In the world of online gaming, frequent patches are a good thing for users. Updates give the developers a chance to address balance issues, fix bugs, or even add new features from time to time. When a game maintains a dedicated fan base and has a serious eSports following, like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, it's no surprise that significant patches are still being rolled out years after the game's initial launch.

Although many maintenance patches are mostly housekeeping efforts this far into a game's lifecycle, CS:GO is still receiving some serious updates. The March 31 patch is no exception and actually makes some map changes and updates that may significantly change how competitive players approach some of the game's levels.

The full patch notes detail the nitty gritty, but here are some of the highlights that will have the most impact on gameplay:

Dust2

Opened up skybox around Long A double doors, Catwalk and Short

Improved visibility around blue car in Long A

Fixed render distance on a crate in CT spawn

Mirage

Opened up skybox around back of apartments

Simplified sides of CT sniper window in mid

Raised cover slightly in upper mid

Fixed visibility through a crate in Bombsite A

Overpass

Opened up and simplified Bombsite A

Added back stairs to pit near Bombsite A

Opened up semi-open door in bathrooms, fountain side

Cobblestone

Smoothed out movement in Bombsite B

Removed corner on left side of T tunnel into Bombsite B

Haystack near Long A now requires a jump to get on top

Train

Various optimizations

Removed collision at top of ladders

Pushed Bombsite A further back towards CT side

Added a third train car to A site to reduce amount of long sightlines

Added a peek-position inside T main

Opened up area on the left side of T main exit

Moved dumpsters in Ivy

Raised crane in Bombsite A

Blocked extremely tight angle from lower CT ramp towards T ramp in Bombsite B

Prioritized CT spawn positions

Cache

Fixed an exploit boost at A

Added a decal indicating the boundaries of the A bombsite’s plantzone

Made white tarps on crates more spammable (Thanks Mod645!)

Fixed shadows casting into A main shed from boost spot

Improved readability from middle to A site container

Shorttrain

Added back to map rotation

If you've put in any number of hours playing CS:GO, you're probably aware that each map has a few tried and true strategies to help each side fight for the win. Some of these changes, which may seem minor to outsiders, will shut down long-standing strategies and force players to formulate new ones (or revert to old ones from the game's old days).

Reddit user V10L3NT shared some updated screenshots that should help put some of the changes into context:

[gallery columns="2" ids="255174,255173,255172,255171,255170,255169,255165,255166,255167,255168"]

The changes should open up some really exciting opportunities for competitive players, especially the ones who happen to be grenade happy. As the screenshots show, players now have a clear shot to throw grenades from cat to long on the Dust 2 map. Long ago that used to be an option and nostalgic players will likely be pumped to resurrect the old strategy.

As always with substantial changes to a map, this patch may lead to the discovery of a few bugs or glitches, but the CS:GO community is usually pretty diligent about pointing these things out immediately, so the developers can get them resolved as soon as possible.

What do you think of the changes to the CS:GO maps? Do you think they will have an impact on the competitive scene? Let us know in the comments.

The new patch for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is currently available.

Source: Counter-Strike Blog and Reddit