Even though it may not seem that way, CS2 rounds are mostly won thanks to superior tactics and decision-making. Sure, if you have a great aimer in your team who can entry-frag and wins 1v1 duels in 75% of cases, that’s a significant advantage. But you don’t necessarily need someone like s1mple or NiKo to win maps. Wanna know more about how to make footsteps louder in CS2?
Sound cues become highly important when deciding how to move and play in a given situation where you’re against one or more enemy players. And the fighting takes place at close range. Listening to footstep sounds is key under such circumstances. And the player who gives away his position first often loses the duel.
Related: Best CS2 settings to improve your game.
Incorporating CS2 Footstep Sounds Into Your Decisions
Players often look at the minimap in games like Dota 2 or League of Legends to see where their enemies are. In CS2, you also have a minimap, but discovering where your opponents hide is much tricker. The reasons for that are obvious.
First, players can hide in obscure, narrow spaces over the map. And when they do, they don’t show up on your minimap until you spot them. This creates the constant need to move slowly, clear every corner, and be extremely prudent.
The second problem is the long-range accuracy of many CS2 skins, such as the AK-47, the M4A1, or the AWP. These weapons can kill with just a few bullets even when fired from a very long distance. Which means that the moment between spotting an enemy and killing him is usually just a few seconds if the players have good aim.
Because of these two problems, CS2 players often avoid open space and try to position themselves so enemies cannot spot them and have the opportunity to shoot first. CS2 duels usually occur at close range and are preceded by flashbangs to obstruct enemy vision.
When fighting in this manner, footsteps are often one of the few things. Utilize to make an informed decision. You don’t know where the opponent is, but if you hear his steps. You might be able to tell that he is moving at a certain pace between two locations and will likely appear on your screen in N seconds.
Footsteps also tell you if one opponent or several of them are coming your way.
How Fire Exchanges Often Take Place
Multiple scenarios usually result in a fire exchange between the Terrorists and the Counter-Terrorists. These are the two most important ones:
Invading a Bomb Location
During the first 60 – 90 seconds of any given round. A good Terrorist team will attempt to find openings, ensure decent map control. And gain information about where the Counter-Terrorists are. The CTs usually split their forces like this: 2 players guard the A site, 2 defend the B site. And 1 scouts enemy movement and tries to gather information for his team. If the CTs know where the Ts will try to plant the bomb. That gives them a big advantage and allows them to prepare much better.
Before the location is taken by storm, Molotovs, explosive grenades, flashbangs, and smoke grenades are usually used. The Terrorists throw much of what they have left to force their opponents to leave their advantageous locations or impede their ability to see what’s happening.
At the same time, the Counter-Terrorists, if they have some information about what’s going on, are doing their best to delay the fight by using Molotovs and smoke grenades. However, they can’t keep the danger at bay forever, and the utility usually runs out after 60 – 90 seconds.
The key here is to anticipate, often listening to footstep sounds or watching for grenades that get thrown when the T-side will make its move. If you can spot that exact moment, you can quickly throw your grenades and then just prefire at the location where the enemies will come from.
This often results in significant casualties for the T-side and wins the round for the CTs. But to do it, one player needs to be as close as possible to where the Terrorists are waiting to make their move.
Also view: Best place to buy CS2 skins.
Close-range 1v1s
One of the most common scenarios in which CS2 footstep sounds can be used to gain an advantage is when you’re sitting behind a door, a wall, or a crate and preaiming in a given direction.
Maybe you anticipate that an enemy will try to force his way through there, or perhaps there are multiple options, and you’ve been tasked with covering one. If you’re close enough to the key location, the enemy must pass through before he can see you. Being on the CT side gives you a huge advantage.
The reason is simple: you can hold your position while the enemy needs to move to make progress. And when he does, you will hear his footsteps if he’s not careful or is forced to move faster to avoid a situation in which he slowly exposes his body and gets shot before having a chance to shoot. And that will let you know that he’s coming.
At a high competitive level, people naturally try to move as carefully and silently as possible to avoid giving away their position and intentions. But sometimes they have no choice. And that’s when you can punish them.
Also view: Best place to trade CS2 skins.
Using Appropriate Audio Settings and Headphones
If you want to be able to use CS2 footstep sounds to improve your win rate, make sure you adjust your audio settings so that you may hear each sound cue with clarity.
Another big factor here is your headphones. If you’re using earbuds, you’re playing at a significant disadvantage. High-quality headphones often give you information about the footsteps’ direction and approximate location. The distinctions are very subtle, but if you’ve played CS2 for a long time, you can distinguish them.
Earbuds are much less precise in what they tell your ear, so you may be unable to make the tiny distinctions that can give you an edge.
Avoiding Traps
When you play against top-tier players, you must be aware of the mind games these players use to trick your perceptions. Understanding that you’re listening to their footsteps, they may feed you information to trigger a response but slightly change their movement patterns to gain the advantage.
After you start shooting, you lose gun control, and it’s much harder to land a headshot. Players often make the noises associated with assaulting a location but then retreat right before you expect them to come into view. Then, hearing that you’ve started to fire too early, they instantly show up and kill you.
If competing in the LEM division or above, you must incorporate false positives into your tactics. Because that action will follow not everything that produces the sound cues associated with the action. Sometimes, people are simply trying to fool you.
