How to improve visibility in CS:GO? r_cleardecals explained

Visibility and clarity of the environment are two matters that are extremely important in CS:GO. These elements can be kept at a high level, if only by using the appropriate graphics settings, but not only. It will also be helpful to use the r_cleardecals command, which in CS:GO is responsible for removing various decals created during the course of the game from the textures surrounding players.

r_cleardecals command - how it works

During the course of the game, various decals appear on the textures surrounding the players (including walls or floors) that were not originally there. These include, for example, holes left by shots fired by individual participants of a CS:GO match, blood stains or graffiti. If the rivalry was really intense at a particular spot on the map, for the other players on the battleground this can mean visibility problems. After all, it's easier to see a CT team member against a bright texture than when there are dozens of dark bullet marks right behind him.

That's when the r_cleardecals command comes in handy in CS:GO, and, as you've probably already guessed, it's responsible for removing such marks. Whether it's blood stains, holes created by shots, or graffiti applied to textures by any player - this particular command will remove these decals, improving visibility for us. It is important to note that r_cleardecals will only work on the player who uses this command. It will not clear the textures in all participants of the match, so a CS:GO player using the command can gain an advantage over his rivals by doing so, as long as they do not use the command as well.

How to use the r_cleardecals command?

The r_cleardecals command in CS:GO can be used in several different ways. The first, the most basic, and at the same time the least practical and convenient, is to type it in the console.

To do this, you first need to do is to enable the opening of the developer console in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. So, you need to launch the game, then go to Options, and then in the Game Settings tab find the Enable Console row (~) and select Yes. The next step will be to open the CS:GO developer console using the tilde (~) and type the r_cleardecals command in it. In this way, we can check once how the r_cleardecals command works and what exactly it removes.

Bind r_cleardecals

However, there are much more convenient ways to use this command. To more easily remove unwanted traces from textures, it is best to use command bind. Bind allows you to assign a given command to a selected key, so that the command is activated every time you press the key. Then you don't have to open the console and type the command.

One of the more popular solutions for r_cleardecals bind is to use shift. In CS:GO, this key is assigned by default to slow, silent movement, but that doesn't mean you can't assign it an additional function. The following bind should be placed in the CS:GO config or autoexec file, so it will work every time you start CS:GO:

bind shift "+speed; r_cleardecals"

r_cleardecals bind on WASD

Another interesting option is to combine the r_cleardecals command with the keys that are used for movement in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, namely WASD. Using this option, each time you press one of the aforementioned keys, the r_cleardecals command will be activated, and traces of bullets, blood or graffiti will disappear from the textures surrounding the player. In order for the command to work this way, the following bind should be placed in the config or autoexec file:

bind w "+forward;r_cleardecals";bind a "+moveleft;r_cleardecals";bind s "+back;r_cleardecals";bind d "+moveright;r_cleardecals"

Bind r_cleardecals under any key

However, the r_cleardecals command can also be binded to any other key that happens not to be assigned to any function in CS:GO. This will give the player full control over how the command works, and when they want to use it. The following bind should be placed in the config or autoexec file, remembering to replace the word key with the key of your choice:

bind key "r_cleardecals"

r_cleardecals can give an edge over competitors

r_cleardecals is one of those commands that in CS:GO can actually give an advantage over opponents. Giving oneself higher visibility and clarity of the environment will allow one to see elements that others may miss. So it's worth testing it out and then putting it in the config to conveniently use every time it is needed.