What is CS|Studio Map Guide Tool?

CS|Studio Map Guide Tool is a browser-based editor for CS2 KV3 annotation files — the format used by the game's workshop annotation system to display in-game guide overlays. Load raw annotation files, automatically apply formatting rules, manually edit any node, reorder your lineup list, and export a clean game-ready file.

Everything runs in the browser. No account required, no data is sent anywhere, and your files never leave your computer.

Quick Start

Loading Files

Guide Modes

The mode toggle in the header switches between how many guides you're working with at once.

The Node List

After loading a file, all annotation nodes appear as rows. Each row shows at a glance:

Online Priority Zone

CS2 annotation guides have two node limits:

An orange dashed divider appears between node 29 and node 30. Use reordering to place your most important lineups above the divider.

View Modes & Panel Resize

Filtering and Search

The toolbar above the list lets you filter by node type (All, Grenade, Position, Spot, Text) and search by title or description text in real time.

Auto-Processing

Clicking ⚡ Process runs a five-pass formatter over all nodes.

Editing Nodes

Click any node row to expand its editor. All fields are editable at any time — before or after processing.

Actions

Throw Type Helper

A Append throw… dropdown appears in the Title field area. Selecting a throw type appends it in parentheses to the node's title — e.g. selecting Jump Throw turns B Site Smoke into B Site Smoke (Jump Throw).

Reordering Nodes

Grab the ⠿ handle on the left of any node row and drag it up or down to a new position. All index numbers update automatically.

Copying Coordinates

Every node with a recorded position shows clipboard copy buttons on its row.

How to use in CS2

Exporting Files

Click ↓ Export on any panel to download the processed file. The output includes the full KV3 wrapper so it loads directly into CS2 without any manual editing. The filename gets _processed appended so it won't overwrite your source.

Export Validation

Before saving, The tool runs a validation check and may show a Validation Results panel:

Warnings (missing positions, approaching node limit) allow export. Critical errors (node count at hard limit) block export.

Export Summary

After a successful export a confirmation panel shows the guide name, map, node count, mode, and filename.

Where to put the file

Then load it in-game:

CS2 Annotation Basics

CS2 includes a built-in workshop annotation system that lets you overlay in-game markers, text, and guide steps on any map. These annotations are stored as .txt files in KV3 format and loaded directly by the game engine.

Node types

CS2 annotations use four node types, each with subtypes:

In-Game Recording

All nodes are recorded directly inside CS2 using console commands. Here is the complete workflow from a blank map to a finished raw guide file.

Grenade recording tips

Naming Conventions

Auto-processing reads node names and extracts structured data from them. Follow these conventions when naming nodes in CS2 and you get near-zero manual editing after processing.

Grenade main nodes

Format: Location Name (Throw Type)

Supported throw type keywords (case-insensitive): Jump Throw, Left Click, Right Click, W + Jump, Run + Jump, Running Throw, LMB + RMB + Jump, and more. See Settings → Throw Types for the full list.

Duration / timing

Wrap timing in parentheses with an s suffix: (6.5s). The tool preserves this in the title and can reformat it using the Duration Format setting. Example: B Long Smoke (6.5s) (Jump Throw).

Position nodes

The tool assigns colors by keyword in the name:

Group tags

Prefix any node name with {TAG} to assign it to a named group. All nodes with the same tag are visually grouped in the node list.

Processing strips the {TAG} prefix from titles when "Strip {GROUP} tags on process" is enabled in Settings → Formats.

Text nodes

The tool handles text nodes automatically based on their title:

Map View

Map View overlays all loaded guide nodes on a top-down radar of the map. It is always visible as the right panel alongside the node list. Coordinates for all official CS2 maps are built in — no files required to get started.

Step 1 — Select a map

Pick the map from the Map dropdown in the header. CS|Studio immediately applies the correct pos_x, pos_y, and scale values — your guide nodes appear on screen straight away. No files needed.

Step 2 — Add a radar background (optional)

Nodes render on a dark canvas without a background image. To add the actual radar PNG:

1. Find the radar image in your CS2 install:
   …\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\game\csgo\resource\overviews\de_dust2.png
2. Drag it directly onto the Map View canvas, or use the 📷 Radar button in the header.

