Did a CS10 sticker reveal the release date for Source 2 CSGO?

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive fans have been in a frenzy over the possibility of the Source 2 CSGO date being spoiled by a CS10 sticker. But a video of a CS10 sticker spoiling the release date of Source 2 is fake, and we can prove it.

Soon after the release of the CS10 sticker capsule, videos began circulating on social media of messages hidden in their designs. One sticker in particular, the Conspiracy Club, has been shown with a mysterious message teasing a Source 2 release date. However, that video is just a fake, and a scratched sticker can easily prove it.

The video in question shows a player scratching away at the new Conspiracy Club CS10 sticker. As they scratch, a mysterious date is revealed. Based on the sticker’s subject matter, the clip makes it seem as if Valve hid a Source 2 release date inside the CS10 sticker. We chose to investigate using our own copy of the sticker. Here’s what we found.

The image shown is the sticker scratched down to its final wear value. One more scratch and it’s removed. No date appears, but the sticker does take on an interesting metallic sheen after a few scratches. Slapping four of these and scratching them all could make an interesting, though not particularly cheap, craft. However, it will not reveal the release date for Source 2 CSGO.

After CS10, when could Source 2 CSGO come out?

Many CSGO fans expected something involving Source 2 for the CS10 anniversary, but the complete lack of it means that fans should probably temper their expectation.

Very few video games get a 10th anniversary of active updates, and the CS10 celebration would have been the perfect time for Valve to reveal a Source 2 beta for CSGO. But Valve still has not publicly committed to a Source 2 port for its tactical shooter. It’s possible that Valve is still early in the Source 2 development process for CSGO. It’s even possible that Valve has chosen not to pursue the project at all.

On the bright side, some of the maps added in CS10 prove that CSGO still has plenty of life in it. The triumphant return of Tuscan and the addition of graphical monster Prime are excellent additions for the game. Prime in particular shows that there’s still more to wring out of the original Source engine.

Source 2 may still be years away, but we can enjoy Source 1 CSGO until then.