Is CSGO Dying? – Player Counts, Stats & Will Valorant Kill CSGO?

CSGO is one of the biggest games in esports. It routinely pulls in huge numbers from viewers at events and the game has a vivid fanbase. However, the title is showing its age. CSGO maintains a central place in esports, with lots of fans looking at CSGO betting. Player numbers are going down, but the viewership remains the same and even grows.

While its popularity is high it could be fading compared with the past. Games don’t last forever, and many players are wondering is CSGO dying? The title might be hugely popular, but it isn’t the only game with this kind of gameplay around anymore, CSGO has a lot more competition. Those wondering will CSGO ever die have to look at both its current standing in esports and its player numbers. CSGO have more competition in both of these categories now. Some fans might wonder specifically will Valorant kill CSGO as it attracts some of the best CSGO players.

So can CSGO survive in this more competitive environment?

Is CS GO Dying?

The short answer is NO.

When considering is CSGO dying or will CSGO ever die, you need to look at the same way as any other game. CSGO’s player numbers and how popular the esports community stays is a good metric for if the game is still healthy, or if CSGO is dying:

CSGO might be a game with a big esports community, but it is still primarily played by normal players. While the title is older, how big of a player base it has a healthy place to look at. CS GO’s player base was still climbing fairly recently, even if some wonder is CSGO dying. As recently as January 2020, CSOGO’s average daily player count climbed quite a bit. It increased from 650,000 to 800,000. Over 2020, the game continued to rise hitting 900,000 daily players.

Source: SteamCharts

In 2021, the game has had more than a million active players at the same time. The player numbers are on a steady decline since March 2021, but this looks like the standard player activity cycle. While games like Valorant are giving the game more competition, there is plenty of interest still in CSGO. It would be difficult to say that CSGO is dying in 2021 from this.

Esports and CSGO’s Popularity

The CSGO player base is a great example of how the game is still growing. However, one of the main strengths of this title has always been the popularity of its competitive scene. CSGO has had great staying power as an esports title. If you’re wondering will Valorant kill CSGO, you just need to look at how the esports events have fared recently.

CSGO’s player base being boosted makes make the game look a lot healthier when asking is CSGO dying. However, the games esports events have waned a little recently. The pandemic and cancellation of a lot of LAN events have taken the toll on the title. The ESL 2020 CSGO Major was cancelled last year, which isn’t a nice indication of the game. However, competitive CSGO does have some other concerns beyond the emergence of games like Valorant. The lack of LAN events hurts title a lot more than a lot of competition. There’s also the ongoing problems with CSGO overall as an esports community. This is likely a short-term problem though, rather than an answer to will CSGO ever die. The game could rebound pretty quickly after LANs return.

Will Valorant Kill CSGO?

One major thought for players looking if CSGO is dying is if Valorant is going to kill the game off. While Valorant shares a lot of similarities, it does depart from CSGO in some important places. The title is more like a combination of both CSGO and Overwatch. It has naturally had an effect on both games, pulling some pro players in. However, this hasn’t been on a bigger scale than Valorant pulled attention off of other games. CSGO has remained healthy and popular despite this.

Valorant is going to continue to grow in popularity. However, it does look like there is more than enough space in the world of esports for both games. If you’re wondering if CSGO is dead, then at the moment it looks healthy enough. CSGO’s popularity might be a bit of a lull at the moment, but the game looks set to bounce back once in-person LAN events are once again the norm.