The meaning behind the popular CS:GO phrase “Que Ota?”

Have you ever seen Twitch chat spam “Que Ota” or heard a pro player say it on stream? Well if you’re confused about what it means, it’s okay. It’s a meme that isn’t even in English.

Popularized by Brazilian CS:GO pro Lucas “LUCAS1” Teles, Que Ota is technically a shortened version of the Portuguese phrase, “Quer outra?” which in English means “Want another?” Within the context of Counter-Strike, it really implies, “Want another bullet?”

Usually when a player says it, they’ve just gotten a Juan Deag kill, or a headshot kill in one bullet with a Desert Eagle. The “Want another bullet?” implication is kind of like the player asking their fans, “Do you want to see more?”

The most popular clip that gave the phrase notoriety is LUCAS1 getting several Juan Deags on the old version of Dust II during a Rank S pick-up game (PUG) in 2016. “There’s a guy aiming here,” LUCAS1 said in Portuguese while aiming at Long Door. “If you doubt it, I’ll show you what will happen. So take it because it’s Saint Cosmas and Damian.”

Saint Cosmas and Damian refers to two Christian Saints—who are, coincidentally, twins like LUCAS1 and his brother Henrique “HEN1” Teles—termed in the Catholic denomination as “Protectors of Children,” which initially seems unrelated to CS:GO. On September 27 each year, the twin Saints are celebrated in Brazil by giving children candy, or “bala.” At the same time, the Portuguese translation of bullet is also “bala.” So when LUCAS1 mentions Saint Cosmas and Damian, it’s word play because he’s giving out bullets like candy.

He got the kill at Long Door and his teammate toward Middle called “Another one [there].” This prompted LUCAS1 to say, “Are you kidding me? Want another? If you want another, I’ll give you another. Then take it.” The next Deagle shot from his clip was another Juan Deag. LUCAS then laughed and yelled “Que Ota!” again.

The Que Ota meme has earned a place on LUCAS1’s personal sticker in Valve Majors. It’s showcased on the Immortals PGL Krakow sticker and on the 100 Thieves ELEAGUE Boston sticker. The former has much more monetary value because 100 Thieves is no longer competing in CS:GO.

The Que Ota meme has also become a huge part of the Brazilian identity in CS:GO, and other players like to joke around with it as well. MIBR star players Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo and Marcelo “coldzera” David said it before in personal streams when switching between English and Portuguese and using only the Deagle. Even Natus Vincere’s Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev from Ukraine played around with the phrase later on in a broadcast on his channel as well.

So the next time you hear or see the phrase, “Que Ota,” get ready to see another bullet fly.

Bhernardo Viana contributed to this story.