CS:GO player count leaps back to mid-pandemic numbers as 2023 hype grows

CS:GO was released in 2012 and its player count is still climbing. The tactical FPS’ concurrent player count dropped after the pandemic as gamers ventured back into the wilderness, but the game is making its way back to those record numbers.

According to SteamCharts, Jan. 2023 has been a massive month for the Valve title. It hit a peak of 1,199,684 concurrent players within a 24-hour period this month. That is still roughly 100,000 shy of the April 2020 record, but it’s still an impressive feat.

In January, there has been a 14.5 percent increase in the daily average of CS:GO gamers, meaning a roughly 91,000-player increase since the month prior. There’s no clear reason as to why it’s seen such an increase, however, events like the BLAST Premier Spring Groups have just finished, and other huge tournaments like IEM Katowice 2023 and EPL S17 are around the corner. The start of the new esports season is most likely the main cause.

At the beginning of each year, there seems to be a sizable increase in the player base. In Jan. 2022, a similar event occurred; there was an increase of over 10 percent in the average player base. 

The end of 2022 seemed to be one of its best periods yet, with a million peak concurrent players starting in August until now. Hopefully, the FPS can keep up the good work for the rest of the 2023 CS:GO season too.

Soon enough it’ll beat the 1,305,714 player peak set in April 2020.