Versions

Below are lists of changes, bug fixes, and much more related to Counter-Strike versions.

Counter-Strike 1.0

November 9, 2000

Mod, retail and server-side release

Weapon Changes

• Added three new weapons: H&K UMP .45, FN Five-Seven & SIG SG-550

Faction Changes

• Redone player models

Gameplay Changes

• Incorporated Valve's model blending technology
• Left beta stages

Interface Changes

• New menu background

Map Changes

• Updated cs_office and de_vegas
• Reverted de_foption to BETA 7.0 version (Mistake due to a mix-up at Valve Software)
• Removed de_jeepathon2k

Faction Changes

• Player models will no longer show a defusal kit or a bomb being carried
• Player models will no longer show a swimming animation

Retail Differences

• Added Training map
• Removed cs_arabstreets, cs_estate, de_foption, as_highrise, de_nuke, as_tundra, de_vegas
• Weapons no longer use their real names
• Renamed Phoenix Connektion terrorist faction to Phoenix Connexion
• Renamed Gorilla Warface terrorist faction to Guerilla Warfare

Counter-Strike 1.0b

January 25, 2001

Server-side only release

Bug Fixes

• Fixed the problem with some clients lagging for a round or two at the beginning of a map.
• Fixed the "listmaps" command so it displays all the maps.
• Other fixes.

Counter-Strike 1.1

March 13, 2001

Mod, retail and server-side release

Changes/Additions

• Added spectator mode -- allow_spectators (0/1)
• Terrorist bomb backpack re-added [to player models]
• Upgraded player models to 512x512 textures
• Counter-Terrorist defusal kit pack re-added [to player models]
• Updated bomb and defusal kit world models
• Made jumping while shooting more inaccurate with submachine guns
• Took out sniper crosshair when zoomed out
• AWP leg shots now non-lethal
• Swimming animation re-added to player models
• Status bar text uses team colors
• All CS Strings localized to titles.txt
• Added option to take "end game" screenshot
• Length of MOTD increased to 1536
• Weapon manufacturers are no longer specified in the buy menu
• Logic use to cycle the map has been changed. The map will cycle if one of three conditions has been met:
  • "mp_timelimit" has been met
  • "mp_winlimit" rounds have been won by one of the teams
  • "mp_maxrounds" have been played
• Fixed many cheats
• Changed logging format to meet the standards. Several events have been added to the logs:
  • "Begin_Bomb_Defuse_Without_Kit"
  • "Begin_Bomb_Defuse_With_Kit"
  • "Spawned_With_The_Bomb"
  • "Dropped_The_Bomb"
  • "Got_The_Bomb"
  • "Became_VIP"
  • "Escaped_As_VIP"
  • "Round_Start"
  • "Round_End"

Map Changes

• Added cs_thunder
• Mod only: Added de_vertigo, de_inferno, de_dust2 & de_rotterdam
• Upgraded de_dust, de_cbble, de_vegas, de_aztec, cs_office, cs_siege, & cs_italy
• Removed cs_arabstreets, de_foption, as_highrise

Bug Fixes

• "Out of ammo" hint message fixed
• "Punished for team killing" hint message fixed
• "Through floor" death animation fixed

New/Changed CVARS

• mp_playerid
  • Toggles what information players see in the status bar.
  • 0 everyone: players see all names listed in the status bar (with appropriate team colors).
  • 1 team only: players only see names for their teammates and hostages in the status bar.
  • 2 off: players do not see any names in the status bar (hostages included).
  • 0 is the default.
• mp_fadetoblack (overrides mp_forcechasecam)
  • 0 nothing
  • 1 player's screen fades to black for the remainder of the round when he dies (hud still works normally so player can chat and see the scores, etc).
  • 0 is the default.
• mp_forcechasecam
  • 0 free to spectate anyone when player dies.
  • 1 only allowed to spectate player's own team when player dies.
  • 2 not allowed to spectate anyone... player's view stays where the player dies.
  • 0 is the default.
• mp_buytime (float)
  • Can now designate the desired amount of buy time for each round.
  • min buy time is .5 minutes.
  • no max buy time.
  • Example: mp_buytime 1.8 // 108 seconds of buy time.
  • 1.5 min is the default (CS 1.0 buy time).
• mp_roundtime (float)
  • Changed to support partial minutes
  • min round time is 1 min
  • max round time is 9 min
  • Example: mp_roundtime 1.3 // 78 seconds
  • 5 min is the default (CS 1.0 round time)
• mp_winlimit
  • Will cycle the map after one team reaches this many wins.
  • 0 is the default (no win limit).
• mp_timelimit (float)
  • Fixed to support 0 (no time limit)
  • Example: mp_timelimit 17.2 // 17 minutes 12 seconds.
  • 0 is the default.
• allow_spectators.
  • 0 Do not allow spectators.
  • 1 Allow spectators.

Counter-Strike 1.1c

April 9, 2001

Server-side only release

Bug Fixes

• Incorrect hitboxes fixed when holding specific weapons fixed.

Counter-Strike 1.2

July 11, 2001

Retail only release

This patch was released for retail version only and included Half-Life 1.1.0.7 patch fixes. To allow continuity, the CS Mod version stepped up to CS 1.3.

Changes/Additions

• Addition of SierraUp, a new Automatic update system.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed GL texture binding problem (white skin bug)
• Optimized model drawing

Counter-Strike 1.3

September 19, 2001

Mod, retail and server-side release

Changes/Additions

• Multicast spectator added.
• Voice communication added.
• Added server chat to logging.
• Redesigned multiplayer scoreboard.
• Switching to Spectator is now logged.
• CapsLock key is now bindable.
• Changed minimum value for mp_chattime to 1 second
• Changed minimum value for mp_buytime to 0.25 (15 seconds)
• Commandmenu support implemented.
• Radio commands can be heard by nearby enemies.

