After a more than year-long Season 1, Valve has announced that Premier Season 2 is finally coming to CS2 later this week. What does it mean for players and what other changes are coming? Read on to find out! 

The End of Season 1

Ready to say goodbye to Season 1? You’ll receive a medal to mark your achievements in CS2’s first Premier season. It’s more than a trophy, though—it features your gameplay stats, including matches played, your win rate, Kill/Death ratio, assists, map-specific stats showing your average performance on each map, and lots more. 

You can use these stats to track your progress and develop strategies for improvement in future Seasons.

Valve has warned that we should expect one day of Premier down-time, as they recalibrate rankings and get everything ready to launch Season 2.

When the new Season starts, you’ll need to win 10 placement matches to re-establish your CS Rating, just like we all did when CS2 replaced CS:GO, with new ranking systems and leaderboards. 

Train to Replace Vertigo

After a year-long absence, Train returned to Counter-Strike in November 2024, albeit in an overhauled version that changed parts of the layout. Now, in Season 2, Train will replace Vertigo in the Active Duty Map Pool.

Although Vertigo is an absolute Counter-Strike classic, it hasn’t been the most popular map choice during pro play. According to statistics published by Sportskeeda, in CS2 tournaments played in 2024, Vertigo was among the three least-popular maps, along with Dust 2 and Overpass. (Ancient got the most plays, by the way—3,678, compared to Vertigo’s 1,672 and Overpass’ 637.)

Weapon Changes

Season 2 will also bring some minor changes to CT weapons, specifically the M4A4 and the FAMAS. The top CT rifle, M4A4, is getting a slight price cut—it’ll now cost $100 less, so $2900, just like the M4A1-S. That’s still $200 more expensive than the AK-47, the top AR of choice for the T-side. 

The FAMAS—another CT-only assault rifle—is also getting a new, lower price, although Valve hasn’t yet specified how much it will cost after the transition to Season 2. The current price of the FAMAS is $2050. That’s not the only change to the FAMAS, though: it’s also getting a small buff, with improved standing and crouching accuracy. 

Earning the Season 2 Medal

In the announcement, Valve mentions that Season 2 will end after the Austin Major. The Major is scheduled for June 3rd–June 22nd, 2025, meaning that Season 2 will last around 5 months—much shorter than Season 1. 

As Season 2 wraps up, you’ll have the chance to add another medal to your collection. The medal’s color will match your highest CS Rating during the season, and the bars beneath it—up to five in total—will show off your grind, with one bar for every 25 Premier wins.

To qualify for the medal, you’ll need to rack up at least 25 Premier wins and hold an active CSR when the season ends. Your account needs to be in “good standing,” which presumably means no bans and possibly a decent Trust Factor rating. 

Alright, time to get ready to make your mark in Premier Season 2! Whether you’re climbing the leaderboards or chasing that shiny new medal, this season is your chance to prove your skills. GLHF!