CS:GO's Operation Riptide update brings plethora of gameplay changes

It was about time for a new Counter-Strike: Global Offensive operation and Valve delivered big time! Not only does the popular first-person shooter’s new update include a new operation but also a number of game changes that will affect general gameplay.

Operation Riptide comes packed with the regular goodies we expect from an operation, including new maps, new missions and new game modes. Those who shell out $14.99 for the Operation Riptide Pass can complete missions to earn rewards like new agents, weapon collections, stickers and patches.

Maps

As for new maps, County has been added to Danger Zone, Basalt and Insertion II have been added to Competitive, Casual and Deathmatch, while Ravine and Extraction have been added to Wingman.

Existing maps received tweaks too, with Dust2 being the recipient of the most major changes. The map’s visibility from T spawn through mid has been changed, giving CTs a better chance of crossing to B unharmed. The visibility into the B back site from upper tunnels has also been improved, so no more mistaking enemies for boxes!

Moving on to Inferno, the top of the banana gate is now solid and the map received overall minor bug fixes as well as a revised 1v1 layout.

Lastly, Ancient’s planting zones in both bomb sites are now larger, and Valve also fixed the bullet penetration on plywood surfaces. Ancient also received its own 1v1 arena, bringing it in line with most of the other competitive maps.

Game modes

Speaking of new game modes, the long-awaited private matchmaking queues are finally here! That means groups of friends or entire Steam groups can join a private queue and play a matchmaking game against each other. Those who want to play competitive but don’t want to commit to a whole hour-and-a-half of gameplay can queue for Short Competitive, which cuts the rounds almost in half from 30 to 16.

Deathmatch fans also have the option of playing the Classic Deathmatch we’re all used to, Team Deathmatch (first team to 100 kills wins) and Free-For-All Deathmatch.

Demolition and Arms Race also received some love, with both game modes receiving adjusted weapon progression. Demolition had its max rounds reduced to 10 and general round time reduced, and the halftime team swap has been eliminated. In Arms Race, players will now receive a health shot after three kills.

Gameplay changes

Finally, the gameplay changes in this update are very significant ones. The Desert Eagle’s body damage has been reduced while the M4A1-S’s has been increased. This means that the M4A1-S suddenly became an even more viable option for CTs, while Deagle fans either have to further hone their aim or look for an alternative to the hand cannon. That alternative may very well be the Dual Elites, whose prices have been reduced to $300 to give players more of a reason to use them.

If you’re a very giving player and like helping your teammates with a buy every now and then, you’re in luck! Not only can players drop their guns, but they can now also drop their grenades to make sure their teammates are well-equipped for the round ahead.

Remember Casual Hostage maps? We sure do. If you’re one of the few who likes firing up Assault and rescuing some poor souls, you can now employ the help of the classic Riot Shield to block some of the enemy’s bullets.

The last gameplay change, and one that might reduce some mild annoyance, is that vision after death has been reduced from 3.0s to 2.0s for regular deaths and from 1.0s to 0.5s for headshot deaths.

That’s a lot. It seems that Valve took some players’ concerns seriously and molded them into the Operation Riptide update. Personally, we can’t wait to see how the gun and map changes will affect the game going forward and the new strategies, if any, they’ll give birth to. What do you think of the changes?

Lead image credit: Valve