What Is Sub-Tick in Counter-Strike 2?

Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) is a next-gen upgrade to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) with visual upgrades, dynamic smokes and a better anti-cheat. But there are some under-the-hood changes that you might not be aware of. Valve is changing how networking in CS2 works and intends to make the game feel a lot more responsive for all players. With the introduction of Sub-ticks in Counter-Strike 2, you can expect the game to respond to your actions instantaneously with no lag whatsoever.

Sub-tick in Counter-Strike 2 explained

Sub-tick is an extension of how tick rate works in video games. The official server tick rate for Counter-Strike 2 is 64 Hz while unofficial servers could have 128 Hz tick rate. It means that information is updated to the game’s official servers at a frequency of 64 times a second.

A new change to Counter-Strike 2 has been made that makes the game remember your actions regardless of the server tick rate. This will allow for more consistent actions and bullet registration. 

The game will respond immediately to your commands consistently. It does not look like Valve will increase the tick-rate of the official servers to 128 Hz or higher, but the introduction of Sub-ticks in Counter-Strike 2 will help improve the responsiveness of actions for all players.

If you already have minimal input lag and low latency, it might be difficult to experience the changes but if you have been playing CS:GO for years, you should be able to tell the difference in input registration immediately when you switch to CS2.

We do not know if sub-ticks will be enough to retain players on the official servers as many prefer third-party servers with higher tick rates compared to the 64 Hz servers CS:GO provides currently.

If you want to try the game on any of the compatible platforms, you can check out our guide on how to play Counter-Strike 2’s Limited Beta Test. You can also check out our guide that discusses Counter-Strike 2’s console release.