Competitive shooter players have for years peeked around corners to try to get a jump on their opponents. But one method players are currently using in Valve’s Counter-Strike 2 is just criminal.
The Counter-Strike 2 community has dubbed this one the ‘Michael Jackson peek’, and it’s easy to see why. It triggers a bizarre animation glitch that makes the player avatar look like it’s doing the gravity-defying lean Michael Jackson made famous in the music video for Smooth Criminal.
Michael Jackson peek lmfao #CS2
— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) October 10, 2023
via u/thekappa27 pic.twitter.com/RRYGq4BXJl
What’s going on here, and how is the ‘Michael Jackson peek’ done? It involves setting up keybinds so when you press your directional keys, you're activating movement in that direction and also simultaneously activating the controller binds to move in the opposite direction, triggering an animation bug of some kind.
After clips of the Michael Jackson peek were shared on subreddits and across social media, one player created a Michael Jackson config so players can do the peek with any keyboard.
A CS2 player saw the viral Michael Jackson pose and made a config so anyone can do it lmao pic.twitter.com/PrF1FHixf4
— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) October 11, 2023
As you'd expect, the memes have begun.
These #CS2 Michael Jackson peek videos are too funny 🤣#counterstrike #counterstrike2pic.twitter.com/e4RoRViAHt
— Gameverse (@vgameverse) October 11, 2023
Clearly, the Michael Jackson peek is not intended gameplay, and developer Valve is likely to patch this one out sooner rather than later. Until then, beware of smooth criminals in Counter-Strike 2.
Counter-Strike 2 has had a somewhat rough launch. This week Valve ended support for Counter-Strike 2 on Macs as well as older hardware, citing low player numbers. CS2’s recent user review rating on Steam is “mixed”. For all reviews, it’s “very positive”, but Valve carried over CS:GO reviews when it replaced the original with the sequel. Indeed, some have taken issue with Valve’s decision to essentially delist CS:GO, a move that has drawn comparisons to Blizzard’s controversial move to replace the original Overwatch with Overwatch 2. CS2 players have also expressed their disappointment over a lack of features that were available in CS:GO.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.