CS2 radar glossary
Quick definitions for the CS2, ESP, and radar terms you'll see across the rest of the Learn section.
Last updated: 2026-05-08
Short, plain-language definitions for the terms used across this site and across CS2 community tooling more generally. Reverse-alphabetical so you can scroll into the middle and find something interesting.
Active duty
The rotating pool of maps used in official competitive matchmaking and Valve-sanctioned tournaments. See active duty maps.
AWP
The Arctic Warfare Police rifle - CS2's signature high-damage, slow-fire sniper. Round economy often hinges on whether the AWPer is alive at round end.
Bomb carrier
The Terrorist player currently holding the C4. The radar marks this player with a separate icon.
Box ESP
An ESP element drawing a 2D rectangle around each enemy player. See what is ESP.
Callout
A named region on a map ("Long A", "Banana", "Heaven"). CS2 communities use callouts as shorthand for positions over voice comms.
CS2
Counter-Strike 2 - Valve's tactical shooter and successor to CS:GO. See what is Counter-Strike 2.
ESP
Extra Sensory Perception - umbrella term for any system that surfaces game data the player wouldn't normally see. See what is ESP.
HWID
Hardware ID - a fingerprint derived from stable hardware identifiers, used to bind a license to a specific machine. See how HWID licensing works.
Latency
How stale the radar's displayed state is, measured in milliseconds. Sub-second is normal; anything higher usually points to a network problem.
Minimap
The small in-game radar in the top-left of CS2's HUD. Limited compared to a full web radar - only shows teammates and recently-spotted enemies.
Molotov
An incendiary grenade. Burn area is rendered on the radar surface so you can see what's denied.
Publisher
The Favade companion application that runs alongside CS2 and forwards game state. See how Favade works.
Radar (web radar)
A browser-rendered top-down map view of an active match. See what is a CS2 radar.
Skeleton ESP
An ESP element drawing a stick-figure overlay tracing each player's bone chain.
Smoke (volumetric)
CS2's smokes occupy real 3D volume; bullets and HE grenades reshape them. The radar shows actual area, not just throw point.
Stream-share
An anonymous link that lets a friend watch your radar live without a license. See stream-share viewer explained.
Sub-tick
CS2's update model - actions register on the exact moment they happen rather than waiting for the next server tick.
Wallhack
An in-game ESP rendered inside the game's main viewport. Different mechanism from a web radar. See wallhack vs radar.
WebSocket
A persistent two-way connection between a browser (or app) and a server. Favade uses WebSockets to push live state to viewers with minimal latency.