1. Get your settings set up correctly
First things first: you need to make sure your game isn’t actively handicapping you, so before you dive into any competitive shooter you need to adjust the settings so that the game runs properly.

2. Learn how to counter-strafe and stand still when shooting
One crucial difference between CS2 and more casual shooters is the fact that your gun won’t be accurate if you’re running and gunning. In CS2, you have to stand still while shooting if you want to have any hopes of actually hitting your enemies.

3. Learn the recoil patterns of the main guns
All guns in CS2 have their own recoil pattern. Once you start spraying, the gun will shoot away and your bullets won’t land exactly where your crosshair is.

4. Communicate with your teammates
Speak up. The most important things to call out are enemy positions and weapons, as well as sounds that might be of importance, but don’t be afraid to strategize with your team and come up with some tactics as well.

5. Learn maps and map callouts
As outlined above, communication and teamwork is crucial in CS2. If you have absolutely no idea where you’re going on a certain map, you probably shouldn’t be playing it in any serious competitive setting.

6. Buy and use utility
Don’t be afraid to use your utility early on; throwing an HE grenade at the bottom of banana on Inferno is a very common way of taking map control as CT, for example. Sometimes this will damage an enemy, sometimes it won’t.

7. Learn one or two useful smokes per map
There’s a big community on the internet dedicated to finding the latest and greatest grenade lineups, so simply looking up some basic guides on YouTube or other websites will get you very far.

8. Don’t stand in the open; use your environment to your advantage
Lower ranked players seem to think that it’s all or nothing: you either fully commit to a peek and go way past the corner, or you don’t peek at all.Be mindful of your surroundings.