Map changes

• Added de_storm, de_survivor, de_torn
• Updated de_inferno
  • Added indoors areas near the "Second Middle" area and near the CT Spawn Zone
  • One of the Bombsites has been relocated from CT Spawn Zone to a new area near "Banana"
• Removed de_rotterdam and cs_thunder

New CVARs

• mp_logdetail
  • bitwise cvar to set the level of detail for logging attacks.
  • Bit 0 - Log Enemy Attacks
  • Bit 1 - Log Teammate Attacks
  • "mp_logdetail 0" - Log no attacks (default)
  • "mp_logdetail 1" - Log enemy attacks
  • "mp_logdetail 2" - Log teammate attacks
  • "mp_logdetail 3" - Log enemy AND teammate attacks
• mp_startmoney
  • sets the amount of starting money players may have
  • maximum: 16000
  • minimum: 800 (default)

Bug Fixes

• Bunny hopping removed.
  • To be more precise, a player speed cap was added.
• Fixed client-side shots not matching the server-side counterparts.
• Fixed banned.cfg problem with more than 1024 entries.
• Fixed screenshots overwriting each other.
• Buffer overflow exploit fixed.
• condump, cmdlist, and cvarlist only write out to the game directory.
• Fixed Spectator mode bug.
• Fixed hitbox issues.
• Fixed nightvision bug.
• Fixed "slot10" not working correctly.

Counter-Strike 1.3 Patch

September 21, 2001

Mod and retail release

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an overflow issue that occured on ATI video cards

Counter-Strike 1.4

April 24, 2002

Mod, retail and server-side release

Changes/Additions

• Added Anti-Cheat protection.
• User Interface redone for HLTV.
• Dedicated servers (Win32 + Linux) now default to 32MB heapsize.
• Improved dedicated server FPS (sys_ticrate) accuracy in Windows NT/2K/XP and Linux.
• Enhanced in-game spectator mode to include HLTV features
• Added new first-person mode to spectator modes
• Speaking players flash in team members' radars
• Dead bodies remain on the ground for the entire round
• Dropped bomb blinks red in Terrorist team's radar
• Changed so only Terrorists are notified when the bomb is dropped or picked up
• Changed so players must stand still when planting the bomb (including no jumping)
• Changed so players can't move or shoot while defusing the bomb
• Adjusted pistol accuracy while jumping (all pistols)
• Adjusted player jumping values to minimize bunny hopping
• Changed so the VIP can't drop any weapons
• If player dies, view zooms away from falling body while changing the angle to show the killer
• Changed so name changes for dead players are stored and processed when the players respawn back into the world
• Removed players hearing enemy radio calls
• Added code to force sv_clienttrace 1 on the server
• Changed so when someone mutes a player (in the scoreboard), they will no longer see that player's in-game text messages either
• Added cheering to HLTV.
• Muting a player in the scoreboard will also mute their text messages.
• Steam beta clients and non-Steam clients can play together on the same server now.
• Voice communication uses DirectSound by default now.
• Added logging of fatal Sys_Error server shutdowns.
• Renamed setinfo items ah and vgui_menus to _ah and _vgui_menus
• Added new setinfo item _cl_autowepswitch (default: 1) which controls whether or not a client switches to picked up weapons (if they're more powerful)

Interface Changes

• Changed color of the words 'BOMB' and 'VIP' in the scoreboard to make them more visible
• Changed the way kevlar and kevlar/helmet work using the buy menus - made them work together
• Added a sound when kevlar and kevlar/helmet are purchased

Map Changes

• Added de_chateau and cs_havana
• Added de_piranesi (released on Steam version by accident)
• Updated de_train
  • The map is now brighter

New CVARS

• "mp_kickpercent"
  • sets the percentage of teammates it takes to vote off a player
  • maximum: 1.0
  • minimum: 0.0
  • default: 0.66
• "sv_restart"
  • acts exactly the same as "sv_restartround"
• "sv_send_logos"
  • when "sv_allowdownloads" is set to 1, this cvar will control whether custom logos are propagated to clients
  • default: 1
• "sv_send_resources"
  • when "sv_allowdownloads" is set to 1, this cvar will control whether resources are propagated to clients
  • default: 1
• "cl_corpsestay"
  • client-side cvar to set the amount of time (in seconds) dead bodies will stay before sinking into the ground. Dead bodies are cleared at the beginning of each round.
  • default: 600
• "cl_righthand"
  • client-side cvar to toggle using the right and left hand view-models
  • default: 1
• "cl_minmodels"
  • client-side cvar so clients can play using the minimum model set: leet.mdl, gign.mdl, and vip.mdl
  • default: 0

Bug Fixes

• Smoke grenade fix
• Radio command fix
• Fixed duplicate HUD weapon sprite bug
• Fixed footstep sounds to correctly play when not walking (fixes fastwalk cheats)
• Fixed uneven movement rate when moving through water
• Fixed server locking up at end of round when a lot of grenades are in play
• Fixed several ammo inconsistencies between weapons that share ammo types
• Fixed a T as CT skin bug
• Fixed bug with kevlar/helmet where players could buy it again at the beginning of each round even if they didn't need it
• Fixed some view_model animation bugs
• Fixed 'use' key causing an instant player stop with no deceleration
• Fixed bogus \Save directory being created when you ran Half-Life.
• Fixed filter logic in the launcher.
• Fixed bug where clients couldn't connect to server side only MODs.
• Fixed AddIP command.
• Fixed crash when a func_breakable triggers a trigger_counter.
• Fixed fog messing Additive sprites.
• Removed friends connectionless packet query.
• Fixed bad address type fatal server error (caused by clients with long names).
• Fixed condump so the output won't overwrite previous files.
• Fixed cvarlist so the output won't overwrite previous files.
• Fixed rcon_port and rcon_address so they can be set manually by the player to rcon a server.
• Fixed server shutdowns related to using bots.
• Fixed vote and votemap commands to work correctly
• Fixed bug where clients would try to change their name while dead and then couldn't change it when they respawned.

