Valve quickly fixes CSGO’s water footstep bug with fans’ help

By Fariha Bhatti

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Oct 16, 2021

Reading time: 2 min

Valve has finally fixed the infamous water bug in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive with the help of Reddit users. 

If you’ve ever heard spooky noises in waters across Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s maps, it’s likely a bug. A strange glitch has long caused issues when players walk on surfaces like fountains, mud, and canals. While it’s an enduring bug, it took professional player Martin “STYKO” Styk to finally get Valve to notice. 

In October release notes, the developer revealed that the issue had been fixed, and the water footstep sounds would no longer emit from spectating players’ death location.

The bug has been a part of CSGO for a long time, but it became tough to ignore after Ancient was added to the map pool, as there are many large muddy patches on the map. FunPlus Phoenix’s STYKO encountered the bug in the new map in the terrorist spawn area. It was later confirmed by other players who experienced it on Inferno and Overpass as well. 

What is the CSGO water bug?

CSGO’s water bug allowed players to hear enemy footsteps in watery patches of terrain from across the map by listening near other watery patches, even if they aren’t connected.

Players highlighted that when enemies step into the water in any part of the map, you can hear the sound effect on all areas in the map with water. For example, if someone jumps into the B-short water on Overpass, you can hear their footsteps at the CT fountains. A similar bug is found on Ancient, where players can listen to footsteps from across the entire map.

This was a game-breaking bug as it could be exploited to gather intel on a higher level of play. Considering the impact of this glitch, Valve took notice and requested demos from fans who have encountered the bug. After investigation, the developer has finally released a fix. 

Players can now freely roam around water-based maps without the fear of being heard. While the fix is excellent news, players are more glad about Valve’s new interaction with the community. The CSGO developer unironically boasts about its complete lack of communication with fans, so this is a first for many players. Fans are now hopeful that Valve will keep tackling similar issues like this moving forward..