Counter-Strike 2 is almost upon us, and as Global Offensive comes to a close, we’re taking another look at the history books for another top five.
We’ve already covered the best nations, as well as the best riflers, so now it’s the turn of those who have starred on the big green, the AWPers.
Some love them, some hate them, but regardless of your views on Counter-Strike’s most iconic weapon, there’s no debating that these players have starred with the gun like no others.
Before we get into our list properly, let’s take a look at a couple of honorable mentions. Exceptional players, their lack of longevity, or in one case, Major achievements, is what stops them from being higher up.
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HM: Jesper ‘JW’ Wecksell
One of the earliest stars not just of the AWP, but of CS:GO altogether, JW was part of the fnatic team that won the first Major championship, Dreamhack Winter 2013. A former three-time top-ten player in the world, he was one of the defining characters of the AWP in the game’s formative years.
With an unpredictable playstyle, JW is one of the most exciting AWPers in history, but unfortunately, he suffered a pretty heavy drop in form after 2015. Despite his impressive achievements in the game, realistically, he did end up out-staying his welcome in tier one and wasn’t a fantastic player by the time he finally left. For that reason, he misses out on our list.
Image Credits: Bart Oerbekke/ESLHM: Ladislav ‘GuardiaN’ Kovacs
Another player who was a huge star in the early years of Global Offensive, considering the number of times he has featured in HLTV’s top twenty, many might be surprised to not see him featured in our list.
GuardiaN had a great career, starring for NAVI for four years before branching out of the region and moving to FaZe’s superteam. Unfortunately for the Slovakian, he struggled after 2018, and his second stint on NAVI was pitiful. That, combined with his failure to win a Major trophy, eliminates him from contention in our top five.
Image Credits: Adela Sznajder/Dreamhack#5: Kenny ‘kennyS’ Schrub
Arguably the most iconic player in CS:GO history, kennyS is the player who truly defined the AWP in CS:GO. He was so good with the weapon that Valve had to nerf it; his skills on the big green made him the most fearsome player in the world in the early years of Global Offensive.
A Major winner at Dreamhack Open Cluj-Napoca 2015, kennyS was the biggest star of the French team and an integral part of the eventual French superteam that formed on G2. Although that team didn’t achieve what it promised, kennyS was the last remaining member of the original superteam when G2 went international, and his longevity is commendable.
His longevity places him highly, although he is prevented from being any higher due to a disappointing final few years of his career. He was a shadow of his former self by the time he was removed from the team, and his time with Falcons only served to further a disappointing end to an otherwise legendary career.
Image Credits: Adela Sznajder/Dreamhack#4: Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut
This one is sure to be controversial. The first greatest of all-time candidate to feature on this list, it will come as a surprise to many that he doesn’t even make our top three.
It’s very understandable if people view it to be unfair, after all, ZywOo did just win the MVP as he and Vitality romped to the title at the BLAST.tv Paris Major. The best player of 2023 and previously ranked as the best player in the world by HLTV on two occasions, despite making his tier-one debut in 2018, very few players could ever dream of having the career he has had.
So skilled that it seems like Counter-Strike is coded into his brain, ZywOo’s ceiling is potentially higher than any other on this list, but his career does come with caveats and drawbacks. Before recently, it was very reasonable to say that ZywOo struggled on the biggest stages, and not just that, but many of the highs in his career thus far came in the online era.
If CS:GO ran for a couple of years longer, the Frenchman would undoubtedly place higher, but seeing as that isn’t the case, he’ll have to make do with fourth.
Image Credits: Stefan Petrescu/PGL#3: Gabriel ‘FalleN’ Toledo
The godfather of Brazilian CS, FalleN is one of the most legendary figures in Counter-Strike history. A meta-defining figure, FalleN made the concept of AWP IGLing viable in a way no one ever had, and his achievements while doing so will live in the minds of CS fans for years to come.
His peak was exceptionally high, and even though he was AWPing, placing second on the HLTV top twenty as an IGL is an unbelievable feat. A skilled AWPer, an incredible supportive player, and one of the best in-game leaders to ever lead a team, his peak may have not lasted as long as others on his list, but few boast the achievements across the peak that he does.
A two-time Major winner, Cologne winner and MVP, FalleN’s achievements both individually and as a leader more than justify his high placing on this list, but what might be the most impressive thing is how he has inspired a nation throughout his career.
Seemingly about to get another chance to play at the highest level with FURIA, FalleN’s book may not yet be fully written, and as he is about to embark on a new chapter, we could well see FalleN return to his peak soon.
Image Credits: Joao Ferreira/PGL#2: Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev
If you didn’t find ZywOo’s placing controversial, there’s no way you won’t find s1mple’s placing controversial. Potentially blasphemous, considering he is widely regarded as the greatest player in Counter-Strike history; we just can’t place him as the best AWPer of all time.
We’ll explain why shortly, but it would be wrong of us to not first applaud s1mple for his achievements. As an individual, he is a seven-time top twenty player, and in three of those years, he has ranked as number one. As a member of NAVI, he won a Major without dropping a map, as well as an Intel Grand Slam. Let’s also not forget what is potentially his most impressive achievement either, carrying Liquid to a Major final and semi-final way back in 2016.
So why isn’t The Undertaker number one? Let’s talk first about some of the finals he’s featured in. For as unstoppable as he has looked in tournament runs, there have been multiple occasions where he has gone missing in finals, who could forget how utterly powerless he looked against Astralis in the FACEIT Major final?
Not just that, but there are also caveats to his team’s achievements too. NAVI’s Intel Grand Slam run was largely online, and for that reason, we think they shouldn’t even be regarded as Intel Grand Slam winners at all. There’s also the fact he’s only won one Major, and given how weak a lot of the field was in the wake of the online era, winning without dropping a map isn’t as impressive as it seems at face value.
The greatest player of all time, just as he has in many finals, s1mple will have to settle for second this time around.
#1: Nicolai ‘device’ Reedtz
The star of the greatest team of all time, who other than device could we rank as the greatest AWPer of all time? We know already that you’re trying to argue it, so allow us to point you toward this iconic video from Elmapuddy.
Another player with an incredibly high peak, the only reason device hasn’t been ranked as the best in the world by HLTV is due to his peak being at the same time as s1mple’s. device isn’t just one of the most mechanically gifted AWPers of all time; he’s undoubtedly the smartest AWPer of all time. His best plays are predicated by him simply knowing more than everyone else on the server, and hearing him talking about that is a joy.
It isn’t just his impressive playstyle that sets him apart from every other player on this list, his team achievements also place him in a league of his own. A four-time Major winner, no other player on this list has won as many as he has. Not just that, but he was also part of the Astralis team that won the inaugural season of the Intel Grand Slam and became the greatest team of all time.
His stock may be lower now due to his time off while contracted to NIP, but his return to competitive play with Astralis has already shown that he is still one of the best AWPers in the world. Without a doubt the best in CS:GO history; it seems he’ll also be in contention for that title in Counter-Strike 2 too.
Image Credits: Stephanie Lieske/ESL