According to a recent claim, Counter-Strike 2, an upgraded version of the classic shooter using the Source 2 engine, will reportedly enter beta later this month.
According to earlier today’s story by renowned esports writer Richard Lewis, Valve has been working on Counter-Strike 2 for a while and plans to release it in beta this month.
While the Counter-Strike development team has been concentrating on this new version for some time and includes developers with experience working on other versions, several issues in CS:GO haven’t been fixed for a while.
In addition, according to Lewis, Counter-Strike 2 will have an upgraded matching system that will be more similar to what third-party services like FACEIT now offer, as well as 128 tick servers, which have been a longtime desire of the CS:GO community.
Yet it’s not anticipated that the brand-new matchmaking mechanism will be accessible when the beta starts. Naturally, switching to the Source 2 engine is expected to bring about several improvements in aesthetics and optimization, but this could imply that some players with lower-spec PCs might need to update to play.
The announcement follows speculation that CS:GO would receive a significant update. A new Tik Tok account has been added, official Counter-Strike social media accounts have been more active than usual, and Counter-Strike 2 listings have been found in NVIDIA driver upgrades, which has stoked more rumors.
Richard Lewis Tweeted on Twitter: “Latest on Substack: I’m as surprised as everyone, but it turns out not only is Counter-Strike 2 real, but it’s coming very soon. Sources with knowledge of the game’s development reveal details of the upcoming beta release.”
Latest on Substack: I'm as surprised as everyone but it turns out not only is Counter-Strike 2 real but it's coming very soon. Sources with a knowledge of the games development reveal details of the upcoming beta release.https://t.co/ogSk5QnU6L
— Richard Lewis (@RLewisReports) March 5, 2023
Lewis’s research now seems to suggest that significant changes are coming to the Counter-Strike community, and they might be even more critical than previously thought.
Lewis also questions the potential effects on the Counter-Strike professional scene, which is more popular than ever. The professional community was severely split between CS 1.6 and CS Source when CS:GO debuted more than ten years ago, with few people initially switching to CS:GO.
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As the entire professional scene is now firmly based on one game, there is a chance that the transition to a new game will be easier and enforced by Valve, or it may once more be left up to the community, in which case the pro scene may remain divided for some time.
In any case, it’s unlikely that Counter-Strike 2 will take over as the primary game played at the professional level right away because Valve will want to ensure the game is reliable first.