Counter-Strike: GO Revamps A Classic With Dust 2 Map Changes

Valve has gone and done it. The company has updated the most popular Counter-Strike: Global Offensive map ever, Dust II. According to Valve, they wanted to "improve player readability", "refine movement", and upgrade the map's general look, without taking away from what players love about it.

"Perhaps the quintessential CS:GO map, Dust II has been a classic since its original release. The map captures the essence of CS and in this new release we wanted to honor its pure form while buffing away the jagged edges," said Valve on the Dust II reveal page. "Dust II has evolved over the years into one of the most balanced and iconic CS:GO maps around. With this in mind, we set out to refine it further rather than performing a wholesale redesign."

Valve outlines several changes: moving objects, changing alleys and tunnels, and offering slightly different buildings in an attempt to open up the map a bit. Breaks in walls have been widened and "unnecessary distractions" like electrical poles and pipes have been moved out of the map space completely. In one section of the map, Valve has also replaced physics-based debris with more static props.

Other than the design changes, Valve has generally redone the art of Dust II.

"While Dust II's gameplay doesn't seem to age, the art needed a good sandblasting. The Bombsite B section of the map is now a historic Kasbah under restoration while Bombsite A is a bazaar and hotel. The texture resolution has been quadrupled and a North African prop set established for all you community mappers to use," says the studio.

The Durah character models have been revamped as well, becoming the Leet Krew. Players on the Terrorist side will see the new models in-game.

Players can jump right into the updated map in the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive beta.