Counter-Strike’s Iconic xQc Fail Map Set to Return Next Week in CS2

Valve is hinting at the potential return of the beloved Cache map to the Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) active duty map pool. This speculation follows a recent post on the game’s official X account, featuring a montage of memorable Cache moments accompanied by the intriguing question, “What are you doing next week?”

Originally removed from competitive play in March 2019, Cache has not been part of the active duty map selection for over seven years. The map was initially designed as a community creation by Shawn “FMPONE” Snelling and Salvatore “Volcano” Garozzo before making its debut in the active pool in July 2014.

The Teasing of Cache’s Comeback

The excitement around Cache’s return traces back to December 2025. In a recap video, Valve replaced the year “2026” with a nuclear radiation symbol, alluding to the map’s Chernobyl-inspired theme. Further hints arose in January 2026 when the official CS2 account responded to a NAVI post regarding Cache, stating “It’s cooking.”

On April 22, 2026, the CS2 X account updated its profile banner to showcase the distinctive diagonal zebra crossing from Cache’s T-side spawn. Fans swiftly observed that the textures were different from any community-modified versions, implying a complete rebuild by Valve. This approach echoes Valve’s marketing strategy before the reintroduction of the map Train, which returned to the game in late 2024.

What are you doing next week? pic.twitter.com/BPXqQMHCyg

— CS2 (@CounterStrike) April 24, 2026

In May 2025, Valve secured the rights to Cache from FMPONE, who had meticulously rebuilt the map from the ground up for CS2 using Source 2 tools. Furthermore, the third-party platform FACEIT recently incorporated Cache into their Season 8 map rotation after it triumphed in a community vote, garnering over 148, 000 votes just prior to its addition.

Possible Replacements for Cache

Currently, the active map pool comprises Ancient, Anubis, Dust 2, Inferno, Mirage, Nuke, and Overpass. Speculation from the community has pointed towards two primary candidates for replacement.

Mirage is viewed as the most likely candidate for removal, as it has remained unchanged since the early CS:GO days, lacking any structural updates. Meanwhile, Inferno is also under scrutiny, with some players and professionals expressing concerns that its current iteration in CS2 feels overly cramped, amplified by a stagnant utility meta.

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