New Recoil Update - Precision

The 21st of April maybe the day we all remember about the recoil debates in CS: GO. An update on Friday to the recoil made many people happy and some not so much. The recoil was tightened an extreme amount making the M4 and AK much more controlled, not only when spraying but also picking.

This is a great video posted by Cadred which gives a great demonstration of the new recoil patterns and improved precision.

This shift from unpredictable spread to pin point accuracy has certainly revived my attention for the beta. It now feels like each click is important; the chances of gaining that long distance headshot are now back in my hands. This upgrade in recoil has not been received in positive light by all as some gamers judged the changes as too easy, minimising the amount of skill required. In my opinion this new, more precise recoil allows players to really show off their skill and not get held back by unreliable accuracy.

-Matt

CS: GO Tip #1

Something that isn't completely obvious at first is the importance of sound within Counter Strike. If you can learn to use sound effectively it will come as a massive advantage. Put on a headset (make sure you have the left and right on the correct ears) and turn the volume up. You will begin to get a sense of where players are located around you, for example if you are near a running player you will be able to hear his footsteps, this information will allow you to prepare for his presence.

The aspect of sound works both ways, you need to carful and aware about what sounds you as a player are sending out. When you run normally people can hear you, so aim to use the SHIFT key (walk) when you may be close to an enemy to ensure they do no hear you approaching. In addition, guns shots will also give away your position so aim to eliminate the enemy as quickly as possible and then move. Moving after shooting will lead your opponents in to mistaking your position.

However, don’t trust the sound of bullets too much as an enemy could be tricking you with the new decoy grenade. This new grenade blasts out fake firing noises and could be the red herring which causes your death.

TLDR: Use sound to your advantage, act like a ninja (walk), and be aware of decoy grenades.

-Matt

Flash / Smoke Exploit discovered

A flash and smoke grenade exploit has been discovered on the CS: GO beta by a chap called “Deman”. He highlighted the exploit on the Steam forums and provided instructions on how to do it.

In console:

Type sv_cheats 1

Exec the configs or enter them manually.

Type sv_cheats 0

Join a server, if it doesn't works disconnect and repeat the steps listed above.

VAC proof since it doesn't alter any files and is purely a cvar exploit.

Following the above instructions will make you immune to flash grenades and will allow you to see through smokes much more clearly. Bear in mind that this exploit may work fine now but will most likely be purged in the next update on Friday.

Matt

Upcoming changes will shake you!

After the latest CS: GO update the beta has been tremendously active. The changes seem to have ticketed many boxes and the community seem generally pleased with the progress.  Today the CS: GO development team tweeted some intriguing news implying that another update will be arriving soon and will contain something “that will shake you”. Speculations to what this new shocking change will be are cluttering the forums as gamers await the mysterious update.

How to get in the CS:GO Beta

One of the most efficient ways to get in the Counter Strike: Global offensive Beta is to complete the Survey which has been supplied by steam.

Click this link to take the survey.

You will need steam to open it and it will ask you questions about hardware you would use to play the beta on. Filling in this survey doesn’t guarantee you a place in the beta but is the most effective way. In addition to this make sure you spend some time playing the previous Counter Strike editions as this may aid your application.

AK-47 Accuracy Patch Update

This great video shows the great improvement the CS:GO development team have made in the new patch in terms of recoil. The first shot accuracy has increased vastly allowing a player to effectively pick those long distance headshots.



Thanks to PantheonESports for the clear demonstration.

What’s Wrong With CS: GO?

CS: GO is obviously not perfect, there are many aspects of the game which require work. The community have been very active in providing “feedback” to the beta in order to streamline the game to their ideal. Below is a link to an insightful article featuring Tomi “lurppis” Kovanen who is one of the Counter Strike legends. He talks about the main problems with the CS: GO beta and even says “It’s not fun. It’s a terrible game right now”. Read the below article to see why.

Link to the article.

New Maps and Weapons in CS:GO

There has been a large update to the CS:GO Beta which includes the new weapons: Nova shotgun, Bizon and MP7 SMGs. In addition the maps de_inferno, de_train, and de_nuke have been made available to play in a local match.

(Taken from Steam)

The major changes include:

Game Design Issues:
- Changed QUICKMATCH default to competitive de_dust2.
- Added new maps to local match options: de_inferno, de_train, and de_nuke.
- Added new weapons: Nova shotgun, Bizon and MP7 SMGs.
- Created a CT-specific version of the Molotov: the incendiary grenade.
- Reworked starting cash and bonuses in Casual mode.
- Made kill cash awards weapon-specific: AWP pays out $50/kill ($25 in Casual Mode). CQB weapons pay out $900 ($450). The rest pay out the usual $300 ($150).
- Limited total number of grenades that can be carried at one time to three, each of a different type.
- Adjusted stamina penalties for jumping. It should be easier now to jump up to multiple objects in a row without getting exhausted.
- Changed weapon recoil cycle to be controlled by a recoil index which is incremented on each shot.
- Reduced movement penalty greatly when players are hit by friendly fire in casual mode.
- Implemented skill-based matchmaking system.

