How to 1v1 a Friend in CS2

In Counter Strike 2, private matches against friends are a great way to improve one’s skill. In 1v1 matches, players can recreate scenarios they usually encounter in ranked games. However, unlike other popular shooters, hosting a 1v1 match isn’t officially supported in CS2 yet.

With that being said, interested players can still use an unofficial method to create private matches in the legendary competitive shooter. The method involves changing a few router settings to open a specific network port, allowing your friend to jump into a 1v1 game. The following guide details step-by-step instructions on both – changing the necessary router settings, and hosting a 1v1 match in CS2.

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By Adib Pritom

Challenges Involved In Setting Up 1v1 Match In CS2

One of the biggest challenges involved in setting up a 1v1 match in CS2 is to learn how to Port Forward. Port forwarding is a technique that allows external users (friend) to access services or games (CS2) running on a private network, typically done on a router. It’s worth noting that some routers may not have the ability to port forward, which can lock certain players out from using this unofficial method.

How To Port Forward?

Image showcasing IP address and Router Settings

Modifying router setting can seem daunting to players who don’t have prior experience delving into it. Fortunately, this guide provides detailed and steps-by-step instructions on logging into the router and forwarding the necessary port:

Open Command Prompt by typing in CMD in Windows search and run it as an administrator.
Once the command prompt launches, type “ipconfig” to pull up the IP configuration.
Look for the Default Gateway line in the IP configuration, and note down the gateway address. Do not close the command prompt window yet.
Paste the Default Gateway address into the web browser and hit enter, which should open the router login page.
Log in to the router by entering the administrator username and password.
Once logged in to the router settings page, look for the Port Forwarding option. Depending on the make of the router, the option should be available in either advanced networking, or firewall, or security settings.
With the port forwarding page open, return to the command prompt window, and this time, copy the IPv4 address.
Enter the IPv4 address in the IP Address box on the port forwarding page.
On the same page, the Protocol option should also be available. Select “TCP and UDP” under the protocols. Do not select just TCP or UDP.
Next, enter the number 27015 in the WAN Starting Port and WAN Ending Port. Both these options are also usually found on the port forwarding page. Sometimes, it can also be called Internal Port.
Finally, click save/apply to save the router configuration.

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How To Create 1v1 Matches in CS2?

Showcasing two players in Counter Strike 2

With the router settings modified, the next step in the process involves creating a 1v1 match. The following steps should help players host a 1v1 match in CS2:

Start Counter Strike 2 and navigate to the game tab in the settings menu, and select Enable Developer Console. Once enabled, players can open the developer console by hitting the tilde (`) key.
Return to the main page and hit the play button at the top of the screen.
Select the Workshop Maps option, and proceed to click Visit Workshop (located on the bottom left). This will open the Steam’s inbuilt browser window where players can view and download a workshop map of their choice.
Within the workshop menu, players must find their favorite map, and subscribe to download it.
Once the download is completed, load the map from the Workshop Map menu. Hit the GO button at the bottom right to pull up the game mode option, and select Custom from the available options.
Once the map is loaded, kick all bots from the game by typing in “bot_kick” in the developer console.

The next step involves inviting a friend to join the server, which is covered in the next section.

How To Get A Friend To Join The Server?

Player successfully joining a 1v1 lobby in CS2

If players have carefully followed every step so far, they can proceed to finding their public IP address by visiting a website like ipchicken.com. This website displays the user’s public IP address, which players can share with a friend who they want to 1v1 against.

To join the 1v1 lobby, the player’s friend must open the developer console by hitting the tilde (`) key, and proceed to type “Connect” and followed by the player’s public IP address. For reference, the command should look something like this: connect 71.222.XX.XXX.

If everything was set up correctly on the player’s end, their friend should see a splash screen asking them to download the Workshop Map, following which, they can join the 1v1 lobby. If the friend is greeted with the “Unable to establish a connection with the game server” splash screen, then something likely went wrong with the port forwarding settings, and players will have to double check them.

Finally, it’s important to only share the public IP address with a trustworthy user. In the wrong hands, public IP addresses can also be used for malicious purposes.

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