We
made some adjustments to rifles recently, and those changes have been
causing a lot of pain in the CS:GO community. The pain was the result
of a few mistakes we made, and while we usually prefer to avoid
disrupting conversations happening in the community, we wanted to talk
about some of the thinking that led to the recent changes as well as
our plan for moving forward.
Why
change rifles at all?
In
CS:GO, spraying is generally the most popular way of firing a rifle. We
can see this pretty clearly in the rifle data that we collect
internally, and it’s something we hear the community
discussing
frequently.
Because
we think it’s valuable for players to have choices when
they’re thinking about how to engage an opponent, we looked
at
ways to make tapping/bursting a bit more appealing. The hope was that
by encouraging more deliberate firing, we would add something skillful
that players could use to their advantage.
As
a first step toward this goal, we increased recoverytime for the AK-47,
M4A4, and M4A1-S. For a detailed breakdown of the change and its
impact, check out this excellent community post bylalush.
Unfortunately,
our implementation failed in a few ways.
For
one thing, increasing inaccuracy while spraying also comes with reduced
accuracy for all forms of firing. Proportionally, spraying was the most
impacted, but we underestimated the impact that the change would have
on players who were already firing in shorter bursts.
As
it turns out, the adjustments didn’t really achieve the goal
either – our rifle data shows that players in all skill
groups
are still spraying more than tapping or bursting.
What’s
next?
It’s
difficult to measure the impact on gameplay when too much changes at
once. TheWinter
Updatecame
with
some really huge changes to gameplay, including a new weapon, an
adjustment to pistols, and the rifle change. Since we likely changed
too much too quickly, in today’s update we’re
rolling back
both the rifle and pistol adjustments to their pre-Winter Update state.
We
failed to anticipate the reaction of the community to changes in such
heavy-use weapons, and we clearly need to re-evaluate our process for
making and communicating about changes in that space. We still think
there’s value in trying to find a better balance for pistols
and
more skillful ways to use rifles, so we hope to tackle rifles and
pistols again in the future.
We’re
constantly reading community feedback and while we don’t
often
respond directly, understanding the community is one of the most
important parts of working on CS:GO. Mistakes happen, but when they do,
we’re committed to making sure they get fixed.
Welcome
to the CS:GO Winter Update, filled with holiday cheer.
There’s
something for everyone, including a brand new pistol, a new weapon
case, gameplay adjustments, the all-new Killer Replay feature, and more!
Clickherefor
release notes, or read
on for more details.
R8
Revolver
Revolver
Case
Looking
for the first R8 Revolver finishes? Two have been added to existing
collections, and two can be found in the new Revolver Case:
Killer
Replay
How’d
that happen? In Demolition and Casual modes you can review your deaths
with a Killer Replay from the perspective of your opponent. See the
game through their eyes, and plan your next move!
Take
Your Time
Need
a minute to think things through? In Competitive Matchmaking, teams can
now vote at any time to take one 60-second timeout, which will begin at
the next freezetime.
Additionally,
this update includes a change to round and C4 timers in Competitive
Matchmaking (they are now 1:55 and 0:40), and these are the new times
that will be used for CS:GO Major Championships. The times are intended
to unify the professional and community experience, while addressing
the exceptional strength of smoke grenades in the shorter rounds of
professional matches.
We’ve
also adjusted weapon balance to reward taking your time to aim.
Movement inaccuracy has been increased for all pistols (excluding the
R8 Revolver), and recovery time has been adjusted for the AK47, M4A4,
and M4A1-S to reduce the range at which spraying is preferable to
tapping/bursting.
Getting
in the Spirit
We’ve
added some holiday cheer for the season, and you can get in the spirit
too! For those of you who are feeling generous, gifts are currently
available for purchase.
And
as always, the best way to get in the spirit is to play, so get in the
game and go go go!
On
Tuesday we shipped some major gameplay changes in CS:GO including the
R8 Revolver, and players have been voicing legitimate concerns over the
balance of the weapon as shipped.
While
it typically takes more time to generate enough data to drive an update
(and gameplay updates are always a bit disruptive), in this case
it’s clear that we got the damage wrong and can respond
immediately.
So
today we’re updating the R8 Revolver to bring its values to
be
more in line with other weapons: among other changes, its damage has
been reduced and it takes slightly longer to fire.
As
experience with other new weapons (e.g., CZ75a and M4A1-S) has shown
us, it may require several iterations over a longer period to find the
stable values that create interesting strategic choices for players.
We’re committed to monitoring usage and adjusting the values
as
required.
Tuesday’s
update also included several other changes to gameplay (including a
rebalancing for pistols and rifles). It’s still too early to
determine their impact but we’re just as committed to
monitoring
the new meta and ensuring that as CS:GO continues to evolve, it remains
fun, skillful, and balanced.
CS:GO
attracts the most highly-skilled professional gamers across the globe,
and new competitors are emerging every day.
In
January we will hold four Regional Minor Championships, which are
opportunities for regions to continue to develop world-class talent.
The events will spotlight players who have not recently gained exposure
by participating in a CS:GO Major Championship.
Each
will feature high-quality production, with the event’s
playoffs
streamed live in-client to regional viewers. In addition to a $50,000
prize pool, the winning team of each Regional Minor Championship will
be invited to participate in the offline qualifier forMLG
Columbus 2016.
Teams
are eligible to participate provided the majority of their players are
citizens of a country in their respective region, and none of their
players were Legends or Challengers in the previous CS:GO Major
Championship.
Join
us in January as we showcase rising stars in the CS:GO scene and take
our first steps toward the Major Championship in Columbus!
Looking
for Community-designed Merchandise? Head on over towelovefine.com.
MLG
Columbus 2016 Tickets
Want
to see the world’s best teams in action at the first-ever
North
American CS:GO Major Championship?Tickets
for MLG Columbus 2016are
available now!
ESL
ESEA Pro League Season 2 finals
You
don’t have to wait to watch the top teams: from December 10th
to
the 13th, North American and European teams will clash at ESL Studios
in Burbank, California as theESL
ESEA Pro Leaguereaches
the end of its second season.
Tune
inand
watch the
teams battle for their share of the season’s $500,000 prize
pool
and the ESL ESEA Pro League Trophy!