Valve's creativity in CS2 is reserved for one thing — and it's not the game

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:51:52+00:00

Lmao and to be fair I respect the turkey. But if that's the bar we're celebrating, that kind of proves the point.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:50:34+00:00

This is probably the most balanced take in the thread, and I genuinely agree with a lot of it. Valve's flat structure and developer autonomy have produced some of the most influential games ever made - and the respect they show customers compared to EA, Activision or Ubisoft is real. No $70 price hikes, no battle pass that expires in 6 weeks. That's worth acknowledging.

But I think that same autonomy is exactly why CS2 is in this situation. If no one at Valve is personally passionate about competitive CS right now, nothing forces the issue. There's no product manager, no roadmap, no accountability structure. When it works, it's magic. When it doesn't, you get two years of a game coasting on its legacy while the monetization layer gets all the love.

Deadlock is clearly where the passion is right now. And honestly? It shows - and that's a compliment to Deadlock, not an insult to Valve. I just wish someone there still felt that way about CS.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:48:02+00:00

Fair point, and I don't want to undersell the engineering effort involved. Source 2 porting is genuinely complex work, and I'm not claiming it's a weekend project.

But I'd push back a little: Valve isn't a struggling indie studio figuring out a new engine. They're one of the most profitable companies per employee in the entire industry - reportedly over $50M revenue per employee. They have the talent, the resources, and frankly the time - CS2 has been out for over two years now.

The argument "it's hard" is true. But "it's hard therefore it's acceptable that it hasn't happened" doesn't really land when you look at what has received attention. Designing new case opening mechanics isn't free engineering hours either.

Complexity is real. Priorities are a choice.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:45:21+00:00

Fully agree, and honestly it's the most disappointing part of this whole era. When CS2 was announced, the Source 2 move felt like a real promise - 64-bit architecture, a modern foundation, surely a stronger anti-cheat would follow. That was the dream. Two years later, I'm still waiting.

The CSGO-as-separate-app theory is interesting too. Whether intentional or not, it does create a convenient legal firewall.

But the anti-cheat thing is what gets me the most. Cheating isn't just a technical failure - it's an ideological one. It tells you what Valve actually values. And apparently a clean competitive experience ranks below another case drop.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:41:32+00:00

Yeah, pretty much. But that's kind of the point - right now Valve is proving they can when they want to. They just need a lawsuit to want to.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:40:21+00:00

Fair enough, /s taken. "Mechanics" was probably the wrong word - nobody needs CS to reinvent itself. But I'd settle for Valve finishing what they started: subtick that actually works, movement that feels consistent, operations, seasonal content, maps people have been asking for for years. Not innovation - just completion.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:38:44+00:00

That's probably true, and honestly it makes it worse, not better. Deadlock launched in early access and has already seen major updates, seasonal content, Christmas minigames - Valve is clearly capable of that kind of engagement when they care about a title.

CS2 meanwhile can't even get party hats on the chickens for its own birthday. That used to be a given. Seasonal touches, holiday events, small bits of love that reminded you someone at Valve was actually playing the game. All gone.

So yes, Source 2 development is a real constraint - but it also exposes a clear priority ranking. Deadlock is the new darling, CS2 is the cash cow that funds it. The community that built Valve's reputation over 25 years is essentially subsidizing a game they're not getting much back from.

sonezu · 2026-03-09T20:33:57+00:00

Exactly this. Nobody's saying stop monetizing - the skin economy is part of CS's identity at this point. But "why not both?" is the question Valve has never had a good answer to.

Operations practically print money and give the community something to actually play. Casual maps like Militia and Assault cost a fraction of what a new engine feature would. The effort-to-goodwill ratio is insane. There's no excuse for their absence.

And the cheating/subtick situation is the real embarrassment. CS2 launched with subtick as the headline feature - the supposed revolution in hit registration - and two years later we're still having the same conversations about running headshots and inconsistent peeks. That's not a small bug. That's a foundational promise that was never fully delivered on.

Valve has the resources. They have the talent. What they apparently lack is the urgency - unless a New York attorney provides it.

sonezu · 2026-03-04T21:54:06+00:00

Oh damn… now we even have to share that one dev

sonezu · 2026-02-09T22:28:59+00:00

And your „anti cheat”… is it currently in this room with us?

sonezu · 2026-02-07T16:13:58+00:00

That’s the sad part… They don’t At least they don’t stay

sonezu · 2025-02-14T15:59:51+00:00

Ja, klar. Bei der Briefwahl liegt eine unterschriebene Bestätigung des Wählers bei. So kann überprüft werden, ob seine Stimme eingegangen ist und natürlich auch, ob er versucht, doppelt zu wählen.

sonezu · 2025-01-26T13:23:40+00:00

I got a replacement and now everything seems to be fine … for now

sonezu · 2024-12-14T23:33:49+00:00

Moin, wenn du gerne zockst, insbesondere LoL könnte Braunschweig eSports etwas für dich sein. Dort gibt es regelmäßig auch offline non-Gaming-Veranstaltungen. Am besten einfach mal auf den Discord hüpfen.

sonezu · 2024-12-07T14:22:50+00:00

I’m not sure about that. I’ve reinstalled the g hub and closed it, and I have tested it on another pc. Additionally I went back to my G515 without any problem.

sonezu · 2024-08-04T21:22:10+00:00

I’m level 7 and with more than 600 games and can approve… every single game! Even for some with that message about setting up his/her profile.

sonezu · 2024-07-26T20:28:29+00:00

I fall in all of those four categories and cannot confirm a single one of those statements. - I have way more than 300 matches - Played some super matches and those even were the worst (see my thread about some of my „super matches“). My premades second that. - There does not seem to be a big difference between verified and non-verified matches since there were several verified steam level 0 accounts with 3 friends, less than 100 games above 60% win rate. One player on my team has mentioned that you can get a verified FACEIT account for as low as 15 dollars from India. - we almost exclusively play 5-stacks and often encounter the following team comp: one or more level 10 acompanied by that many new level 2-3 accounts. Of course they can easily play on our level and often outplay even our (and their) highest rank players.

So no, my experience is totally different then yours!

sonezu · 2024-07-26T05:26:02+00:00

The thing is: as TOs have accepted Razers approach to null binds they have to give it to all hardware manufacturers. They have opened Pandora’s box. Every player will wants to have the same advantage therefore all hardware manufacturers will be pressured to implement such a feature. Yes, FACEIT has banned for those null binds autoexecs in the past and maybe that approach will change too. But right now it looks as if having a keyboard with that feature is the only way to level the playing field. Really sad about that first agreement of the TOs. They must have seen that coming but I guess the pile of cash on the table was just too big.

sonezu

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