CS:GO Update March 30, 2023: Major Networking and Gameplay Improvements

On March 30, 2023, Valve released a new update for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) that addresses several networking, visual, gameplay, input, and sound issues. The update also includes a minor Dust II fix. Here's a detailed breakdown of the changes introduced in the latest patch.

Networking Enhancements

Valve has implemented multiple network traffic optimizations to improve the game's overall performance. Additionally, the update fixes random shooting seeds synchronization between server and client code, ensuring a smoother gaming experience.

Visual Fixes

The update addresses several visual issues, such as fixing the positions of overhead labels and ping elements at different resolutions, removing the halo around enemies to prevent giving away their locations, and ensuring that the bomb code clears correctly when aborting a bomb plant. The rare inspect animations have also been fixed to appear less frequently, and the inspect-reload sequence now matches the original CS:GO behavior.

Gameplay Improvements

Several gameplay modifications have been made in this update. HE grenades will no longer affect smoke grenades through walls, collisions between ragdolls have been disabled, and players will no longer drop their weapons when receiving a bonus weapon in Deathmatch. Additionally, the trajectory preview for decoy grenades has been corrected, and the behavior of picking up weapons with the use key has been improved.

Input System Changes

The buy menu and scoreboard now allow movement while in focus, and voice chat is enabled during team intros. Issues with keys getting stuck when opening the Steam overlay have been fixed, and multiple actions can no longer be bound to a single key. These changes should provide a more seamless gaming experience for players.

Sound Adjustments

Valve has made several sound-related enhancements in the update, such as adjusting the smoke grenade sound timing at a distance and fixing a bug where flashbang or grenade sound effects would persist if a player died while the sound effect was active. A dedicated player-only sound has been added for correctly jump-thrown grenades, and chat wheel lines have been restricted to legitimate, configurable lines in the game options.

Dust II Fix

Lastly, a minor issue on Dust II has been addressed, with the patch fixing a hole in the wall.

Overall, this new update brings a range of improvements to CS:GO, enhancing the gaming experience for players and addressing long-standing issues. As Valve continues to support and refine the game, players can look forward to even more updates and optimizations in the nearest future.