Counter-Strike 2 has done it again with its glorious-looking water

Counter-Strike 2 Ancient water
(Image credit: Valve / YouTube via Virre CSGO)

Counter-Strike 2 is being praised once again for its gorgeous-looking water, and I can see why. 

Just last month we were surprised to learn that Counter-Strike 2 has some of the best water ever seen in a game, and now, almost three weeks later, I can confirm that this is still the case and that it isn't limited to just sewer water. Let me explain. Twitter user skilful has shared a video of what looks like Counter-Strike 2's Ancientmap, specifically an area where players need to walk through fairly deep swamp water. 

Despite probably lying stagnant for a long time now, developer Valve has once again made the water on this map look absolutely stunning. We're not the only ones that think so, either. Just check the replies to Twitter user ParametricPalta, who quote retweeted the original video, saying: "Valve devs casually dropping the most insane graphics tech every 5+ years without even making it the main thing about their games."

Other Counter-Strike 2 players have seen this as a potential problem, like Twitter user kenyou_digit, who replied to the above tweet with: "My CPU seeing this," along with a clip of Kiryu from Yakuza 2 slamming his fist on a desk and storming out the room, which feels appropriate. If your PC is up for the task though, you're in for a treat when playing the Ancient map in Counter-Strike 2. And besides, you can probably always crank the settings down if your CPU is actually struggling. 

The version of the game you're seeing above comes from the Counter-Strike 2 Limited Test, which has been ongoing since March. Valve has promised players that the full game is set to release in "summer 2023," and since we're already in August, it's got to be right around the corner. At the time of writing, there's no firm release date yet. 

While we wait to hear more about Counter-Strike 2, find out what else you should be playing with our best shooter games list. 

Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.  

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