27 September 2023 , 20:43
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Counter Strike 2 was expected to release this summer, but with the season officially ending last week, it's just missed the window. The good news is that it's out right now after being teased last week by the developer.
The follow up to CSGO, the existence of Counter Strike 2 was first alluded to back in March before it got an official announcement and summer 2023 release window confirmed that same week. Aside from the limited test – which also kicked off in March – it's been pretty quiet since then. Until last week.
Valve took to the game's Twitter account to seemingly tease the Counter Strike 2 release which looks set to be today, Wednesday September 27. "What are you doing next Wednesday?" said the tweet, indicating (given all of the context thus far) that the Counter Strike 2 release would be happening today. A reddit post this week also pointed out that the CS:GO Twitch category has been renamed to just Counter Strike now.
On top of that, the banner for the Twitter account was changed just yesterday (via @cs2newsupdate) and now reads "dawn of the final day." All in all, it was a very heavy handed 'tease' that's about as subtle as a punch in the face. And finally, with all of the teases out of the way, Valve posted a video on Twitter which confirmed (at the end) that Counter Strike 2 is finally available now.
While the Counter Strike 2 release may have been a surprise, the content on offer is less so. The limited test has been in play since March giving players access to features like the new CS rating system, improved smoke grenades, sub-tick update architecture, overhauled and upgraded maps, and more.
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June saw the first major update to the Counter Strike limited test, detailed on Steam, which introduced a new loadout and buy menu, as well as workshop tools, amidst other smaller changes. If you've been playing since March, or even the summer, you'll be one step ahead of players joining the fray now.
If you're on PlayStation or Xbox, wondering when you can join in the fun, you're out of luck for now. There's been no mention yet of a Counter Strike 2 PS5 or Xbox Series X|S release.