current state of cs2
Oh, where should I begin?
CS2 has been out for almost three years now. I started playing because most of my friends who used to play GO came back for the love of the game. I was really excited about the new responsive smokes and the better graphics — although graphics were never the main factor for me, the game genuinely looks beautiful compared to CS.
After around a year and a half of consistently grinding, I climbed all the way from FACEIT level 2 to 2.4k elo (my previous account got hacked, so I had to start all over again). I also invested heavily into my setup and hardware for this game, and honestly, I had a lot of fun doing it. No regrets there.
But despite all that, the game still feels like it hasn’t improved enough since release.
Sure, we’ve had frequent updates, with the most recent major one being AnimGraph2, but something about the game still feels off. The netcode feels noticeably worse compared to GO, and in my opinion, subtick has been a mistake since day one.
And before people say:
“You don’t even understand what tickrate does or how it affects gameplay.”
Yeah — I do know what I’m talking about. Even if someone doesn’t understand the technical side of tickrate, 128-tick GO simply felt smoother and more consistent. Back in GO I played on a 144Hz monitor, and now I’m using a 360Hz Alienware monitor in CS2, yet I still can’t achieve that same smooth flow and responsiveness the old game had.
I was genuinely excited for AnimGraph, and after playing with it for about a month, the only real improvement I can point out is that the game feels slightly more responsive. But movement still feels awkward, especially leg animations, and peekers advantage is still insanely strong. It always existed in Counter-Strike, but this feels like a completely different level.
In GO, it felt like certain mechanics actually required skill, and you were rewarded for practicing them — things like movement, jiggle peeking, wide swinging, and overall timing. Now it feels like people just wide swing every single angle with almost no downside. If you try to hold an angle, it’s basically:
“Bye bye John, you’re dead instantly.”
SMGs are another issue entirely. If someone wide swings you close range with an MP9 or MAC-10, you’re often dead before you can even properly react because of how insanely fast they move across your screen.
And the “XANTARES peek” used to actually be something impressive — a display of incredible mechanics and timing. Nowadays I genuinely can’t tell if people are hitting insane peeks or just holding W while running at me and instantly headshotting me.
That being said, I don’t want people to misunderstand me. Counter-Strike will always have a special place in my heart. I just had to get this off my chest because I’ve spent so much time with the game, and I wanted to hear what other people think about it.