfillment. The developers decided to return one of the oldest maps in Counter-Strike history, de_train, significantly redesigning it. Also, Overpass received plenty of updates, while the community maps for the Competitive and Wingman modes faced rotation. Read on for more changes and details.

The List of Changes & Updates

We’ll go from the most noticeable changes to the least noticeable, explaining them in more detail.

Train Return

The pure CS classic returned to the Counter-Strike 2 with a freshened-up design. It seems that Valve listened to the community and reworked the map to balance it, cutting a lot of long shooting and holding lines.

Thus, the Ivy exit was always a suicide decision for Terrorists as they had to cope with three possible enemy positions. Now, a zigzag planning of the lanes near Ivy makes the pass significantly safer. The A Main exit also looks a bit more secure for Ts, who don’t need to check and expect opponents from a dozen corners and covering positions, making the attack easier.

A similar story happened on the B site, where holding both lower and upper exits became much harder for CTs. The Upper B is now protected from the snipers on the Headshot, while the reduced number of carriages on the B bomb plant leaves less room for maneuvers.

Overall, it looks great but should be checked in practice, and that's why Train was added to the Competitive map pool only. It also looks too dark and rainy to be added to the Premier mode and for official tournaments.

In-Built Grenades Guide

Another Train-related feature is the Map Guide option. It is available only on this map to help players learn a few basic T-side smokes. Before diving into this feature, we should mention that the grenade-throwing reticle preview now contains additional axis points for easier throws. Moreover, now the Grenade Camera lets you see where your grenade will land after the jump throw; you should simply press a space bar on the keyboard. This makes grenade training much easier and more effective.

To activate an in-built guide for a few basic T-side smokes on Train, you need to toggle the responsive function in the left part of the screen before launching the Practice map:

Then, you’ll be placed alone on the map, with infinite smokes in your bag and multiple areas on the map with useful comments on the most popular lineups.

Read the lineup explanation, where “-2x” or “-1y” mean the usage of the renewed axis labels as the aiming points for responsive spots. Aim carefully, throw or jump-throw, and look at the result on the Grenade Camera.

If this feature is met with enthusiasm, Valve probably widen the number of grenade spots alongside the map pool where it can be used.

Other Maps’ Changes

Another significant portion of changes belongs to maps, where four community battlefields replaced their older alternatives. Overpass received a huge list of modifications, and it’s better to check it on the official update page. Overall, it looks like the most rebranded map in CS2 (after Inferno, of course) is preparing to return to the active duty pool.

The biggest changes on Overpass are probably related to escaping from Heaven. Valve removed the handrails, which makes it easier to drop from Heaven, while the disappearance of water at the bottom can result in a few lost HP from falling. The water was also removed on the B site and the Short, which should improve the overall performance near and on the bomb site. On top of that, a lot of visual gaps and confusing textures were fixed.

The Competitive Matchmaking map pool was renewed with Train, Basalt, and Edin, while Thera and Mills were deleted.

Two replacements also came to the Wingman mode. Instead of Assembly and Memento, we now have Palais and Whistle.

Also, the maps like Italy, Shoots, Ancient, and Mirage received minor fixes.

Damage Prediction

An interesting update arrived to the game processing, where the shooting feedback should become more natural and easy to understand. Thus, the shots into the body and head, alongside the kill, should be more obvious visually and audibly. Moreover, all this will now be processed on the user's side and depend less on the server and its feedback. However, Valve has already warned about possible confusion and miscalculations, so don’t expect too much from this feature immediately.

Minor Visual & Other Fixes

These fixes don’t change the gameplay too much, so let’s go here with a short few-word summarizing:

1. Improved Molotovs and Incendiaries' performance;
2. Your legs animation now should look more natural on the ground;
3. Flashbang blinding animation shows the 3rd-person dazzling level better;
4. Improved radar-environment overlay and transparency;
5. Added con-commands annotation_* for easier dealing with map guide notes (creation, saving, and loading);
6. Armory Pass experience gaining fixed;
7. Charm description now contains a Charm Template number.