How to Play CS2 Practice with Friends?

CS2 practice with friends is one of your best options to both improve your in-game skill set and get better at playing in a team. What’s more, a custom practice environment allows you to choose any game mode, set up a flexible server, add bots if you need to balance the teams, and just enjoy fun matches with your pals. So, here’s a quick guide on how to play CS2 practice matches with friends!

Setting Up a Practice Lobby

To launch a CS2 private practice with friends, you’ll need to do the following:

1. Check your friend list

Did you add everyone you wanted to play with? Make sure each player you plan to practice with is on your Steam friends list.

2. Create a private lobby

Regardless of whether you want to have some fun by playing in mixed teams or compete against bots, you have to set up a custom practice lobby and create a private match.

1. Go to the CS2 main page and tap the “Play” menu button.
2. In the “Matchmaking” tab, select “Private Matchmaking.”
3. Adjust your lobby’s privacy settings to "Open party," or disable this option if you prefer to send invitations manually.

3. Invite your friends to join the party

Send out the matchmaking pool code to your pals either in DM or share lobby invites through your Steam friends list by hitting “Shift + Tab” while in the game.

4. Customize your match

Once everybody has joined the lobby, adjust all the required settings to get the most out of the match!

1. Pick the map you want to play, either from the official map pool or a custom one from Steam Workshop.
2. Choose the bot difficulty if needed.
3. Select the right game mode based on everyone’s goals and skills: Practice, Casual, Deathmatch, Competitive, or something else. If you aim to train for pro scene-like matches, stick with Casual or Competitive. If it’s just for fun, Practice and Deathmatch are your go-tos.
4. Once everything is set and done, click “Go” and enjoy the ride!​

5. Set up good team communications

If you prefer to use the in-built Counter-Strike 2 voice chat, you’re all set. However, if you’re using an app like Discord or Teamspeak, it’s time to make sure it works properly for everyone on your team.

Note: If you want to play a CS2 practice game with friends in Competitive mode and gain some actual pro experience, you may have to work extra on server control and port forwarding.

Customizing Practice Settings

To get the most out of practice mode with friends in CS2, you should use the following console commands. These allow you to organize a custom training session and gain advanced control over the match environment.

#1 Add bots and configure bot difficulty

Based on your team’s skill level, choose the difficulty that you and your pals will be comfortable with:

1. Enable the developer console in the in-game settings, go to your private lobby, and hit the “~” key to open it.
2. Type bot_add <t> | <ct> to add as many bots to both teams as you need.
3. Type in bot_difficulty [value] (ranges from 0 to 3) to adjust the difficulty.
4. You can also set the bots’ playstyle with commands like bot_snipers_only, bot_knives_only, or bot_pistols_only.

#2 Manage the environment

1. Select the map and set the custom round time with mp_roundtime [value] and buy time with mp_buytime [value] if needed.
2. Enable buying weapons anywhere on the map: mp_buy_anywhere 1.
3. If you want infinite ammo, type in the command sv_infinite_ammo 2.
4. To start a match fully loaded with cash, use the commands mp_maxmoney 99999 and mp_startmoney 99999.
5. Skip the warmup session if everybody is on board with this: mp_warmup_end 1.
6. Use mp_restartgame 1 to restart the game and apply new settings without exiting the lobby.

#3 Enjoy custom game modes

Aside from the well-known Casual, Arms Race, Competitive, and Deathmatch, you can also try something funny and exciting, like a prop hunt or 1v1, to enhance your practice experience.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

And what if your CS2 practice with friends is not working? There could be several reasons for that. Let’s sort them out!

#1 Wrong port settings

If your friends can’t join the practice lobby, it might be because you didn’t apply the proper port forwarding settings or set incorrect firewall restrictions. Try investigating sync and connectivity problems and check whether all your pals have a stable internet connection.

#2 Wrong maps

Some of the game’s built-in maps don’t work as they should, so just changing the location of your match can solve a surprising number of issues.

#3 Wrong matchmaking pool code

Double-check whether you sent the correct link to your friends. There might be something else stored in your cache.

#4 Wrong access control

Make sure you have the right lobby access settings in place, as it might already be full of players you didn’t even invite.

#5 Wrong in-game mode

Setting up private CS2 practice with friends with the Practice menu is no longer possible. So, you must select “Matchmaking.”

Additionally, if nothing else works, you should probably verify the integrity of your game files in the Library and update Counter-Strike 2 to the latest version if you haven’t done so yet.

Anyway, this guide should help you get started. Now, go ahead and play CS2 practice matches with friends in any mode you desire. Have fun, and keep improving your skills. Who knows, maybe one day we’ll be adding your name to our list of the most prominent pro players!