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CS2 smoke grenades: Everything you need to know about Counter Strike 2’s smoke mechanics

Counter-Strike 2 smokes are all anyone can talk about

Updated: Jun 7, 2023 2:24 pm
CS2 smoke grenades: Everything you need to know about Counter Strike 2’s smoke mechanics

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The highly anticipated Counter-Strike 2 update is approaching, and some lucky players have already been selected for play testing, giving them a chance to experience the game’s new reactive smoke system. But what exactly does this updated smoke system entail? What improvements have been made, and why was it necessary to update it? In this article, we will delve into these questions, so get ready and prepare to dive in. Here’s what’s new with CS2’s Smokes

There have been numerous changes to CS2 including but not limited to Smoke, map overhauls, and engine updates.


Valve improves CS2 smoke grenades

CS2 smoke grenades were a big selling point upon the announcement of CS2, with the new mechanics and updated volumetric smoke clouds creating inspiring awe across the community.

Now, the CS2 smoke grenades have been improved further, In an update released by Valve, we can see that there have been some changes made to the way smokes behave.

How have smokes changed in CS2 update

Presumably (because we haven’t been graced with beta access) there was an issue with lighting and rendering when smoke clouds overlapped two or more differently lit areas. That issue has now been fixed according to the latest update.

Previously, players used to be able to use a HE (High Explosive) grenade to clear the smoke plume temporarily, allowing you and your team to see through it. The time the smoke plumes remained cleared was around 3 seconds before the update.

Valve states the time that HE grenades clear smoke plumes have been reduced, but it is not stated by how much. 3 seconds seemed pretty balanced to us, so we doubt the time has been reduced by much.

Finally, we can see that shotguns have gotten a buff thanks to lord Gabe. Shotguns now create a larger hole in the smoke, when they are shot through it. This makes sense as shotguns dispense a cluster of pellets, and should disperse more smoke than a single bullet as a result.


Counter-Strike 2 Reactive smokes

Smoke grenades are an item in Counter-Strike that allow you to conceal yourself behind a wall of smoke, great for providing a tactical advantage on the battlefield. Some may argue that the Smokes in the likes of CS:GO leave a lot to be desired and can be more than a little unbalanced at times. This is one of a few reasons that enticed the developers over at Valve to change things up a bit for the CS2 update.

The first huge change is the fact that smoke is now reactive. But what does this mean? Smoke in CS2 consists of volumetric objects that now fill the environment and conform to it. Those objects also react to weaponry, explosives, and lighting within the world space. This makes smoke feel more realistic, and the smoke can be dispersed in various ways to give a tactical advantage to the opposing players. Making gameplay way more interesting.


Counter-Strike 2 smokes react to fill the environment

Thanks to the aforementioned volumetric objects that the smoke is comprised of, it means that the smoke can fill spaces fluidly. In other words, the smoke will fill a volumetric area without clipping through the environment. It essentially has a collision detection system, allowing it to behave much more like real smoke.


Counter-Strike 2 smokes removes one-way smoke exploit

Thanks to the re-design of the smoke system in CS2, the one-way smoke exploit has been fixed. Now all of the players on the server see the exact same smoke, there’s no advantage given to specific hardware or position within the game world. This will be sure to dramatically change gameplay when the update rolls out later this year.

What is one-way smoke?

One way smoke was an exploit in CS:GO that allowed a player to position themselves in a certain way to allow them to see through the smoke, but not allow them to be seen. Please refer to the technical diagram below.

Hand-drawing of smoke exploit on CSGO

One-way smoke is an exploit and not a feature, Unfortunately, it was unable to be patched as it was an issue with how smoke was fundamentally coded. Now that a new smoke mechanic is coming to the game, it’ll render the above exploit redundant and ultimately lead to a far more enjoyable experience.


Final word

The new Counter-Strike 2 update looks very exciting, and the way smoke behaves is just one of the things we’re hyped for here at WePC. There have been a lot of changes and we can’t wait to see how the game feels when played. Can you think of a game that does smoke grenades as well as Counter-Strike 2? We know we can’t.

What does a smoke grenade do in CS2?

A smoke grenade is used to conceal your position. It works by exploding and releasing a cloud of smoke, which provides temporary cover.

Is smoke new in CS2?

Yes. The smoke system has been overhauled for Counter Strike 2 – providing more realism.


Jack is a Tech and News Writer who has a vast and proficient knowledge of CPUs, Motherboards, and Computer technology.

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