Counter-Strike 1.5

June 12, 2002

Mod, retail and server-side release

Changes/Additions

• New map de_piranesi.
• Added logging of the anti-cheat system catching and kicking detected cheats.
• Added logging of "kick" commands.
• Added logging of "banid" commands.
• Changed error message if clients try to download missing resources to be more helpful.
• Changed 'exec' command now only works on .cfg and .rc files.
• Changed 'exec' command no longer allows .. or \\ or : in the filename.
• Added new debug message for mod makers if a packet couldn't be parsed correctly.
• Linux: hlds_run now does auto-restart by default (to disable: define "-norestart" on the command line)
• Linux: hlds_run uses "exec" when you define the "-norestart" option.
• Linux: Added -pingboost command line parameter. Currently supports three different methods ('-pingboost 1', '-pingboost 2', and 'pingboost 3'). These may not work well (or at all) on some OS environments.
• Linux: Added "-debug" flag to hlds_run to automatically run gdb and pull out useful info.

New CVARS

• Added "serverversion", can be set to '1108' to view/re-record old demos.
• Added "sv_logbans" to turn the logging of player bans on and off. Default is 0 (off).

Bug Fixes

• Fixed mp_hostagepenalty not working.
• Fixed problem with server locking when the bomb is planted and a new player joins the server.
• Restored "mp_fadetoblack" server variable.
• Fixed incorrect WonID logging.
• Fixed sv_allowdownload being required to be set to 1 for clients to connect to secure servers.
• Fixed 'bad address type' fatal error on servers that attempt to run in secure mode but have no DNS resolution.
• Fixed DropClient messages for Steam clients who were banned or have a duplicate Steam ID to properly show the SteamID of the client.
• Fixed HLTV reporting wrong spectator numbers if connection to server was pending.
• Fixed "multicast 1" not working if it was issued before HLTV connected to game server.
• Fixed relay proxies reporting wrong spectator/slots numbers in multiplayer/LAN menu.
• Fixed rcon bug in HLTV.
• Fixed delay being reset to default value during changelevel.
• Fixed a problem with propagating HLTV banners.
• Fixed client freeze on exit.
• Fixed framerate problem on some ATI video cards.
• Fixed MaxPing filter not being saved correctly.
• Fixed sky box bug.
• Fixed bug using exec <filename> on large files (e.g. banned.cfg).
• Linux: Fixed server using 64 MB more memory than it needed to.
• Linux: Fixed 'undefined symbol: __strtouq_internal' on some Linux systems.
• Linux: Fixed segmentation fault on some Linux systems when attempting to run in secure mode.

Counter-Strike 1.6

Screenshot of CS 1.6.

September 12, 2003

Retail and server-side release

Starting with Counter-Strike 1.6, updates were only available through Steam and would be applied automatically.

The build was based on the retail version of the game (made up weapons names, altered faction names etc.), but the maps de_dust2, cs_estate, de_inferno, de_nuke and de_vertigo which were missing from the retail release were added. The Training map was also removed.

For Beta version of 1.6, see this Counter-Strike Wiki.

Changes/Additions

• Complete rework of launcher UI.
• Added widescreen monitor support (16:9 and 5:4).
• Added widescreen view modes for hardware that supports it.
• Added skins support to Steam (\platform\skins).
• Added in Steam monitoring tool. This will display Steam activity on your machine.
• Added support to choose voice codec quality.
• Engine supports masked and additive textures modes on models.
• Windows HLDS now runs as a VGUI2 panel. Running with -console will run as a console window.
• Windows HLDS now loads sw.dll again, swds.dll is no longer needed.
• Removed dependency on WON protocols.

Interface Changes

• Reworked in-game spectator modes to make it easier to use.
• Reworked Buy Menus.
• Planted bomb now flashes in Terrorist's radar.
• Changed so the bomb and hostages use T and upside-down T in the radar like players do (to indicate above/below the player).
• Added "BOT" to the scoreboard for players who are bots on the server.
• Added zoom & health in HLTV.
• Changed default spectator mode to "chase_locked".
• HLTV log files have time stamp in file name.
• Added "region" concept to server browser.
• Server browser can be refreshed using the F5 key.
• Changed "Press duck for menu" message to HUD style message and made it last for 6 seconds.

Weapon Changes

• Added two new rifles, the IDF Defender (IMI Galil ARM) and Clarion 5.56 (FAMAS).
• Added a Riot Shield for the CTs.
• Reskinned weapons to improve memory footprint.
• Increased Glock damage slightly.
• New Knife model.
• Made knife secondary attack do significantly more damage if hitting someone in the back.
• Changed so when bomb goes off, the player that planted the bomb gets three frags.
• Changed so the bomb defuser gets three frags for successfully defusing the bomb.
• Bullet ricochet sounds redone.
• Explosion sounds redone.