The image loads and the nodes snap to their correct positions on the radar automatically.

Custom maps

For workshop maps or any map not in the built-in list, use the ＋ Custom Preset button to enter your own pos_x, pos_y, and scale values and save them as a named preset. Custom presets appear at the bottom of the Map dropdown and can include an embedded radar image.

To find the correct coordinates for a custom map, open the map's overview .txt file (if available) or drop the map's .nav file onto the canvas to auto-calculate approximate bounds from the NavMesh.

Format Codes

Format Codes let you snapshot your current CS|Studio settings into a short shareable string. Anyone can paste the code into CS|Studio and instantly get the same colors, typography, throw type labels, tag prefixes, icons, and formatting preferences you used.

Generating a code

1. Click 🔑 Code in the header to open the Format Code panel.
2. Tick the categories you want to include (Colors, Typography, Throw Types, Tag Prefixes, Icons, Formats). Unticked categories are left out of the code — recipients keep their own defaults for those.
3. Click Generate. The code appears in the output box starting with MGT_.
4. Copy and share it (paste into a Discord message, a text file, a guide description, etc.).

Applying a code

1. Open the Format Code panel and paste the code into the input field.
2. Click Apply. Settings are merged on top of your current config — only the categories present in the code are overwritten.

Node Groups

Groups let you organise related nodes under a named header in the node list. A group is defined by a shared {TAG} prefix on node titles — no manual setup required beyond naming nodes consistently in CS2.

Creating groups

Prefix any node title with a short tag in curly braces: {LCS}, {B_SMOKE}, {SITE_A}. All nodes sharing the same tag are automatically grouped together.

Tags are case-insensitive — {lcs} and {LCS} merge into the same group.

Group header actions

Strip group tags on export

Enable Strip {GROUP} tags on process in Settings → Formats to have the {TAG} prefix removed from all titles when you run Processing. The group is still tracked internally during the session; the tag just won't appear in the exported KV3 file.

Selection & Copy

Selection mode lets you pick specific nodes from either panel and act on them as a batch — copy to the other guide, copy to a new file, or delete.

Entering selection mode

Click the Select button above either the CT or T panel. The panel switches to selection mode: each node card shows a checkbox on the left.

Selecting nodes

Copy actions

Keyboard Shortcuts

Auto-Save & Recovery

CS|Studio automatically saves your session to browser local storage every 10 seconds whenever nodes are loaded. The colored dot in the header indicates save state: steady means saved, pulsing means a save is pending.

Node Types

Color Scheme

Settings

Open via ⚙ Settings in the header. All settings persist in your browser's local storage.

Colors tab

Change the color assigned to each node type. Changes take effect on the next processing run.

Formats tab

Two sub-sections:

• Sizes & Visibility — font sizes and fade distances written to exported KV3 files. FadeOutDist = -1 keeps a node visible at any distance.
• Text Formatting — controls how the tool formats text during processing: throw type template, jump-throw label, aim target prefix, duration format, title/description capitalisation, and whether to strip {GROUP} tags on export.

Throw Types tab

Maps raw throw type text from node titles to the formatted label written to the Description field. Left column is what the tool looks for (case-insensitive), right column is what gets written. Add entries for any custom abbreviations used in your recordings.

Tag Prefixes tab

Legacy bracket-style tags like (LSW) or [CF] are stripped from titles during processing. Add any custom tags you use here. Note: curly-brace group tags ({TAG}) are handled separately by the Groups system.

Icons tab

Add custom icons via image URL to replace the default icon for each node type. Paste an image URL into the input field and click Load to apply it (32×32px recommended). Accepted formats: PNG, JPG, SVG, WebP. Icons are stored in local storage and included in format code exports. Click the Reset button to revert any slot to its default SVG icon.

Dev Console

CS|Studio has a built-in developer console for inspecting internal state and running debug commands. Toggle it with the backtick key ` (same key as CS2's console).

Key commands

CS2 Console Commands

Setup

Creating annotations

Saving & loading

Teleporting (use with copy buttons)

Changelog

Planned Features