Counter-Strike 2 has been officially announced, with a release window of summer 2023.

The game will be a free upgrade for all players and is currently in a limited test phase, which is available to select CS:GO players from today. A limited test FAQ is available here.

The sudden announcement was made by Valve on Wednesday, and claimed that the game will be “the largest technical leap forward in Counter-Strike’s history.” The announcement was accompanied by a trio of short videos detailing some of the changes players can expect.

Chief among those changes is the transition to the Source 2 engine, which will bring a significant visual upgrade to maps. Valve has said that it has carefully considered what elements are changed, and split maps into 3 groups accordingly.

First are touchstone maps, these are classic Counter-Strike locations that have received visual touchups, but play identically to their current iterations in CS:GO. Expect iconic maps like Dust 2 to fall into this category.

Next are upgrade maps. These maps will benefit from new Source 2 lighting features, in addition to a physically based rendering system that Valve says will produce “realistic materials, lighting, and reflections.” An example that Valve showed off was Nuke.

In the third and final category are maps that Valve call “full overhaul maps.” As the name suggests, these maps have been completely rebuilt from the ground up in Source 2. Valve claims that full overhaul maps will utilise all of the new engine’s tools and features. Maps such as Overpass will be receiving the full overhaul treatment.

It was also revealed that Source 2 tools will be made available to map makers alongside the Source 2 item workshop.

Valve has also made large improvements to tick rate in Counter-Strike 2 by introducing sub-tick updates. The developer claims that this addition will mean that tick rate no longer matters.

“Sub-tick updates are the heart of Counter-Strike 2.” Valve said. “Previously, the server only evaluated the world in discrete time intervals (called ticks). Thanks to Counter-Strike 2’s sub-tick update architecture, servers know the exact instant that motion starts, a shot is fired, or a ‘nade is thrown.” The developer added

“As a result, regardless of tick rate, your moving and shooting will be equally responsive and your grenades will always land the same way.”

A significant change has also been made to how smoke grenades function in Counter-Strike 2. Smoke grenades are now dynamic, volumetric objects, which means they can react to lighting, geometry, gunfire and explosions to provide new gameplay opportunities. An example would be using a HE grenade to clear smoke and reopen sightlines.

With the introduction of Counter-Strike 2 this summer, many players will understandably feel anxious about the fate of their collection of cosmetics. Thankfully, it’s been confirmed that your CS:GO inventory will carry over when the game releases.

“Not only will you keep every item you’ve collected over the years, but they’ll all benefit from Source 2 lighting and materials.” Valve said. “In addition to supporting legacy models and finishes, all stock weapons have been upgraded with high-resolution models, and some weapon finishes take advantage of these new models.”