Counter-Strike 2 Update Adds Left-Hand Aiming, Dropped Weapons Panel, and More

Valve has added many quality-of-life updates to Counter-Strike 2 in its latest patch while buffing the Zeus and nerfing the kill reward from the XM1014. Some prominent changes include the ability to swap between one’s left and right hand while aiming. You can set it before rounds and swap temporarily by pressing H.

The buy menu also gets some interesting revamps, like a Dropped Weapons panel showing all the weapons dropped by your team within the buy zone. It also allows for directly picking them up. The top right indicates the minimum cash guaranteed from the next round so you can plan buying options accordingly.

The Active Duty map pool features the return of Dust 2, with Overpass removed, though several other maps, like Inferno, have seen changes. Check out the full patch notes below for more details.

Counter-Strike 2 is available for PC via Steam as a free-to-play title and has received mixed impressions from players since launch.

Release Notes for 4/25/2024

[ VIEWMODEL ]

• Adjusted viewmodel bob movement
• Added “Preferred Viewmodel Left/Right Handedness” setting
• Added “Switch Viewmodel Left/Right Hand” key binding (default: US keyboard letter H) to switch hands temporarily during gameplay
• Viewmodel position setting and left/right hand state are now networked and visible to first-person spectators.
• Deprecated “Couch” viewmodel position setting

[ HUD ]

• Added “Radar Map Alternate Zoom” setting and “Toggle Radar Zoom” key binding to toggle between zoom levels during gameplay
• Added a radar icon for the local player when free cam spectating
• Added a grenade line-up reticle that appears shortly after pulling the pin. The timing can be configured for each grenade type independently
• Changed weapon Swap text (when pointing at a dropped weapon) to always show the gameplay name of the weapon instead of any customized name it might have.
• Added a kill feed icon for “in-air” kills
• Added the scoreboard to the ESC menu
• Added an icon to indicate bots on the scoreboard

[ BUY MENU ]

• Added a “Dropped Weapons” panel, which shows (and allows the direct pickup of) weapons that have been dropped by teammates that are standing in the buy zone
• Added the minimum amount of money that a player is guaranteed to have in the next round to the buy menu title bar. (thanks, Kadomos)

[ GAMEPLAY ]

• Increased Zeus movement speed and adjusted the attack cone
• Increased Zeus kill reward from $0 to $100 ($50 in Casual)
• Increased CZ75-Auto kill reward from $100 to $300 ($150 in Casual)
• Reduced XM1014 kill reward from $900 to $600 ($300 in Casual)

[ INVENTORY ]

• Lighting adjustments in Inspect background maps
• Added Wear Category to the info tooltip in the Inspect screen
• Added gameplay name in panels that used to only show customized name. E.g., Inspect screen, inventory tile

[ MAPS ]

• Replaced Overpass with Dust 2 in the Active Duty Group, current competition map pool, and Premier matchmaking

Baggage:

• Opened roll-up doors at spawns
• Updated models for some conveyors
• Solidified stairs
• Various bug fixes

Inferno:

• Removed overhanging building at top mid
• Removed overhangs at bottom of banana
• Various map tweaks to improve player collision and readability

Overpass, Nuke, Vertigo, Mirage and Office:

• Bug and exploit fixes
• Collision and line of sight adjustments
• Minor performance improvements

[ WEAPON FINISHES ]

• AK-47 | Inheritance: Texture and mask adjustments
• USP-S | Jawbreaker: Corrected ambient occlusion texture

[ MISC ]

• Decoupled demo playback camera movement from playback speed. This allows moving the camera even if playback is paused
• Added ability to launch practice matches and workshop maps with party members
• Added Overwatch system to enable match demo review by trusted partners
• Copenhagen 2024 Major sticker capsules are on sale now -75% off
• Added ability to adjust brightness in windowed modes