Counter-Strike 2 gets a major update with reload changes, custom game modes

Possibly one of the most controversial updates for the Counter-Strike series as a whole, the latest Counter-Strike 2 update brings major changes from Valve. CS 2 was due some major updates, but perhaps this is not the one people were hoping for. Certainly not me. Where's my revamped Danger Zone? Come on Valve!

There's been a big change to how you reload weapons, and the community doesn't seem too happy about it. Previously reloading has never really had a trade-off. You could reload after firing a bullet or two, and the rest would sit in reserve. Now, you drop your entire mag when you reload. So you don't just top up your gun, you get an entire new mag and lose whatever you had left. As Valve explained:

When you reload in CS2, the leftover ammo in your magazine is dumped back into an essentially endless reserve supply. And so the decision to reload has never offered significant trade-offs—in a safe position with enough time, you might reload after firing a single bullet, or half a mag, or after firing down to empty, and the rest of the round would be unaffected.

We think the decision to reload should have higher stakes, so in today's update reloading has been redesigned. Now, when you reload, you'll drop the used magazine and discard all of its remaining ammo. Instead of 'topping off' your weapon with a few bullets, a new full magazine will be taken from the reserves whenever you reload.

How many reserve mags will each weapon have? Most have gotten a three clips fill-up, but some weapons will have less to reward efficiency and precision, or more to encourage spamming through walls and smokes. Keep an eye on your reserve supply!

Seems it has been quite unpopular, even the news post on Steam seems to have zero thumbs up:

Valve also added in Map Guides for Competitive Matches allowing you to pick up some new tricks during the first five rounds. More limited than what you can use offline but Valve say it should be enough to give you some reminders.

A bigger addition though is that you can now join friends in custom games either hosted locally or via servers. Valve have been slowly expanding their scripting abilities for people in CS 2 and so it will be fun to see what the community cooks up here.