Fire Sale Update of 23.05.2024 CS2
The latest update, on 23rd May 2024, brought a significant number of changes to Counter-Strike 2. The most crucial part belongs to the A site on Vertigo, which influences the game plan for both sides. Valve also took the first steps towards balancing the economy, reducing the prices for M4A4 and Incendiary, slightly changing the latter's physics as well. Also, the gamers got an improved demo viewer and the ability to rent skins from the Kilowatt case.
The List of Changes & Updates
The full list of changes is pretty huge, with plenty of minor ones, like the new animations for chickens or the elimination of collisions on diverse non-competitive maps. However, let’s focus on the major ones immediately impacting the game and players’ joy.
Massive Vertigo Update
Vertigo received plenty of changes, so the whole update could even be called after this map. The first one (upper image) is the reduction of the wall between the CT/Elevator and A Site Short, giving CTs a colossal advantage in holding the A push. Counter-Terrorists will now also be quicker for the Ramp fight in the early timings, making the fast execution of the A site much harder for Terrorists.
Another massive addition (middle screenshot) is related to scaffolds added to the A site, which connect the Sandbags and Haven as an alternative path. This change will increase the amount of fire angles and potential duels, balancing the regarded bombsite on Vertigo.
To test the renewed A site even more, Valve also made it active in the Wingman mode, with the B site now closed for the active 2x2 duels. Another slight change can be seen on the lowest screenshot, which eliminates the rarely used Doors between the Elevator and Heaven.
Balancing Economy
A tough economy for the CT side has always been a problem in Counter-Strike 2. Thus, Terrorists could plant the bomb in the first round and, even after losing it, have a pretty good buy with Galils in the second round. Reducing the reward for bomb planting from $800 to $600 may look insufficient, but a few hundred bucks have always been a factor in Counter-Strike.
At the same time, the cost of the M4A4 was reduced by $100 from $3100, which also supports better economy on the CT side. Of course, the M4A4 vs. AK-47 comparison still favors the latter, but a cheaper gun is always a bonus factor and should return the popularity of the M4A4.
Fire Grenade Changes
Another positive economic switch was made in the grenade department, with the CT’s Incendiary now costing $500 instead of $600. However, this cost reduction came with cutting the burning time, decreasing the height and area of the Incendiary flames, while Molotov saved its parameters. Additionally, the CT’s incendiary grenade received a renewed animation with green tones appearing during its burn, allowing players to distinguish the type of thrown grenade.
Skins Rent
Those who review Counter-Strike as the real-life market also got a new topic for discussion and will edit their trading strategies. Thus, Valve made it possible to get all the skins of the latest Kilowatt case, except exceedingly rare ones (Kukri knives), via the loan deal. To receive this option, one has to own the Kilowatt case and then, instead of opening it with the key, choose the option to get all the skins in random wear for one week. In other words, one can get AK-47 | Inheritance, AWP | Chrome Cannon, and M4A1-S | Black Lotus, and the rest of the skins as well, for the price of the key (about $2.5) for one week.
Just a few hours after this update, the price for the Kilowatt case skyrocketed, but the market balanced it. Thus, by the middle of May 24, its price was almost twice as high as it had been 24 hours earlier. The skins of the regarded case predictably saw a slump in price, while even the rest of the skins available in other cases (not packages, which don’t require a key to open them) also slightly went down. If this experiment goes well, we will see a mini-revolution of the skins and prices in CS2.
Demo Viewer Improvements
The latest thing we want to mention is the upgrades for the demo review opportunities. The old lions definitely have scary flashbacks of how the reviewing system was lagging, which was finally fixed in CS2. However, Valve didn’t stop and continue the improvements, now adding the timeline with key events—player’s kills and deaths. So, after choosing the player you want to review, you can see the timeline and click on the needed event, which will appear on the screen in a matter of a second or two. It should make making clips and highlights much faster as well.
