CS2 is now FREE TO PLAY offline – Update 29/08/2018

Today’s update has seen the release of Counter Strike: 2 Free. As the name suggests this is a free to play version of CS2 that allows players to watch competitions in game with GOTV and play offline matches.

This allows players to try out the game offline before buying it and getting in on all the multiplayer options. You can get the free version from the official steam store page for CS2. Sadly the free to play release isn’t like Valves another title called Team Fortress 2. TF2 was released in it’s entirely for free and the monetization focus was placed on crates cosmetic items.

Things you can do in CS2 Free

• Play offline maps against Bots
• Watch Competitive Matches in-game with GOTV
• Make a private surf server – You’ll need to download some surf maps
• Play bunny hop maps – You’ll need to download some bhop maps
• Jump as high as you can on climb maps – You’ll need to download some kz maps
• LAN with others sharing your IP adress

London 2018 News

Twenty Four teams will face off in the FACEIT London Major over the next three weeks. One of them will become the new FACEIT champion of 2018. You will be able to watch this on your favorite viewing platforms like Twitch, YouTube, Steam.TV (new) and of course in game with GOTV.

You can support your favorite team by buying team stickers, player autographs, and team graffiti or you can go all out and get the Mega Bundle. Half of the purchase amount will go towards supporting the teams in the Major.

You will be able to use these stickers towards getting a Pick’Em Trophy. You’ll need to select teams which you think will do really well and those that will do extremely poorly, such as not winning a game.

Official patch notes thanks to the CS2 Blog

London 2018

• Added tournament items for the FACEIT 2018 London CS2 Major Championship and the London 2018 Pick’Em Challenge.
• CS2 – Free released with offline play and GOTV viewing.

Panorama

• Added better support for Panorama UI on low-end machines.
• Added support for weapon stickers and character gloves on the character featured in the main menu.
• Fixed a case where weapon finishes appeared overly dark.
• Adjusted optimal movie resolution based on user’s CPU and GPU levels.
• Fixed extra bright flashlight on characters when loading non-HDR community maps.

MP5-SD

• Darkened exposed metal on ejection port and bolt.
• Added support for MP5-SD to workshop workbench.

Maps
Mirage

• Fixed area in T-spawn with texture blends.

Misc

• CS2 has bid farewell to the Scaleform UI. “-legacyscaleformui” is no longer supported.
• Updated the Settings menu to display the Steam Controller Configurator if a Steam Controller is detected.
• Added a new recommended Steam Controller config to better support the Buy menu and Team Select menu.
• Miscellaneous stability and security improvements.