CS2 players suggest strategies to fix ‘trash’ second-round economy problems

Counter-Strike 2 players fed up with the imbalance behind the FPS’ competitive economy system have made suggestions on how Valve should approach fixing the issue that has seen CT sides crumble and T sides reign supreme.

T-side round wins in the pro scene have grown somewhat since the shift from CS:GO, but the effects have been felt much more on specific maps. Across the board, T-side wins have closed the gap from 48.6 to 49.6 percent according to HLTV. While most maps saw only a slight boost to Ts, Ancient (3.8 percent), Nuke (1.6 percent), and Vertigo (1.3 percent) were the biggest movers. The leading cause, many believe, is the shift to the shorter MR12 format thus punishing CTs who have to spend more for their main rifles and for defuse kits.

“It’s like you get punished by winning CT pistol because you lose your loss bonus and are likely to lose the next two to three [rounds],” said a player discussing the state of the economy in an April 12 thread on the game’s subreddit. The post’s author outlined a particular moment between FaZe and Liquid at IEM Chengdu, where despite the CTs walking away winners in the pistol round, they were no match for the second round buy of the Ts.

In many cases, a T side will force into Galil’s or MAC-10s, which are competitive options against any CT buy short of full rifles. Should the CT side lose against the T forcebuy, their economy is left in tatters and can take three rounds to fully recover—and given the shorter format, every round matters.

Pro players have already expressed their concerns on the topic dating back to CS2‘s launch last September, but this time the players are having their say. While pro statistics aren’t an accurate reflection of public matchmaking, a major pain point described by both is the CTs lack of converting the second round after a won pistol.

One player has suggested CTs don’t even bother buying anything in either the pistol or the second round, ensuring that even in the event of two losses, the team can fully buy in the third. “Sounds goofy but if the bomb gets planted on the pistol round, win or lose, not buying anything on [the] second round might actually give you a long-term economy advantage for the rest of the game.”

Another suggested the T side should not receive as much money for planting the bomb. In a similar vein, the defuse kit could also be discounted to assist CTs struggling to put a solid buy together while the Ts wine and dine on the cheaper and better AK-47s.

Like G2’s NiKo, the general consensus would be happy with starting the loss bonus at $1,900 as opposed to $1,400. While this assists the Ts too, the CT economy is that bad right now after a lost second round that, without an immediate response on gun rounds, the half is all but over before it really began.

We’ll see what changes Valve has cooking in the coming months. CS2‘s economy is only a part of the problem, with the likes of cheaters and glitches also overdue for a fix.