win.gg
Win.gg Counter-Strike Valve removes weapon pings and bots in competitive CSGO update

Valve removes weapon pings and bots in competitive CSGO update

M Alzamora
M Alzamora Published 08/01/2021
Google Preferred Source

While Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s January 7 update may have been”small” in Valve’s words, the developer included a massive change to how CSGO’s classic competitive five-versus-five and two-versus-two wingman modes work in CSGO and fixed a major game bug. And some players are very angry about it.

Valve has decided to remove the replacement bots that spawn when a player disconnects from CSGO’s competitive and wingman modes. After the patch, bots will no longer spawn when players disconnect or leave a competitive match. Teammates will be left in a four-versus-five for the remainder of the match if a player fails to reconnect. 

Players upset over CSGO’s removed weapon pings, bots 

Players are not happy about it. Popular CSGO streamer Anomaly tweeted angrily that he wanted more control over the replacement bots, not for Valve to remove them from the game’s competitive and wingman modes entirely.

They legit removed bots from competitive. If someone on your team leaves, it’s instantly GG.

WE WANTED MORE CONTROL OVER THE BOTS, BEING ABLE TO HAVE BOTS DROP GUNS AND HAVE MORE COMPLEX COMMANDS, NOT REMOVING THEM COMPLETELY?????? https://t.co/8K4bgSinlF

— Anomaly (@anomalyxd) January 8, 2021

There were more changes shipped, but the biggest ones weren’t in the patch notes. CSGO developers fixed the game’s ping system that had been revealing enemy positions for weeks. Yet players aren’t happy about this change either. One user replied to the official CSGO Twitter account’s announcement to complain about what was in reality a smart change to a broken system.

no more bots? pings don’t highlight weapons? what the fuck is this update valve? now literally every time someone leaves it’s a guaranteed loss. i’m not one to shit on you but this is so random, what issue does it solve

— zeeby ”medi” zeeby (@thezeeby) January 8, 2021

CSGO’s contextual ping system no longer works on weapons in competitive matches, but it works perfectly everywhere else. The video below shows CSGO’s pings after the update. Weapons picked up by a friendly player disappear immediately. Valve’s fix means that a weapon ping remains where it was placed when enemy players pick up the weapon, patching the bug and maintaining the functionality for friendly players. 

Valve has fixed some issues with this update. It’s likely that pinged weapons in CSGO’s competitive mode are turned off until devs can make sure they’ve fixed the issue there. Everywhere else, CSGO’s pings still highlight guns just like they used to.

Valve also fixed a bug reported on by WIN.gg where CSGO’s player pings could act like wallhacks, bouncing over enemy models if the player had the bad luck of walking past an enemy ping. It would reveal an enemy’s position to the pinger even if the they didn’t have line of sight.

Finally, small changes were also made to the maps Ancient, Engage, Guard, and Cache, improving performance and fixing spots in which the bomb could become stuck. For a “small update,” CSGO’s first real changes of 2021 have increased the game’s competitive integrity, eliminated the temptation for players to kick other players in favor of bots, and affected gameplay in the game’s competitive modes across the board. 

M Alzamora M Alzamora
About M Alzamora

There are few things that writer M Alzamora loves more in life than Pokemon. And there are even fewer things that she loves more than her favorite Pokemon, Eevee. But M’s appreciation for gaming isn’t just limited to Nintendo’s famous pocket monsters. She’s interested in every type of game across every genre of gaming, and she has the credentials to prove it. M’s work has also been seen on Working Classicists and gaming sites.

View full profile
Read Also
IEM Cologne Major 2026 CS2 Stage 3 Pick’Em Predictions Counter-Strike
IEM Cologne Major 2026 CS2 Stage 3 Pick’Em Predictions Owen Harsono It’s that time of the year again, as the next Counter-Strike 2 Major is right around the corner. The IEM Cologne 2026 Major is set to start on June 2, meaning you still have some time to lock in your Pick’Em predictions. The Pick’Em Challenge is one of the most exciting parts of the CS2 Majors, as it allows you to test your knowledge and predict which teams make it ...
Team Spirit concede just 10 rounds in Stage 2 of the IEM Cologne Major Counter-Strike
Team Spirit concede just 10 rounds in Stage 2 of the IEM Cologne Major Owen Harsono It was pretty weird seeing Team Spirit having to start the IEM Cologne Major from Stage 2, but they quickly proved why that was a mistake. With donk shooting on all fronts, the Eastern Europeans speed ran the competition to book their spot in Stage 3. With how they’ve been playing, it’s hard not to wonder whether they can actually win the entire thing. These boys can sometimes be known ...
BIG pull off 0-12 comeback to stay alive – IEM Cologne Major Stage 1 recap Counter-Strike
BIG pull off 0-12 comeback to stay alive – IEM Cologne Major Stage 1 recap Owen Harsono We’ve just witnessed arguably the worst choke in Counter-Strike Major history, and we’re only on the first stage of the IEM Cologne Major. If you didn’t tune into the Stage 1 matches, here’s what you need to know heading into Stage 2. Many fans tend to underestimate Stage 1 teams for fair reasons, but some survivors in this tournament look extremely promising. Two Eastern European teams, BetBoom Team and B8, ...
Who will win the IEM Cologne Major 2026? Counter-Strike
Who will win the IEM Cologne Major 2026? Owen Harsono If you’re looking to play it safe and back one team at the Counter-Strike 2 IEM Cologne 2026 Major, traders prediction markets platforms have a clear frontrunner – it’s Team Vitality. But if it’s not meant to be, there are a few other candidates that could lift the trophy. Here’s what traders on Polymarket and Kalshi think. If you haven’t been watching CS2 this year and are only jumping on ...
The 10 best CS2 players who have never won a Major Counter-Strike
The 10 best CS2 players who have never won a Major Owen Harsono In Counter-Strike, winning a Major immediately puts you into legend status. It’s an achievement that proves you won the game’s biggest trophy. However, there have been some really good players that could never get their hands on the biggest trophy that Counter-Strike esports has to offer. Here is WIN.gg's list of best CS2 players who have never won a Major. ScreaM is one of Counter-Strike's most famous players for one ...
IEM Cologne Major 2026: All the teams, favorites, and outright betting odds Counter-Strike
IEM Cologne Major 2026: All the teams, favorites, and outright betting odds Owen Harsono Mark your calendars, as the IEM Cologne Major kicks off on June 2, 2026. We’re going to see the best teams in the world compete, but which ones are actually favored to take the title? This will be the first time in 10 years that IEM Cologne will return as a Counter-Strike Major, so the stakes this year are much higher than they’ve been in a decade. In this guide, ...
All IEM Cologne winners and rosters in Counter-Strike history Esports Betting
All IEM Cologne winners and rosters in Counter-Strike history Owen Harsono IEM Cologne is one of Counter-Strike’s biggest events, happening every single year. Some seasons, the event is labeled as one of Valve’s two Counter-Strike Majors of the year, but if not, still stands as one of the big events every player chases to win. With the IEM Cologne 2026 Major right around the corner, let’s take a trip down memory lane and check out every single winner of the tournament, ...