Top 10: Greatest CS:GO Players of all time

As the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) era comes to an end and we get ready to embrace Counter-Strike 2 (CS2), I’ve put together in this article a list of ten of my all-time greatest Global Offensive players.

The players on this list have made it not only because of their skills and stats but also the impact they have had on the game and the legacy they have left or will leave behind.

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Christopher Alesund (GeT_RiGhT)

Not only is GeT_RiGhT one of the greatest CS:GO players of all time, the Swede is also one of the all-time CS legends. Member of the dominant Ninjas in Pyjamas (NiP) roster from 2012 to 2014, he has etched his name in CS:GO history with his iconic plays. With 10 MVP medals from 2012 to 2014, he also holds the record for the most consecutive wins — an unbroken streak of 87 games, which he achieved with NiP. Known for his superior game sense, GeT_RiGhT was one of the finest “Lurkers” of the game.

Helping NiP reach five Major finals, the Swede was the No. 1 player in the world according to HLTV’s rankings in 2013 and 2014. He announced his retirement in January 2021, bringing down the curtains on an illustrious 14-year career. GeT_RiGhT currently is a content creator and regularly streams on Twitch.

Oleksandr Kostyliev (s1mple)

Quite simply the best, s1mple is a prodigy of the game and arguably one of the greatest players in CS:GO history as well as one of esports’ finest athletes. His sheer skill and talent put him in a league of his own. After what felt like an eternal wait, s1mple finally lifted that elusive Major trophy with Natus Vincere (Navi) in 2021. s1mple will leave CS:GO with only one Major trophy, as he and Navi failed to make it to the playoffs for the final CS:GO Major in Paris.

Probably the greatest AWPers of all-time, s1mple has a unique game sense that has helped him get a better read of the match situation and game awareness.

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Nicolai Reedtz (dev1ce)

Statistically speaking, dev1ce is the greatest player of all time with the amount of silverware he has. With four Major titles and 14 MVP awards, dev1ce certainly knows how to rise to the occasion.

A prolific AWPer, dev1ce was a part of one of CS:GO’s most famed rosters at Astralis before he shifted to NiP. Although he might not be one of the most technically gifted players, what makes dev1ce one of the greats is his ability to make those around him perform at their highest level, which is evident by the number of Majors he has.

In late 2022, dev1ce returned to Astralis after an unsuccessful stint with NiP. He is currently the Danish team’s star AWPer once again.

As CS:GO comes to an end, dev1ce will leave this version of the game as the most decorated player, with four Major trophies and 19 MVP trophies.

Olof Kajbjer (olofmeister)

Probably one of the most versatile players to have ever played CS:GO. As one of the pioneers, olofmeister was part of the first-ever squad to win back-to-back Majors with fnatic.

As one of the most creative and lethal players in the game, olofmeister will go down in CS:GO lore as one of the original legends. His name will be synonymous with the (in)famous Olofboost that changed CS:GO forever and is one of the most crucial pieces in CS:GO history. After a long and successful career with fnatic, olofmeister moved to FaZe in 2017 and is currently inactive on the bench.

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Nikola Kova? (NiKo)

A strategic genius, NiKo has risen through the ranks to become one of the modern-day greats in CS:GO.

Known for his bullseye aim and game sense, NiKo is one of the finest riflers going around. After starting his career with iNation, the young Bosnian gained popularity with his performances for Mousesports and then was signed up by FaZe Clan.

NiKo moved to G2 Esports in 2021 as he continues to search for that elusive Major trophy, and even though he fell short at the PGL Antwerp Major in 2021, he continues to put up incredible numbers match after match and has won multiple other trophies with G2, like IEM Katowice 2023 and BLAST World Finals 2022.

Unfortunately for NiKo, he will leave CS:GO without a Major trophy after falling short in the final CS:GO Major.

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Richard Papillon (shox)

Already one of the greatest Counter-Strike: Source players, shox made the switch to Global Offensive in 2012. The Frenchman took the world by storm with his initial performances. After winning Dreamhack Winter 2014 with LDLC, shox then signed up with EnvyUs. The French side’s internal issues saw shox join Titan before moving to G2.

What has been missing in the Frenchman’s career is a stable team, having had to continuously shift, but rejoining a French set-up at Vitality, and along with compatriots apEx and ZywOo, seemed to be initially promising for shox but faded away towards the end of his stint with them.He had short stints with Liquid and Apeks following his Vitality career, neither of which was successful for the Frenchman.

shox was last active with his self-funded project Nakama Esports, which he recently left to prepare for CS2.

Patrik Lindberg (f0rest)

More than 15 years of performing at the highest level, what makes f0rest one of the all-time greats is not only his skill but the longevity in the sport to compete at the highest level with the best.

Starting off with Counter Strike back in 2005 with Begrip Gaming, the Swede got his big break when he signed up for Fnatic. After a dominant spell with Fnatic, f0rest entered CS:GO with Ninjas in Pyjamas and was part of one of the most dominant CS:GO rosters in the history of the game and was a crucial member of the 87-map winning streak. After helping NiP win ESL One Cologne in 2014, f0rest remained an integral part of their set up till 2020, when he left the squad for Dignitas. f0rest currently is without an organisation but continues to stream.

f0rest will go down in Counter Strike history as one of the legends to have played the game and, even well into his 30s, he showcases the reason why he was so highly regarded.

Marcelo David (coldzera)

A two-time number one player in the world, coldzera started off his career in 2014 with Dexterity. The Brazilian, though, gained international recognition with his move to Luminosity

Gaming in 2015, as one of the most explosive players in the history of the game, coldzera went on to win back-to-back Majors. He was also the MVP of both tournaments at ESL One Cologne 2016 and MLG Columbus 2016.

What makes coldzera stand out is his consistency and the fact that he can perform at the highest level without a dip. His consistency also helps him end up as the top fragger of no matter which squad he is with. He also brought immediate success to FaZe Clan during a short-lived stint with the North American organisation as they won the BLAST Pro Series in Copenhagen in 2019. The Brazilian currently plays for 00Nation.

Kenny Schrub (kennyS)

A name synonymous with AWPing. There aren’t too many people in the gaming world who haven’t heard of kennyS. Regarded as the greatest AWPer of all time, kennyS’s quick-scopes and flick shots are some of the game’s best.

Another French prodigy like shox who started with CS Source, kennyS has seen a meteoric rise since joining CS:GO. In a game where sniping is known to be one of the greatest challenges, kennyS is known to hit his opponents from incredible angles that are simply not accessible to others.

After winning the Cluj-Napoca Major in 2015 with Team EnvyUs, kennyS had a stint with G2. He is currently with Team Falcons, for whom he serves as a digital content creator.

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Ladislav Kovács (GuardiaN)

Another legendary AWPer, GuardiaN has the second most-recorded AWP kills, after kennyS, with 63% of his total professional kills being AWP kills.

One of the game’s most consistent players, GuardiaN started his career with ex-Beasts and then shifted to myDGB. He gained fame by shifting to Virtus.Pro and then shifting to Natus Vincere shortly after. He was with Team Singularity and Team Sampi between 2021 and 2022 and is currently inactive on the Team Sampi roster.

At NaVi, GuardiaN went on to become one of the game’s greats, and even though he is one of the greats who will go down in history without a Major trophy, his resume boasts of an impressive eight MVP awards which speaks about his individual skill and talent.

His greatest moment arguably came at the ELEAGUE Major Grand Final in 2018, where he raked up an impressive 75 kills in the Grand Final.