Map Changes

• Added new map de_airstrip.
• New version of de_inferno.
• New version of de_aztec.
• New version of de_cbble.
• Updated version of de_piranesi.
  • Added decorative models all over the map.

New/Changed CVARS

• "mp_logmessages" set to "on" by default.
• Added new cvar "sv_region" to describe the region the server is in.
• Added range check for "gamma" cvar.
• Added server cvar "sv_lan_rate" which specifies the rate to use for all clients on a lan server, default is 20000.
• Added "sv_log_onefile" to determine whether one log file is created (total) or one log file for each map change, which is how it currently is. The default is the current behavior (one for each map change).
• Added spam check to "timeleft" command.
• Added number of ban entries to "listid" response to aid in parsing.
• Reduced default sv_maxupdaterate value from 60 to 30.
• Default HLTV updaterate will be 10 (not 20) to save bandwidth.
• Changed so semi-colons are removed from messagemode text and replaced with commas (prevents exploit).
• Removed command "dem_edit", use "hl.exe -demoedit" instead.
• Removed "cl_latency" cvar.

Bug fixes

• Fixed messagemode exploit where you could set cvars on the client without the console.
• Fixed bug where players could duck while traveling up ladders and not lose any speed (but the sound volume was reduced).
• Fixed players being able to move up ladders faster than their maxspeed.
• Fixed bug with chat input and PIP overlapping while in spectator mode.
• Fixed HLTV flashbang bug.
• Fixed mouse input bug when playing with very low sensitivity in Windows XP.
• Fixed demo playback for demos containing svc_filetxferfailed messages.
• Fixed bug with HLTV director command 'stufftext'
• HLTV now handles svc_setview correctly
• Changed way how status messages are handled (to get total spectator & available slot numbers).
• Fixed demo recording after changelevel.
• Fixed bug where players could duck while traveling up ladders and not lose any speed (but the sound volume was reduced).
• Fixed players being able to move up ladders faster than their maxspeed.
• Fixed spectator bug where you can't always cycle forwards and backwards through the players (you can only cycle one direction).
• Fixed bug with snow sounds not playing sometimes.
• Fixed "fakelag" bug that allowed people to set "fakelag" and then connect to a server.
• Fixed zoomed sniper crosshair in HLTV mode.
• Fixed "sv_visiblemaxplayers" setting not working for info/details query response.

2003-2004 Steam Updates

After the release of version 1.6 on Steam, the game continued to receive big updates with gameplay changes up until the launch of Counter-Strike: Source.

September 25, 2003

Bug fixes

• Fixed shield drop weapon server crash
• Fixed shield exploit

October 10, 2003

Bug fixes

• Fixed shield not resetting player max speed when dropped
• Fixed being able to throw shield through walls if close enough
• Fixed dropping shield while reloading pistol causing the reload to happen faster
• Fixed case where shield could become invisible to other users
• Fixed typos in de_aztec and de_airstrip map descriptions

November 26, 2003

Changes/Additions

• Improved damage and accuracy of SG550 and G3SG1 sniper rifles
• Added small shadow underneath player
• Added autobuy and rebuy functionality to buy menus
• Added extra progress indicators for downloading & initializing VAC security modules
• Removed 'cmd dlfile' console command from being accessed directly from the console

Bug Fixes

• Fixed servers not being in world list if they specified a region on startup

December 10, 2003

Changes/Additions

• Optimized some of the particle drawing code
• For mod makers - debugging mods no longer requires the steam.dll to be copied into the game directory

Bug fixes

• Fixed problem in Direct3D mode where the game would be unavailable for some users. Direct3D mode should work now, but note that OpenGL will provide a better play experience if your video card is capable
• Fixed regression that was causing the 'load failed' crash to happen on level change
• Fixed shield exploit that involved dropping a weapon and buying a pistol in a specific order; you must restart your dedicated server to pick up this change

January 15, 2004

Changes/Additions

• The round timer is now disabled when the bomb is planted
• The winning defensive team now gets the same amount of money whether they win by round timeout or not ($3250 instead of $2000)
• Players on the offensive team who survive the round due to a round timeout no longer receive money the next round
• The Terrorists get an additional $800 per player if they plant the bomb but lose the round
• Fixed exploit where when a player died they could sometimes join the other team during the same round

Bug fixes

• Fixed bug where shield would be invisible if a player picked the shield up immediately after throwing a grenade
• Fixed custom decals not being downloaded from the server correctly
• Fixed custom decals drawing incorrectly for the host of a listen server after another player joins
• Fixed vgui textures being corrupted after going over a number of level changes
• Fixed problem where player would be sometimes be forced to look straight up after task switching in and out of game in fullscreen d3d mode
• Fixed problem in sound system where it wouldn’t properly be shutdown at the end of a .wav file
• Fixed banner picture not working correctly in HLTV
• Fixed error message that was cut off when a player was disconnected from a game server
• Changed the way that Asian fonts are displayed in game for compatibility on more platforms

February 9, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Increased hit damage for elite pistols (slightly)
• Decreased price for elite pistols to $800 [from $1000]
• Optimized entity lookup routines to reduce CPU load
• Cstrike spectator health fix (switching players sometimes left health display incorrect)
• Cstrike lastinv fix (lastinv works at start of round, after picking up items, etc)
• Cstrike corpse popping fix
• Cstrike FL_FAKECLIENT fix (3rd-party bots should work fine in cstrike once more)
• Other small CPU optimizations
• Stop motdfile from having "..", "\", "/" or ":" characters in its filename
• Added new command line option "-dll". Syntax is -dll [game_dll_to_load]

