The Source 2 engine might finally be coming to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive very soon.
Believe it or not, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is running on an engine that’s over 15 years old. The original Source engine came out with Half-Life 2, and while CS:GO uses a highly modified version of that engine, it’s still got the same underlying structure as a 15-year-old game.
While this means CS:GO can run on computers that are positively ancient, it also means that more modern first-person shooters look a heckuva lot better than CS:GO.
But it looks like CS:GO is finally due for an upgrade. According to multiple sources, Counter-Strike will be ported to the new(ish) Source 2 engine within the next few months.
First, we have Valve News Network's Tyler McVicker. In a video posted last month, McVicker said that sources within the company told him that Valve has been developing a version of the Source 2 engine for CS:GO "for a few years," and that this ported version of the game should be arriving later this year.
That was later confirmed by CS:GO historian and competitive club owner Nors3 in a tweet just a few days ago. "About Source 2 being released in CS:GO in 2 months: it seems trustworthy because I heard from reliable sources BUT with Valve you can never be 100% confident with unofficial dates," he said. "Better multiply it by two."
Elements of the Source 2 engine are actually already present. The Panorama UI update from 2018 was just the beginning of CS:GO's port where Source 2 replaced much of CS:GO's out-of-game menus.
Dota 2's February update also contained bits of CS:GO Source 2 code which updated the game's rendering, shadows, and skyboxes, as noted again by Nors3.
There's been no official word from Valve, but Dexerto reports that there will be a "year-long beta period" after CS:GO finally does make the full transition to Source 2. We'll be sure to keep our eye on Valve for when they do eventually make an official announcement.
Source: Valve News Network, Twitter, Dexerto