With a full release of the eagerly anticipated Counter Strike 2 on the horizon, many players were delighted to be part of the early access period. Launching as a free update to CS:GO, the refreshed experience will deliver enhanced visuals, updated mechanics and overhauled maps. In the limited tests, players were able to experience this redefined experience, giving them a taste of what’s to come when the game launches in summer 2023. Since Counter Strike has such a dedicated community already, absolutely nothing gets past eagle-eyed fans. Outside of the more obvious changes to the maps, smoke effects and character design, there are a number of secret smaller inclusions that Valve developers have included. Whether you have played CS2 for yourself or not, you may not have noticed or heard about these amusing and intriguing details. Here we will be breaking down Counter Strike 2 Easter Eggs and Secrets.
Counter Strike 2 Half Life Easter Egg
Valve are obviously incredibly well known for their gaming platform and store Steam, as well as their portfolio of developed or published games. These games include smash hits such as Portal, Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress and of course, Half Life. Although the player base of CS2 are fairly hardcore multiplayer enthusiasts, many of them have an extended interest in the Half-Life series. This led to some switched-on Counter Strike players noticing a small detail on one of the weapons that is a subtle nod to Valve’s other franchise. On the side of the Dual Beretta pistols within the game, there is a variety of text engraved into the side. Part of this text features the name ‘Gordon F.’, which is obviously a reference to the protagonist of Half-Life – Gordon Freeman.
Counter Strike 2 Half Life Easter Egg Explained
Some people may believe that this easter egg is a simple nod to Half-Life, but there is actually a little more to the story. In the HD Pack for Half-Life, developed by ‘Borderlands’ developer Gearbox Entertainment, Gordon Freeman’s signature pistol looked noticeably different. Although his gun was original based on a Glock, the HD Pack remodelled it based on a Baretta. This is why Gordon Freeman’s name has been engraved onto the side of that particular weapon in CS2. This change by Gearbox was a somewhat controversial one, since many fans of the game felt that the weapon had more character in the original release rather than the HD Pack. This makes it interesting that Valve would choose to include this reference to Gordon in this way, since hardcore fans have made their preferences clear. Does this mean that we will see the seemingly mythical ‘Half-Life 3’ any time soon? Well, we wouldn’t count on it and consider this more of a light-hearted nod to one of gaming’s most beloved franchises.
Counter Strike 2 Left 4 Dead 3 Reference
If you though that first entry was obscure and unnoticeable, wait until you read about this next one. We have already mentioned Valve’s other popular first person shooter series Left 4 Dead, and here we have a potential teaser of a future sequel. A reddit user by the name of ‘PaP3s’ dug into Counter-Strike 2’s game files and discovered something a little unusual. Within a seemingly random string of code, there is a line a text which clearly reads ‘Left4Dead3’ alongside a label of ‘Product’. Although Valve has not specifically revealed anything about another entry into the zombie shooter franchise, fans are hopeful due to the recent surprise reveal of CS2 itself. The last we heard of a third Left 4 Dead title came from Valve themselves when they stated that they were ‘absolutely not working on anything L4D related and haven’t been for years’ back in 2020.
For more on CS2, check out or dedicated section for the game or our wider gaming news section.
