COSM-GAME Counter-Strike 2
Counter-Strike 2 is a free-to-play tactical first-person shooter developed and published by Valve. Players join one of two teams, the Counter-Terrorists or the Terrorists, and fight through round-based, objective-focused matches on a rotating pool of maps. Progression centers on winning rounds by completing team objectives such as planting or defusing the bomb, climbing the Premier and Competitive rank tiers, and building up a weapon and cosmetic inventory carried over from Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Its defining gameplay centers on the Source 2 engine's sub-tick networking, which resolves player movement, shooting, and grenade throws at the exact instant they happen rather than on fixed server ticks.
Game summary
On this page
Latest update
The most recent official Counter-Strike 2 update, released August 19, 2026, updated the community maps Boulder and Poseidon to their latest Community Workshop versions and fixed a bug that let players move faster than intended while pressed against walls.
Release date and status
Counter-Strike 2 is fully released. Valve announced the game on March 22, 2023, ran a Limited Test period for existing Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players, and launched it worldwide on September 27, 2023, replacing Global Offensive on Steam.
| Global release | Sep 27, 2023 |
| Platforms | |
| Global status | Released |
| Pricing model | Free-to-play·In-app purchases |
| Availability | Steam |
Platforms and availability
Counter-Strike 2 is available on PC through Steam, with official builds for both Windows and Linux via SteamOS. Valve discontinued support for macOS and for older hardware configurations such as DirectX 9 and 32-bit operating systems when Counter-Strike 2 replaced Global Offensive.
Gameplay and setting
Matches pit the Counter-Terrorists against the Terrorists in round-based objective play, most commonly bomb defusal and, on a smaller map pool, hostage rescue. Players buy weapons and equipment each round using an in-match economy, then use gunplay, grenades, and map control to win rounds. The Premier and Competitive modes drive most long-term play, alongside Wingman, Deathmatch, and Casual modes. Built on the Source 2 engine, the game uses sub-tick networking so player actions register at the precise moment they occur, and it introduced dynamic, physically simulated smoke grenades that react to bullets and explosions. Counter-Strike 2 has no fixed single-player campaign or protagonist; its core identity is competitive team-based play across a rotating pool of remastered maps.
Trailer, screenshots, and media
The selected trailer is Valve's official Counter-Strike 2 launch trailer, which shows the game's overhauled maps, weapon handling, and tournament footage used with permission from ESL and BLAST.
Developer and publisher
Counter-Strike 2 is developed and published by Valve, which also operates the game's official servers, matchmaking, and the Steam storefront it is distributed through.
| Developer | Valve |
| Publisher | Valve |
| Official website | Counter-Strike 2 |
Download and availability
Counter-Strike 2 is downloaded and played through Steam, where it is listed as a free-to-play title. Players with an existing Counter-Strike: Global Offensive install were automatically upgraded to Counter-Strike 2 on the same Steam app entry.
System / Device Requirements
Counter-Strike 2 has official minimum specifications published separately for Windows and for SteamOS/Linux on its Steam store page.
| PC specification | Minimum |
|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 |
| Processor | 4 hardware CPU threads, Intel Core i5 750 or higher |
| Memory | 8 GB RAM |
| Graphics | 1 GB or more video card, DirectX 11 compatible with Shader Model 5.0 support |
| DirectX | Version 11 |
| Storage | 85 GB available space |