On January 29th, CS2 released an update, the main news of which was the start of the second season in the "Premier" mode. Let's find out what this means for players and what other changes have been added.
The Start of a New Season and Rewards for the Previous One
Summing up the previous season, Valve added medals and detailed statistics for everyone who went through calibration. Players can see detailed data on performance on different maps, view the number of matches played, and evaluate their achievements. Moreover, players can now see the medals that will be awarded at the end of the second season. Their color will vary depending on the rank achieved, and the number of colored stripes will be proportional to the number of victories.
At the same time, although the start of a new season is an important event for the community, it was not accompanied by a massive addition of new content, such as skin collections or charms. Fans of adding personalization will still have to be satisfied with what appeared in the Armory update in October 2024, as this time the developers preferred to focus on gameplay.
However, one long-awaited change did take place: Train was added to the competitive map pool, replacing Vertigo. It was returned to the game in November 2024, but for the first few months, it was not playable in competitive mode. The map was significantly reworked to make it more balanced and interesting for both sides.
Changes in the Game's Economy
In addition, several changes affected the game's economy and weapon characteristics.
The cost of the M4 with and without a silencer has been equalized: M4A4 and M4A1-S will now cost players the same amount, $2900. Previously, the cost of the guns differed by $100, and players had to take this into account during matches. Regardless of how the changes will affect the popularity of both rifles, don't forget to replenish your inventory with skins for them, such as new ones like M4A4 Turbine and M4A1-S Vaporwave.
Some characteristics of weapons used by terrorists have been worsened. MP9, MP5-SD, and MP7 now have less accuracy when shooting in a crouch. Apparently, the developers aim to encourage players to choose other types of weapons, as MP9 was previously the fourth most popular.
The cost of FAMAS was reduced to $1950, and shooting from it both standing and in a crouch became more accurate. It can be expected that this weapon will now become more preferable. In case FAMAS ends up more often in your hands, consider a couple of skins, like FAMAS Rapid Eye Movement and FAMAS ZX Spectron.
Another change related to weapons can be called more cosmetic: the sight point on the AUG and SG553 now looks slightly different, and with the console command cl_ironsight_usecrosshaircolor 1, you can change its color.
How exactly these changes will affect player preferences and impact strategies in professional matches will be seen at the next major tournament, namely, in early February in Katowice.
