In Counter-Strike 2, the vote kick system is a powerful tool that allows teams to remove disruptive teammates and maintain a positive team environment. However, the feature must be used responsibly, as misuse can lead to consequences. In this guide, we’ll explain everything you need to know about how to vote kick in CS2, as well as when to do it.
What is Vote Kicking in CS2?
The “vote kick” feature in Counter-Strike 2 allows players to initiate a vote to kick a specific teammate out of the game. If the majority of players on the team agree to the vote, that player in question will be removed from the game, and will not be able to reconnect to the match.
Vote kicking can be useful to get rid of teammates who are being disruptive or violating the integrity of the game, as these players tend to create a frustrating experience for the rest of the team.
How to Vote Kick in CS2
Any player on a team has the ability to initiate a vote kick in Counter-Strike 2. If you want to try it out, here is a step-by-step guide:
- Press the “Esc” key on your keyboard to open the game menu.
- Click on the “Call Vote” button.
- Then, select “Kick Player”.
- Choose the name of the player you would like to kick from the team.
- The vote will initiate on the side of your screen, and teammates will have the option to vote.
When a vote kick is initiated, teammates can press the “F1” key to vote “Yes,” while the “F2” key is used to vote “No.”
However, it is worth noting that, for a player to be successfully kicked from the team, a total of four players must agree to the vote. The person initiating the vote will automatically be registered as a “Yes” vote, and the person in question will automatically be registered as a “No” vote. This means the all three remaining teammates must vote for the kick in order for it to go through.
When Should You Vote Kick a Player?
Knowing when to kick a player is just as important as knowing how to do it. If you’re thinking of kicking a player, there has to be a good reason for it, as playing 4 versus 5 will put your team at a massive disadvantage. Here are a few situations where vote kicking might be justified:
Toxic Behavior and Harassment
If a player is consistently being toxic, using offensive language, or harassing teammates, these actions create a hostile environment within the team, and Counter-Strike doesn’t become fun anymore.
If players are being toxic, vote kicking them out of the team can help protect the team’s environment and integrity of the game – but most importantly, it will teach them a lesson.
Griefing or Intentional Throwing
If a player is deliberately sabotaging the team’s performance, such as intentionally feeding the enemy team, body-blocking teammates, or dealing team damage for no reason, a vote kick could be a wise choice.
It’s often better to play with a man-disadvantage than to have somebody grief the team and intentionally throw the game.
AFK (Inactivity)
If a player is away from the keyboard for an extended period, it can get pretty frustrating when the team is trying to win the game. It gets even more annoying when the player is still at spawn when all team members are dead, leading to wasted time. It gets worse if the enemies kill the player with a knife, injecting them with lots of money.
In this situation, initiating a vote kick can help your team regain balance and avoid tilting.
Cheating or Hacking
If your teammate is suspected to be cheating or using hacks, the ethical way to deal with the situation is to vote kick them. Though you might be risking a free win, it’s essential for maintaining a fair and competitive environment.
The community should work together to tackle the cheating problem, and kicking a player on your team that is cheating is one way to contribute to the bigger picture.
Limitations to Vote Kicking
Though anyone has the right to initiate a vote kick, there is one scenario where a vote kick cannot be issued. A pre-made stack of four players cannot vote to kick the lone solo-queuer on the team.
This is to prevent four-man stacks from bullying the solo player by pooling in votes for a guaranteed kick. Unfortunately, if the solo queuer ends up griefing the team, there is nothing you can do about it.
Competitive Cooldowns from the Vote Kick System
Remember to be careful when interacting with the vote kick system, whether you’re the one doing the kicking, or the one getting kicked.
If you have been kicked from games three times in the span of a week, you will receive a competitive cooldown. This is because the system will detect you for being disruptive or toxic. During this cooldown period, you will not be able to queue for ranked matches.
If you have excessively kicked too many players, Valve will also issue a competitive cooldown. The system assumes you may have used the vote kick feature, potentially targeting players unfairly. So, only kick players if you have a valid reason to.
Overall, these competitive cooldowns are only handed to players because Valve wants to ensure that the system is being used appropriately as a tool for resolving genuine disruptive behavior rather than a mechanism for harassment.