Valve has switched off Competitive and private matchmaking during Counter-Strike 2’s limited test following a huge new Aug. 15 patch. It is unclear how long Competitive will be disabled, with developers failing to give a reason why the change was made.
In the past, the introduction of a new map to the CS2 test sees older maps cycle out of Competitive testing, and today seemed no different, at least at first. The arrival of the Aug. 15 update spelled the end of Anubis and Ancient’s tenure in the Competitive pool for CS2, with a revamped Italy hostage map joining the beta.
Italy will only be available for the Deathmatch and Casual modes though, and instead of switching older maps back, the mode has instead been made inaccessible.
As much as we’d want to believe this is a sign of something more, like an imminent full release of the anticipated sequel, it’s possible Valve has simply identified an issue with CS2 matchmaking and is rushing out a solution soon.
It’s also possible it has something to do with an update to smokes, which dropped alongside Italy today. No longer will smoke grenades bloom as wide or as high in CS2, with the final shape of the smoke far closer to that currently seen in CS:GO.
Related: New Inferno has leaked, and it’s the most impressive CS2 map yet
Italy is the ninth map to be ported to CS2’s test and joins Office as the second hostage map. The map was listed to receive an “overhaul” as part of Valve’s CS2 map list, which sees changes spanning more than just a visual touch-up. Italy now has two additional passageways which will have a competitive impact on how the map plays.
Just one Active Duty map remains to be playable in CS2, with Inferno’s arrival yet to be confirmed. Its port is guaranteed after leaks showed off the map’s new features, but it’s not yet clear when the map will make its grand entrance.
CS2’s latest August update also included a variety of quality-of-life changes, including sticker and StatTrak updates, a new hostage model, hints at the game’s Premier Mode with team introductions, and minor bug fixes.
This latest CS2 update is around 3.75GB in size.
