New CS2 Active Duty Pool

If you’re a fan of the classic Counter Strike maps, you’re in luck! The new update for CS2 has made some unexpected changes to the active duty map pool. With some additional gameplay changes, the ‘On The Other Hand’ has added a number of much-needed features, which were gone from Counter Strike 2.

So what’s this everyone’s been talking about the new active duty pool? Here’s everything you need to know!

Also, if you have some skins you want to sell before the new update drops, make sure to visit SkinCashier, where you can always sell CS2 skins for the best prices possible!

Dust II Is Back In The Game

That’s right, everyone’s favorite map is now back, and better than ever! With the ‘On The Other Hand’ update Overpass has been moved from the active duty map pool to the reserve list, meaning that it’s currently only available in the casual mode.

The Dust II map is back in all of its glory, only this time in a completely refreshed look. The map doesn’t include any gameplay changes, and only comes in a refreshed graphics setup, with new textures and the improved CS2 graphics engine. There are no new features as to the map design, meaning that you should be able to use all of the same Dust II callouts while playing.

New Buy Menu Features

The buy menu in CS2 will now display the exact amount of money you will receive next round. Although this feature won’t provide you with a direct advantage over other players, it will definitely make it easier to calculate your resources for the following rounds. You’ll no longer have to calculate everything in your head, and can instead focus on the fast-paced action of CS2. Seeing how much money you’re guaranteed to receive in the next round will also make it much easier to manage the CS2 economy of your team, and will help you make sure you’ll never be broke again in CS2.

New Viewmodel Settings

If you’re not familiar with this term yet, viewmodel in Counter Strike 2 refers to the player model, that’s visible when you play the game. While players already could move their model’s hands around the screen in the past, thanks to the Viewmodel CS2 commands, the new CS2 update now allows players to do this without having to use CS2 console commands. Instead, all you have to do, is go to the game settings, where you now have an option that you can toggle, that will allow you to change the position of your viewmodel on the screen.

Other Features

While these are some of the most important features, ‘On The Othe Hand’ has also introduced a number of smaller fixes and tweaks to the game client. Here’s a comprehensive list of all the features that were added to the game with the latest CS2 update:

Viewmodel

• Adjusted viewmodel bob movement
• Added “Preferred Viewmodel Left/Right Handedness” setting
• Added “Switch Viewmodel Left/Right Hand” key binding (default: US keyboard letter H) to switch hands temporarily during gameplay
• Viewmodel position setting and left/right hand state are now networked and visible to first-person spectators.
• Deprecated “Couch” viewmodel position setting

HUD

• Added “Radar Map Alternate Zoom” setting and “Toggle Radar Zoom” key binding to toggle between zoom levels during gameplay
• Added a radar icon for the local player when free cam spectating
• Added a grenade line-up reticle that appears shortly after pulling the pin. The timing can be configured for each grenade type independently
• Changed weapon Swap text (when pointing at a dropped weapon) to always show the gameplay name of the weapon instead of any customized name it might have.
• Added a kill feed icon for “in-air” kills
• Added the scoreboard to the ESC menu
• Added an icon to indicate bots on the scoreboard

Buy menu

• Added a “Dropped Weapons” panel, which shows (and allows the direct pickup of) weapons that have been dropped by teammates that are standing in the buy zone
• Added the minimum amount of money that a player is guaranteed to have in the next round to the buy menu title bar. (thanks, Kadomos)

Gameplay

• Increased Zeus movement speed and adjusted the attack cone
• Increased Zeus kill reward from $0 to $100 ($50 in Casual)
• Increased CZ75-Auto kill reward from $100 to $300 ($150 in Casual)
• Reduced XM1014 kill reward from $900 to $600 ($300 in Casual)

Inventory

• Lighting adjustments in Inspect background maps
• Added Wear Category to the info tooltip in the Inspect screen
• Added gameplay name in panels that used to only show customized name. E.g., Inspect screen, inventory tile

Maps

• Replaced Overpass with Dust 2 in the Active Duty Group, current competition map pool, and Premier matchmaking

Baggage:

• Opened roll-up doors at spawns
• Updated models for some conveyors
• Solidified stairs
• Various bug fixes

Inferno:

• Removed overhanging building at top mid
• Removed overhangs at bottom of banana
• Various map tweaks to improve player collision and readability
• Overpass, Nuke, Vertigo, Mirage and Office
• Bug and exploit fixes
• Collision and line of sight adjustments
• Minor performance improvements

Weapon finishes

• AK-47 | Inheritance: Texture and mask adjustments
• USP-S | Jawbreaker: Corrected ambient occlusion texture

Miscellaneous changes

• Decoupled demo playback camera movement from playback speed. This allows moving the camera even if playback is paused
• Added ability to launch practice matches and workshop maps with party members
• Added Overwatch system to enable match demo review by trusted partners
• Copenhagen 2024 Major sticker capsules are on sale now -75% off
• Added ability to adjust brightness in windowed modes

Summing Up

Here are some of the most important features added to CS2 in the newest update. If you enjoyed this article, make sure to check out the rest of the Skincashier blog, where we regularly post more tips, tricks, news and CS2 guides!