Counter-Strike 2 is now the worst-rated Valve game ever

10.10.2023 - 11:25 / pcgamesn.com

Based on recent Counter-Strike 2 Steam reviews, the much-anticipated sequel to CSGO has a lower rating than any other Valve game, including Half-Life, Half-Life 2 and its episodes, Portal, Dota 2, and Left 4 Dead. Counter-Strike 2 players cite issues with missing game modes, CS2 cheaters, and the total removal of Counter-Strike Global Offensive. The drop in Counter-Strike 2’s Steam rating arrives alongside a new CS2 update, which aims to address recurring problems with hitboxes and detection.

Between the revamped Counter-Strike 2 maps and the best Counter-Strike 2 crosshairs, Valve’s FPS game sequel seemingly has plenty to offer as it replaces CSGO. The next iteration of the longstanding multiplayer shooter that began all the way back in 2000, Counter-Strike 2 represents one of the biggest PC gaming launches of the year. Nevertheless, it continues to attract criticism from the CS community, and has now picked up a Steam rating unseen among any other Valve games.

Steam reviews are divided into two categories, ‘all reviews’ and ‘recent reviews.’ Encompassing all reviews, the overall Counter-Strike 2 rating is ‘very positive.’ However, these reviews also include those posted for previous versions of Counter-Strike, including CSGO, as CS2 has simply inherited the Counter-Strike Steam page. Based on more than 160,000 recent reviews, the game has a ‘mixed’ rating, lower than any other Valve game.

Half-Life, Half-Life 2, Portal, Portal 2, Dota 2, both Left 4 Dead games, and even the much-criticized Half-Life Source – none of these games have a ‘mixed’ rating either based on all reviews or recent reviews. Likewise, previous versions of Counter-Strike that are still available, including Counter-Strike Source and Counter-Strike 1.6, have higher ratings than CS2, as do Team Fortress 2, Day of Defeat, and Half-Life: Alyx.

Released on Wednesday, September 27, a large number of negative Counter-Strike 2 user reviews were posted on Thursday, September 28, with thousands more following in the subsequent weeks.

One recurring issue involved hit detection, whereby characters’ hitboxes would not correctly register damage, particularly if they were being attacked from an elevated angle. In the latest Counter-Strike 2 patch, Valve says it has “fixed several hitbox alignment bugs.” Counter-Strike 2 players outline a number of other issues, however.

“Got rid of the casual game modes and maps I liked to play,” one CS2 player writes. “Thanks for removing a purchased copy of CSGO from my library,” another says. “Reinstall after a couple years, get matched against a cheater, remember why you uninstalled the first time,” a third writes.

Nevertheless, Counter-Strike 2 remains popular on Steam, hitting a 24-hour peak of