Counter-Strike 2 Is Real & Its New Features Are Game-Changing

screenrant.com:

has been announced by Valve alongside a breakdown of its new features that are truly game-changing for the 23-year-old shooter series. The last entry, (or ) was released in 2012, and although that title has received support over the years and has become hugely successful in the competitive e-sports space, fans have been keen to see a new entry that fully utilizes the technology available in current AAA titles.

is due to release during Summer 2023 and will be a free upgrade to. A limited test for is currently available to players, however, and will allow them to experience and provide feedback on the many new features Valve has in store thanks to its new Source 2 game engine and improved servers.

In an extremely consumer-friendly move, Valve confirmed that players will be able to carry over their entire inventory of skins and weapons to. This will be a huge relief to those who have accumulated an impressive collection in the 11 years since first launched. These weapons have been upgraded to benefit from the Source 2 engine's new lighting and material rendering, with Valve highlighting some of the more stylized weapon finishes as taking full advantage of the new models to stand out in the game.

Given how smoke grenades are regularly used in 's combat situations to provide tactical advantages, Valve has reworked and improved them for to create a variety of new gameplay opportunities. Using the Source 2 engine's rendering features, smoke grenades will produce volumetric clouds that fully interact and respond to players, environments, bullets, explosions, and more. All players will now see the same smoke from a grenade regardless of their position and can manipulate it by pushing and carving the shape of the smoke cloud