There is an optional beta branch for CS:GO with a new anti-cheat measure.
This new build will significantly restrict which programs and files you can use while
playing the game. The idea here is, rather than waiting on VAC to detect a known cheat,
the game can simply prevent users from starting a game in the first place while certain programs
are running. It should allow for better protection against
known cheat programs and stuff like that. How it works and what it blocks specifically
should probably remain a mystery, to make developing cheats to bypass it more difficult.
But what I can say is: it’s super strict. Don’t expect to be unaffected by it just
because you don’t cheat. I booted it up and it informed me that 2 of my programs are
on the naughty list: Antimalware_provider I assume is part of Kaspersky, and MessageBus.dll,
which is part of my aimbot. Either that or it’s part of Nvidia’s software. Who knows.
This notification menu gave me 2 choices: either for the game to block these programs,
or for me to restart in untrusted, which would allow these programs to run but would drop
me to low trust factor, putting me against more blatant cheaters and griefers.
It seems like this will eventually be added to the Game Settings menu as the ‘Secure
Launch’ option, adding to things like Prime and Trust Factor as a way of ensuring more
stringent rules to separate the good players from the bad.
As for WHY this was added, I’m not part of Valve so I don’t know the exact reason.
Maybe they were frustrated by the limitations of the VAC system and wanted a simple way
of blocking problem cheating applications before they could be used to ruin games. I
want to stress that VAC is NOT a bad system. Like most traditional anti-cheat measures,
it’s only as good as its database of known and detectable cheats. If Valve adds a popular
cheat to it then it’s suddenly good for a while. If they don’t then it’s bad.
It’s a game of cat and mouse, so how good VAC is likely changes on a daily basis.
The goal of VAC was never to eradicate all cheating from the game, but to serve as an
almost perfect indicator that a player with a VAC ban was, indeed, cheating. This makes
the system different from other, more predictive anti-cheat systems which may give you a ban
simply because you were running a program that behaved a bit like a cheat. If you get
banned for cheating in PUBG then it might just be because the game took a disliking
to that shut down timer program you left running in the background.
But VAC as a system ONLY works if it ONLY bans people who were cheating. If there are
false positives then it would fail at its intended purpose. Valve takes this seriously
and will investigate those who have been incorrectly VAC banned, because the system only works
if people have confidence in it. Let me reiterate: the idea of VAC isn’t to ban 100% of cheaters,
but to ensure that a VAC ban means there was a near 100% chance that they were cheating.
And I suspect plays a key role in the trust factor system by secretly tracking players
who were VAC banned, then who move to a new account to be able to play the game again.
And MAYBE Valorant played a part in this as well. Valorant has an extremely intrusive
anti-cheat system, accessing the very core of your PC. An anti-cheat system is still
only as good as the code it’s based on. But while such an invasive system has come
under criticism by some, it has given others peace of mind. For Valorant’s anti-cheat
to have such control over a PC must surely mean it’s better than CS:GO’s can be!
A common belief I see is that some players don’t mind a more intrusive anti-cheat if
it means they don’t have to play with cheaters. So if a system like this can give them peace
of mind, why not include it. Now this new system isn’t the same as Valorant’s.
It’s nowhere near as intrusive or anything like that. But it’s still a measure that
could punish the experience for non-cheaters simply because they happen to share a game
with cheaters. What if I do want to up the contrast with
Nvidia’s game filter option? It’s not a case of having something to hide, but rather:
why should my experience be compromised because other people cheat in a game that I play?
And how am I going to feel if, after sacrificing my own experience, I still encounter a cheater
in a match? It will be interesting to see how Valve chooses
to go forward with this new setting. I see so many comments on my videos from people
saying that CS:GO’s anti-cheat is lacking, but bear in mind we now have VAC, trust factor,
prime, overwatch, AI scanning every game, and now THIS as well to all serve as barriers
or as ways of distancing us from suspected cheaters. Aside from going all-out with invasive
anti-cheat like Valorant’s (which is still only as good as the code it’s based on),
I can’t think of what else Valve can do at this point. Other than to invest even more
time into keeping VAC updated and the overwatch system safe from botting, abuse and exploits.
Which, let’s face it, is an on-going process already.
So right now, it’s an optional beta that you can opt into by right-clicking on CSGO
in steam, properties, Betas and by choosing rc1. A lot of people have been reporting stutters
and poor performance with it. But this is what betas are for, so if you are having problems
with it then just revert to the normal CS:GO version again.
I’ll post a few videos on-screen here if you’d like to learn more about CS:GO’s
current anti-cheat systems, some of which I believe to be unique to the game.