Map Issues:
- Reduced dust particle effects on de_dust and de_dust2. Initial dust fades out after about 20 seconds.
- Updated the nav mesh on de_Dust to improve bot pathing.
- Corrected the problem with the bomb being plantable below the ledge on bombsite B in de_dust.
- Fixed multiple issues with players being able to get to positions that should be inaccessable or non-visible in de_dust and de_dust2.
- Fixed problem with black lines appearing around helicopter in de_dust when helicopter is shot.
- Fixed several aesthetic issues and reported exploits on de_dust2.

Stat/Achievement Issues:
- Fixed a problem with the fun facts that could cause a claim of more than 100% accuracy for players.
- Fixed a bug that allowed players to earn the 'Lost and F0wned' medal while controlling a bot.
- Added FCVAR_CHEAT flag to the bot_kill command so it can't be used to earn medals
- Updated some medal icons and descriptions to reflect criteria for getting them better.
- Made players who controlled bots during a round ineligible for fun facts.

UI Issues:
- Fixed classic crosshair not showing up in first-person spectator mode.
- Fixed a bug that could cause chat spam when a player changes his/her name.
- Redesigned and repositioned the win panel to allow greater visibility of the game.
- Hid voice status and weapon panel when HUD is hidden.
- Added option in game settings that, when active, closes the buy menu upon purchase of an item.
- Redesigned the buy menu.
- Moved player team ID from crosshair to player.
- Expanded the chat window, making it easier to keep track of chat history.
- Changed the UI font for greater legibility.
- Made the chat lines behave like a Windows edit control.
- Added a scoreboard icon that indicates when a player is in the process of switching teams.
- Made music respond to volume slider.
- Made chat box disappear after ENTER is pressed.
- Fixed the 'pop' visible when the main menu appears when playing in 4:3 or 16:10 aspect ratios.
- Added COUCH and DESKTOP play distance options that control hud_scaling and viewmodel_fov convars.
- Fixed problem with not being able to switch from windowed to full screen mode.
- Removed crosshair spreading behavior when wielding the knife, grenades, or bomb.
- Made scoreboard title display correctly above scoreboard in standard def.
- Redesigned front-end screens, layouts, and scoreboard to reflect new look for CS:GO.
- Improved the messaging for when money is awarded or subtracted. HUD now shows additions and subtractions more clearly, and money events are also reported in chat.
- Fixed menus to render correctly in resolutions greater than 1920x1200.
- Fixed a bug in which the scoreboard could occasionally disappear.
- Added player avatars to the choose team screen.
- Fixed problem with UI tint resetting after the choose team screen was opened via the pause menu during a game.
- Fixed EDIT and CLEAR buttons on the settings screen sometimes not appearing correctly.
- Fixed bug in settings with the acceleration amount slider not resetting correctly when defaults are restored.
- Fixed incorrect audio feedback when mousing over empty rows in the settings screens.
- Fixed bug that could occur when binding keys in the settings screens, making it impossible to navigate away from the currently active field.
- Made the EDIT MIC option in the settings snap to the correct area of the controls screen.
- Fixed a case in which throwing a grenade or dropping a weapon and picking up another failed to display the new weapon on the inventory section of the HUD.
- Disabled left and right toggles on spectator UI when there's no one left to spectate.
- Added a separate icon for the CT-specific knife in the weapon select and death notification text.
- Fixed a bug in which remote players controlling a bot were showing up alive again on the mini-scoreboard instead of showing the bot as alive.
- Restricted team chat to team members only.
- Fixed some problems with the REBUY command that could result in purchasing items other than what you had purchased in the previous round.

Other issues:
- Fixed problem with two different pieces of music playing at the same time over the choose team screen after completion of a match.
- Added three new mixgroups to handle different weapon sound types.
- Restricted the round end warning music cue to playing only when a bomb has not yet been planted. If it's currently playing, it will stop once the bomb has been planted.
- Added new music cues for domination and revenge.
- Fixed series of bugs in which the wrong weapon was seen during a reload or weapon switch, resulting in odd-looking weapon poses.
- Fixed problem with camera stopping inside of players' heads during freeze cam.
- Fixed a bug that could cause the spectator camera to be placed halfway through the floor occasionally.
- Fixed excessive console spew.
- Fixed a crash that could happen when selecting a team without Steam running.
- Fixed hang on black screen when players attempt to connect to servers that forbid connection.
- Fixed crash that could happen while changing the video settings.
- Fixed blurry shadows on players who are walking or running.
- Fixed blood so it doesn't show brightly through the fog.
- Fixed the visors showing through smoke.
- Reduced issues with smoke grenade and fire volumes being visible through thin floors.
- Fixed some of the problems with weapons penetrating character geometry in third person.
- Addressed an issue which caused bots to shoot over players' heads often. The bots will likely feel more difficult now.
- Fixed aliasing artifacts caused by not using centroid sampling when MSAA is enabled. Some players may need to update their video card drivers in order to see the change.
- Fixed a bug that caused a player to show as alive briefly after being killed while controlling a bot.

CS:GO Release Date

When is Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CSGO) going to be released I hear you cry. CSGO Beta is still closed with beta key owners being the only few with access to the eagerly awaiting instalment. Taking Valves previous timelines in to account i believe CSGO will arrive to the shop shelves in the summer around May or June. Until then keep an eye out for an open Beta which may be burst open in a month or two.