Bug fixes

• Fix XM1014 and M3 from making endless empty clip sounds when out of ammo
• Fixed shield bug where client could purchase multiple primary weapons
• Fixed file leak in ReadWaveFile() function
• Fix for updated files on the server not getting to the client when using compression
• Fixed extremely large rcon packets not being returned correctly

April 28, 2004

Changes/Additions

• AWP and Scout now have a small delay when firing, zooming, or reloading after switching to them from a different weapon or item
• Improved flashbangs (will not cancel out other flashbangs)
• Added a new headshot icon, showing which weapon was used to score the headshot
• Added a new rounded VGUI menus for the scoreboard, MOTD, team selection etc.
• Added solid radar option
  • Solid radar can be toggled on or off with the command cl_radartype
• Crosshairs have been scaled to maintain consistent size across all resolutions, with a slight increase in size depending on the resolution
• The zoom crosshairs for sniper rifles have been slightly adjusted
• Using nightvision now changes the crosshair to bold red
• Flashbang and Nightvision usage can be seen in spectator mode
• Improved game demo recording performance under Steam
• Updated German localized files

Map Changes

• Updated de_nuke
  • The map is now brighter
  • The outside box near the window is no longer destructible
  • Fixed the floating box exploit in the ramp room
• Updated de_cbble
  • The map is now brighter
  • Added boxes to the middle and Bombsite B
  • Added terrorist spawn points near the tower doorway
  • The vines are no longer climbable
  • Removed the bomb plant exploit at Bombsite B
  • Removed gap in the tower

May 3, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Scaled crosshair based on 1024 * 768
• Updated headshot icon
• Updated de_vertigo
  • Added WAD file
  • Fixed bugs introduced in the previous update that caused game crashes
• Updated HLTV with sv_downloadurl

June 14, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Added crosshair customization (color, size, opacity)
• Corpses fade out with cl_corpse_stay
• Improved player turning right hitbox behavior
• Improved brass ejection behavior
• hud_draw 0 doesn't remove blackout
• Scope blackout drawn in software mode
• Flashlight sound no longer masks weapon firing sounds
• Improved text behavior in top-right corner of observer mode
• Round timer doesn't re-appear until the round restarts when the bomb is defused or explodes
• Improved hitbox behavior

June 28, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Improved behavior of team_say
• Server prints team and player info in the console for chat messages
• Improved memory efficiency of hitbox animations to address intermittent server lag

July 22, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Improved behavior when a user changed their name to "spec_HELP_TEXT"
• Players are only blocked by the shield's hitbox
• Changing weapons but keeping the same animation index plays the new weapon's animation
• Improved how smoke grenades come to rest
• HE, smoke, and flashbang crosshairs are now the same size
• Improved FAMAS burst mode firing (matches the visuals)
• Improved closed shield behavior
• Improved hint message overwriting behavior
• Switching to the C4 or grenades no longer masks AWP firing sound
• Improved behavior of footstep sound when jumping to a different surface type
• Buying a primary while throwing a grenade no longer lets players have primary weapons + shields
• Improved sv_restart behavior (limit is increased to 60 seconds)
• Cycler_sprites are reset properly and show up on subsequent rounds (chickens)

July 24, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Improved shell ejection behavior causing errors

August 11, 2004

Changes/Additions

• Force spec_pip off if forcechase cam modes are set
• Improved lag compensation for the player with the last player slot (ie. player 10 on a 10 player server)
• Changed engine to respond to new server info query

Pre-SteamPipe Updates

After the release of Counter-Strike: Source, updates for the original Counter-Strike continued to be released periodically via Steam. This section only covers major changes before the convertation to the SteamPipe.

August 8, 2005 (VAC2 Update)

Changes/Additions

• Servers will default to starting up using VAC2
• Added "sv_uploadmax" cvar to limit the max size (in MB) a client can use for a custom resource (i.e spray decals)
• Don't allow servers to execute "alias" commands on clients (prevents an infinite loop exploit using alias commands from servers)

Bug fixes

• Fixed menu exploit on join that spawned you into the server but moved you around as you were in spectator mode
• Fixed possible lockup when refreshing a login ticket

March 5, 2007 (Advertisement Update)

Changes/Additions

• Added in-game advertisements
• Allow screen resolutions up to 2560x1600
• Fixed player names with really wide characters getting ellipses and being indistinguishable from one another scoreboard

October 22, 2008 (Steam Community Update)

Changes/Additions

• In-game player name now automatically uses player's Steam Community name
• Avatars are displayed on the scoreboard
• Added "-noaff" command-line option to disable setting of thread affinity
• Added "bannedcfg" cvar so admins can choose which file is written to by the "writeid" command

Bug Fixes

• Removed the need to manually re-login and re-authenticate to Steam while in game
• Fixed a crash on startup when running windowed with a non-standard desktop resolution
• Removed the display of saytext (in-game chat text) from players whom you've blocked in Steam friends
• Locked down several engine cvars to prevent malicious script exploits
• Enforced file consistency on several sprites
• Removed "ex_extrapmax" cvar (no longer needed)

April 20, 2009 (Silent Run Exploit Fix)

