We’ve all been in those terrible CS:GO matches where there’s someone blatantly cheating with spinning aimbot and there’s no way out of that game unless the cheater’s team is kind enough to kick that player or someone on your team disconnects so the rest can start a surrender vote. This could be over in Counter-Strike 2, though, because Valve is implementing a feature that will automatically cancel the match if a cheater is detected, according to reputable leaker Aquarius.
“Looks like some sort of new anti-cheat measure is in the works for Counter-Strike 2 called ‘VAC Live,'” Aquarius said on Twitter. You can see the tool’s code below, along with strings containing “Rematch,” a feature that was removed from CS:GO’s matchmaking back in 2014 and apparently is returning for CS2.
Related: All differences between Counter-Strike 2 and CS:GO
CS:GO fans have been asking Valve to implement a better anti-cheat for years due to the state of the game’s official matchmaking. It’s far too simple to cheat because it can take weeks for the person to get banned via Overwatch, the feature in which players review cases of players who were reported for using cheats or griefing matches. This is one of the reasons why experienced players tend to migrate to third-party platforms such as FACEIT, ESEA, or Gamers Club, where it’s harder to come across cheaters.
If Valve is truly launching VAC Live, it could mean that the game will automatically detect cheaters way faster in CS2 compared to CS:GO. That would also mean that Valve is likely implementing a more invasive anti-cheat like Riot Games successfully did with VALORANT and what third-party platforms like FACEIT and Gamers Club offer.
An anti-cheating tool like VAC Live plus the new sub-tick system that will drastically make movement and shooting more accurate could be enough for casual players to stop playing on third-party platform matchmaking services and play on CS2’s official servers.
CS2 is currently in a limited testing phase and will launch worldwide this summer.
