By Sagar V. Mankar 
Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) reached a new milestone on February 16, 2025, drawing 1,744,015 concurrent players, marking its highest player count since its release.
The game has maintained remarkable consistency in recent months, with SteamDB data showing average player counts exceeding 900,000 since December 2024.
However, these numbers, while impressive, still haven’t quite reached the heights set by its predecessor, CS:GO. The franchise’s all-time record stands at 1,818,773 concurrent players, achieved in May 2023 during an exciting period that coincided with the announcement of CS2’s limited test and the final CS:GO Major tournament in Paris.
Industry analysts note that CS2’s player count experienced a slight dip in January 2025, likely due to a pause in professional competitions following the Perfect World Shanghai Major. However, the numbers quickly rebounded as major tournaments resumed, including high-profile events like BLAST and IEM Katowice in early February.
The game’s dominance on Steam remains unchallenged, consistently holding the top position in player counts as well as sales. Steam Charts data reveals how CS2 has grown from its initial release in September 2023, when it averaged around 700,000 players, to its current impressive numbers.
Despite its massive success, the Counter-Strike community has pointed out areas for improvement. Players have expressed concerns about ongoing issues with cheating, performance optimization, and a desire for additional content such as operations and new game modes.
Nevertheless, these challenges haven’t significantly impacted the game’s popularity, as it maintains its position as one of the world’s most-played PC games, second only to League of Legends in terms of global player base.
Looking ahead, the current BLAST Pro Series tournament provides an excellent opportunity for CS2 to potentially break the all-time record. With just 74,758 more concurrent players needed to set a new high, the milestone appears within reach. The game’s last 30-day average of 947k peak players suggests that February 2025 could be a historic month for the franchise.