Changes/Additions

• Prevented Russian Walking exploit
• Fixed players being kicked from servers with an INVALID_STEAM_TICKET rejection
• Added a message to the server console to show when the server has reconnected to Steam
• Made map name and other variables reported by the server stay more current
• Fixed mp_timeleft not updating in server rules (or any unlogged cvar for that matter)
• Show HLTV being connected in the player count for pings
• Fixed HLTV staying in players list even after disconnect
• Fixed server hang when a user connects with a specially crafted info string
• Fixed occasional crash under Linux on startup for SMP machines (Linux)
• Cleaned up hlds_run script (Linux)

May 19, 2009 (Silent Run Exploit Rollback)

Changes/Additions

• Rolled back recent silent walking exploit fixes as we investigate less impactful ways of preventing the bug
• Adjusted bomb bounding box to prevent silent plant exploit
• Fix to eliminate or significantly reduce "flashbugs"
• Fixed status icons (buy zone, bomb zone, etc) disappearing when starting a recording, or issuing a fullupdate
• Prevent creating aliases using the same name as existing cvars
• Rate limit fullupdate and some other commands to prevent spamming
• Fixed an issue with grenades where they could go into an area and bounce infinitely, causing the server to choke and or crash

SteamPipe Updates

In 2013, a series of updates was released for Counter-Strike, introducing significant changes, such as convertation to SteamPipe, support for Mac OS and Linux systems, improvement of OpenGL rendering, etc.

January 30, 2013

Changes/Additions

• Fixed crash when changing video modes under windows
• Removed support for A3D sounds from the engine, this API is not functional on current Windows OS releases
• Removed legacy D3D renderer, assorted OpenGL improvements in the beta make this older API not supportable
• Enabled hud_fastswitch on mouse wheel movement
• Removed in-game advertisements

January 31, 2013

Changes/Additions

• Added "-nofbo" command line option to let you disable using the new method for rendering
• Added "-nomsaa" to let you disable MSAA effects being applied to the games output, setting "-nofbo" also implies "-nomsaa".

Bug Fixes

• Fixed not doing the HTTP fast download path if you canceled a download and then reconnected to the same server
• Fixed drowning damage being applied after respawn in some cases
• Fixed malicious clients being able to upload certain new files to servers
• Fixed some scripts sounds not playing

February 1, 2013

Changes/Additions

• Fixed mp_fadetoblack not applying after a flashbang is thrown
• Fixed fullscreen software mode rendering incorrectly
• Added cl_min_t and cl_min_ct convar to let you control the model used when cl_minmodels *is set, the value of the cvar is the model index to use

February 14, 2013

Key Features

• Converted Counter-Strike 1.6 to the new SteamPipe content system, for optimized delivery of the game
• Added support for Mac OS X and Linux operating systems
• Improved OpenGL rendering pipeline and output to leverage the capabilities in todays GPU
• Improved support for in-game chat in non-latin languages

Other Changes/Additions

• Added ability to override default content. Enable the "Allow custom addon content" option in the Video options dialog and then place that content in valve_addon (or cstrike_addon for CS 1.6). This overridden data has all the normal VAC and pure server rules as default content
• Content downloaded from servers now goes into a separate valve_downloads (or cstrike_downloads) folder, so you can easily clean up unwanted files
• Updated Video options tab to better expose new configuration settings and remove unused ones
• Updated Server Browser display to match behavior of Source engine products
• Made Condition Zero models being used in Counter-Strike 1.6 (if you own Condition Zero) optional and controlled by the HD Models check box in the Options Video tab
• Removed an 100 fps cap
• Increased maximum allowed rate setting [from 20,000] to 100,000
• Removed cl_rate command, "rate" is the appropriate command to use
• Allow mouse sensitivity to go down to 0.2 (from the previous floor of 1.0)
• Added "cl_mousegrab" cvar, if set to 0 then the game will not grab the mouse. This may be needed to enable alt-tab with some Linux window managers. You can also add "-nomousegrab" to your command line to disable mouse grabbing.
• Fixed config files being written to the wrong folder, they are now always saved to the directory of the mod you are running. For Half-Life 1 this is "valve" and for Counter-Strike 1.6 this is "cstrike". You may lose some settings from this transition if you changed your configuration in the last couple of days

February 20, 2013

Changes/Additions

• Returned mouse input to using windows messages rather than raw input by default, this should correct the sensitivity change people have seen
• Added a "Raw Input" checkbox in the Mouse tab of the Options dialog. This button toggles the "m_rawinput" cvar. If selected raw input API's will be used to get mouse input, usually with lower latency but missing the post processing from your OS's Window manager
• Added a "Low video quality" option in the Video tab of the Options dialog. Use this check box if you have an older GPU and want to trade off visual quality for FPS
• Re-enabled a fps cap of 100. You can override this behavior if you want to run faster by setting fps_override to "1" but some mods may not behave properly
• Added support for binding the multiply key on the numeric keypad, the engine bind name for this new key is "kp_mul"
• Added support for binding Windows key, key name "win". Be careful binding this key, your OS may also act on presses from it
• Made keypad enter key activate an item when pressed in the server browser
• Made the "timerefresh" command require sv_cheats be set for its use. This command is for developer profiling and shouldn't be generally used
• Extended hud_fastswitch options. 0 means no fast switch, 1 means switch on both number keys and mouse wheel, 2 means on do fast switch when using number keys
• Added listing of games from the cstrike_downloads folder in the New Game dialog
• Added "speak_enabled" cvar, if set to 0 then the "spk" and "speak" commands are disabled
• Added "edicts" option to liblist.gam file, for use in mods that want more than 900 entities in their maps
• Increased supported entity count in Counter-Strike 1.6 to 1800
• Improved HTTP download performance
• Improved movement when running at more than 100fps
• Removed now unused sv_voicecodec and sv_voicequality cvars
• Renamed gl_ztrick cvar to gl_ztrick_old, usage of this cvar is deprecated and caused rendering issues

