CS2 Arms Race Guide

The Call To Arms, the first Counter Strike 2 update introduced to the game, has brought back a classic game mode, the arms race. A popular alternative to the classic matchmaking, back in the days of Counter Strike: Global Offensive the arms race was often played as a warm-up by players before jumping into the ranked queue.

So, what is arms race, and how does the game mode look in Counter Strike 2? Our CS2 arms race guide will cover everything you need to know!

What Is Arms Race

Arms Race is an alternative way to experience CS 2, much more similar to older FPS games, with all-out pvp in free for all matches. The players are divided into two teams of six players on both sides, twelve players in total. There are no rounds, every player starts the game immediately with a weapon equipped. Players don’t get any money and can’t open the standard in-game shop. Instead, players advance one level for every kill scored. You get a new weapon after scoring a number of kills, until you get to the golden knife, the final weapon. The first player player to score a kill with the final arms race weapon available, the golden knife, wins the match for his team.

The arms race weapon pool is randomized in every match to make the gameplay more exciting. Still, the weapons available in the match always include:

• 1 automatic rifle
• 1 sniper rifle
• 4 assault rifles
• 1 machine gun
• 3 submachine guns
• 1 heavy pistol
• 3 pistols
• 2 shotguns
• Knife

While you score a single level for every kill you get, every player who gets killed with a knife gets demoted one level lower. Once a player scores a kill with the golden knife, their team weans the match, and a new arms race games is started on a different map. At the moment, there are two different maps available uniquely in the Arms Race mode: Shoots and Baggage.

There is no ranked mode for the arms race available, and players can join and leave arms race games while they are in progress. Leaving an arms race match early won’t place any restrictions on you in other game modes either. This makes arms race a great choice for anyone who likes the fast-paced shooting gameplay of CS 2, but doesn’t like the pressure of ranked matchmaking.

How To Play Arms Race?

Arms race can be easily accessed from the game menu. When queuing up for a match, you can simply select the arms race game mode and wait until you get matched with other gamers. Arms race was always one of the more popular game modes, and it hasn’t been forgotten in CS2, so you shouldn’t have to wait long before matching with other players.

Arms race works a bit different than other modes in Counter Strike, and because of this it requires a slightly different approach Here are some useful tips on how to get better at Arms Race.

Keep Moving

Many gamers who have experience with older FPS game modes might feel like camping is a good solution, but in the fast-paced arms race mode, the best approach is to always stay moving. You won’t have to be as unpredictable as possible, and while camping might be good short-term, the trade-off is that you’ll most likely score fewer kills than when moving. Remember that you’re racing other players for the golden knife in this mode, and you have to get there as fast as possible. Because of this, speed matters.

Avoid Staying In The Open

Although arms race maps don’t feature too many open spaces, you should still try to remain as difficult to spot as you can. Because of this, try to stick to closed spaces, particularly those where you can keep an entryway in your view at all times. Open spaces are also most often camped by players with sniper rifles, so running out in the open is a great way to give some free points to the enemy team.

Watch The Corners

At any given time it’s important to keep an eye on the corners of any entryway you’re facing. With how fast-paced arms race tends to be, players are constantly running across the map. Enemy players will most likely be going in and out of different rooms all over the map. At any given moment there’s a high chance that an enemy will appear in your view, and the best way to greet them is with a headshot already aimed.

Practice Knife Fighting

Although the solid core gameplay of competitive Counter Strike doesn’t leave a lot of space for knofe fighting, it’s a crucial part of any arms race match. After all, the game will only end after one player scores the final knife kill. If you want to really get good at arms race, you must also master fighting with a knife. Try hanging around corners where you can jump out at an unsuspecting enemy and finish the match.

Master Different Weapons

The whole point of the arms race game mode is to get you to use many different weapons, some of which you’d never use ina standard Counter Strike match. That’s why in order to get really good at arms race, you should master different CS2 weapons. Good news is, though, that while playing the game mode itself you’ll get a shot at practicing all the different CS2 guns.

In Conclusion

Arms race can be a fun alternative to the standard Counter Strike if you ever get bored of the competitive gameplay. In addition, this game mode is a perfect way to practice your shooting, and the skills you master while playing will definitely transfer to your other Counter Strike matches.