Bug Fixes

• Fixed cl_minmodels not applying after being on a server for a while
• Fixed left shift key presses not detecting properly
• Fixed viewdemo command causing a crash
• Fixed load dialog in viewdemo command not actually loading the demo
• Fixed Player List dialog not allowing you to mute a player
• Fixed crash on restart if you had the serverbrowser active
• Fixed mouse cursor sometimes not appearing when using the spectator UI
• Fixed double entries in the sprays list pulldown under options
• Fixed crash if Windows OS level DEP setting was turned on for all programs and you ran in software mode
• Fixed spectator UI being truncated when running in higher resolutions
• Fixed downloading of content from servers via HTTP, both if you got a 404 error on one of the links or the file was in the base download folder
• Fixed some commands writing config files to a bad path
• Fixed corruption of text input when hitting backspace while composing a message
• Fixed mouse clicks sometimes being lost

March 6, 2013

Changes/Additions

• Added support for localized player names, similar to the existing chat changes
• When m_customaccel is set scale mouse sensitivity when zoomed in, this now matches the path when not using custom accel
• Make the spray list alphabetical order and enforce unique entries
• Set the update rate to 102 if we are clamping to its max value
• Increased default cl_cmdrate value to 60
• Increased default cl_updaterate value to 60
• Improved support for non-qwerty keyboard layouts
• Set snd_noextraupdate to "1" by default, this value provides better performance for current PCs
• Added support for hitting Ctrl-A to select all text in the game console
• Improved download status when doing a fast HTTP download
• Better filter between normal (4:3) and widescreen video modes in the video options dialog
• Marked cl_sidespeed as archived so it is automatically saved to your config.cfg

Bug Fixes

• Fixed MOTD context menu to have localization strings for available options and for make back/forward work
• Fixed screenshot and snapshot when running in "-nofbo" mode
• Fixed first mouse press sometimes getting lost after alt-tabbing back into the game
• Fixed in game view jumping when going out to the main game ui
• Fixed crash when using viewdemo commands on some hltv recorded demo files
• Fixed hitting A in the game console selecting all text in the game console
• Fixed mouse cursor being invisible if you toggled raw input mode at certain times
• Fixed HTML MOTD not displaying properly if you did a resolution change and then joined a server
• Fixed mouse movements getting clamped if raw input is disabled and you moved a large amount (more than 100 pixels) in a single frame
• Fixed being unable to use the " character when using PT-BR keyboard layouts, as it is on the same key as `. Now we ignore the console key if Shift is also pressed, if you don't want this behavior use the con_shifttoggleconsole cvar to disable it

April 1, 2013

Changes/Additions

• Added better detection for older GPU drivers and the functionality they support. This should fix the green bar or black screen rendering issues people have been seeing
• Added letterboxing of the game based upon your resolution option so the game maintains the correct aspect ratio based upon your resolution choice. If you choose a "Normal" (4:3) and play on a widescreen (16:9 or 16:10) monitor then we will now place black bars at the edge of the screen to keep the right aspect ratio. The same is true for widescreen options on 4:3 monitors. Put "-stretchaspect" in the games launch options in Steam if you wish to disable this behavior
• Report bomb position more frequently to T team members when dropped, fixes it appearing at the wrong location on the radar
• Added support for "-freq <X>" command line to set monitor frequency when running in fullscreen AND your monitor supports the frequency in question. If you don't have a CRT monitor chances are you can't use this option.
• Improved firing behavior, it is no longer dependant on client or server frame rate. This change needs both your client and server updates to see the improvements.
• Strip trailing and leading whitespace on player names, and strip all styles of whitespace now unicode is supported
• Added logging of developer messages when using -condebug
• Added support for double clicking a demo to load when using the Load dialog for the viewdemo command
• Improve general dialog layout in the options UI
• Improved copy/paste functionality under Linux
• Cleaned up default keybindings

Bug Fixes

• Fixed defuse bar staying up across round restart if you died while defusing without the defuse kit
• Fixed corrupt texture when running older GPU's that incorrectly report support for non power-of-two textures
• Fixed the content lock dialog when running some video resolutions
• Fixed "snapshot" command when running certain video resolutions
• Force cl_bobcycle to be a minimum of 0.1 to prevent game exploits
• Fixed Half-Life flashing to black for a single frame on level change
• Fixed crash if you picked up a grenade in non-standard game styles
• Fixed some window size change events not passing through correctly
• Fixed white bar at the bottom of the screen and low FPS when running a 16-bit desktop under windows
• Fixed crash if you used the swapdemo command incorrectly

May 16, 2013

Bug Fixes

• Fixed dedicated server logs so they don't go into _addon or _download folders by mistake
• Fixed crash due to pointer double free
• Fixed console spam if a user connected with a particularly malformed UTF-8 name
• Fixed "bomb has been dropped" message staying on the screen
• Made keypad Enter key work for MOTD, team and class menus
• Clamped health values to fix display issues when it dropped below 1 or above 255
• Fixed non-latin names being corrupted in voice labels
• Fixed HTML form control elements not rendering correctly in the MOTD
• Fix the snapshot command in the software mode renderer, and change the screenshot command in the software renderer to produce TGA files
• Fixed test microphone button not working correctly
• Fixed crash in demoplayer when using invalid time offsets
• Fixed crash when spamming grenades while having the M3 purchased
• Fixed buy menu not working with shortcut keys if caps lock was enabled

October 8, 2019 Update

Changes and Additions

• Prevent texgamma and lightgamma and brightness cvars from affecting lighting in multiplayer
• Added support for player avatars in scoreboard for lower display resolutions
• Added scoreboard cvar to show shortened, simple headers for columns: scoreboard_shortheaders, set to 0/1 to disable/enable
• Added scoreboard cvar to enable/disable showing avatars: scoreboard_showavatars, set to 0/1 to disable/enable
• Added new server cvar, mp_infinite_ammo, set to 0 to disable, 1 for infinite ammo in guns, 2 for infinite reload ammo
• Added money and health columns to scoreboard and player/server cvars to control their display
  • Player cvars are: scoreboard_showhealth and scoreboard_showmoney, can be set to 0/1 to disable/enable the column from showing
  • Server cvars are: mp_scoreboard_showhealth and mp_scoreboard_showmoney, they can be set to the following values:

Value	Description
0	Disable showing health/money altogether
1	Show Terrorist health/money to all teams
2	Show CT health/money to all teams
3 (default)	Show CT health/money to teammates only and Terrorist health/money to teammates only
4	Show health/money for all players to all other players
5	Show CT and T health/money to teammates and to spectators

Fixes

• Fixed shotgun shell reload delay when holding +attack while magazine is empty
• Fixed non-translucent crosshair being slightly off-center
• Fixed UMP45 +attack being canceled when +attack2 is pressed

General

• Fixed setting monitor refresh rates through -freq when used with -nofbo
• Fixed unnecessary texture rescaling with NPOT textures
• Fixed slist command, will now show servers on the local network
• Fixed progress bar for individual files in resource download always showing at 100%
• Added auto-saving of several cvars (HL #2237)
• Fixed missing localizations in spectator UI
• Reordered columns in server browser to prevent game descriptions from being used to fake server player count
• Fixed sv_cheats being settable by players in a multiplayer game (sv_cheats is now controlled by the server)
• Security fixes to console commands
• Security fixes to resource loading

Half-Life 25th Anniversary Update

This patch included changes and fixes for the Half-Life 25th Anniversary Update, which were carried over to Counter-Strike on November 22, 2023.

New Content

• Added dozens of new sprays formerly available only on the "Half-Life: Further Data" CD.
• Added support for Steam Networking, allowing easy multiplayer via Steam's Join Game and Invite features.

Gameplay Changes

• Improved physics for throwing grenades.
• Fixed push-able entity movement being based on framerate.
• Fixed players with high framerates freezing in place on death.
• Fixed weapon view-bob angles.
• Fixed a crash in mods that display keybinds in their UI.
• Fixed some buffer overflow exploits.

UI Changes

• Main-menu buttons have been reskinned, and now scale based upon screen resolution without stretching, supporting background image layouts up to 3840x1600.
• In-Game HUD display has been shifted to the left of the screen, and no longer changes position at larger screen resolutions.
• Added an "Enable texture filtering" setting.
• Added an "Allow widescreen Field of View" setting to correct non-anamorphic FOVs, for widescreen and ultrawide displays.
• Re-organized all the Settings screens to improve legibility, and support controller navigation.
• The default player name are now based on the player's Steam Persona.
• The Steam platform menu has been removed, now that all its features are in Steam itself.
• Fixed application icon rendering incorrectly when using the software renderer.
• Fixed player and spray images not updating their coloring on the settings screen.
• Removed the now very unnecessary "Low video quality. Helps with slower video cards." setting.

Input Changes

• Improved support for keyboard navigation everywhere.
• Added "Lower Input Latency" option: Synchronizes the CPU and GPU to reduce the time between input and display output.
• Fixed issues that caused jerky mouse input.

Rendering

• Added setting to turn off texture filtering when using the OpenGL renderer.
• Default gamma has been decreased from 2.5 → 2.2, now that we aren't all playing on CRTs.
• Restored OpenGL overbright support.
• Added support for UI Sprites and Texture files larger than 256x256.
• Added support for UI Font special render modes: "blur" and "additive".
• Default resolution is now based on the resolution of the desktop, instead of a 640x480 window.
• Software renderer will now correctly filter out incompatible resolutions, unless there is only 1 resolution available on the display.
• Fixed fullscreen software renderer crashing on systems that don't support 16-bit color.
• Fixed software renderer being stretched when using widescreen resolutions.
• Fixed skyboxes and sky color incorrectly carrying over when transitioning maps.
• Fixed the game appearing too dark after modifying video settings.
• Fixed MSAA in windowed mode.
• Fixed mipmap rendering on studio models.
• Various optimizations to support the newly increased engine limits.

Engine Improvements for Mod Makers

• Increased maximum limit of dynamic sound channels from 8 → 32.
• Increased maximum limit of sentences in the sentences.txt file from 1536 → 2048.
• Increased maximum number of entities (MAX_EDICTS) from 900 → 1200.
• Increased MAX_PACKET_ENTITIES from 256 → 1024.
• Increased MAX_GLTEXTURES from 4800 → 10000.
• Increased software renderer geometry limits: max spans 3000 → 6000, max surfaces 2000 → 4000, and max edges 7200 → 14400.
• Cycler and func_button entities can now be the entity target for scripted_sentence entities, and are allowed to speak.

Native Linux Build

• Added support for the software renderer.
• Improved font rendering.
• Many stability and behavior fixes.

Other

• Localization files updated.
• Miscellaneous security fixes.

For more patches, see this Steam Announcements, Counter-Strike Wiki.