Here is a list of the top 10 CS plays of 2023
Counter-strike had one of the most eventful years in its history. 2023 was a blast considering everything that went down in one of the most iconic esports scenes in the world. Kicking off the year with big events like ESL Pro League Season 17 and IEM Rio 2023, to the Paris Major, the last major for CS:GO with the release of CS2, bidding farewell to the game that built a legacy for over a decade. Alongside that came a new era for Counter-strike esports.
So we have decided to take a step back and reflect on all the amazing moments in Counter-strike this year with a list for the Top 10 CS Plays of 2023.
Top 10 CS Plays of 2023
This year we have seen plays that have shocked pros and viewers alike. With this list we look back at how far the game has come and the passion that every CS fan shares with this franchise.
10. SunPayus AWP 4k
This happened back in July of 2023, during IEM Cologne 2023. After winning the first map of Mirage against Vitality, Ence were looking to head to the Grand Finals by winning Nukel. However, they were behind in the scoreline and the players needed inspiration to rally back into the game.
During the 27th round of the game Alvaro “SunPayus” Gracia, the primary AWPer for ENCE decided to fuel the team to go for a comeback by dropping 4 kills with the big green. The entirety of Vitality was pushing him to the A-site Ramp. There he decided to make a stand and hold on to the site. He killed everyone trying to take him down, including the likes of apEX, ZywOo, and Magisk. His teammate Pawel “dycha” Dycha took down the last one. The 5 kills included explosive close-range shots and even a no-scope. They eventually won the series sealing their ticket to the finals.
9. ZywOo Clutches Big Time
This was in IEM Katowice 2023, during the Group Stage match between Team Vitality and Fnatic. The match went to the final map of Nuke after both teams displayed amazing talent. During the 10th round of the map, French AWPer Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut found himself in a 1v4 situation with the scoreline being 5-4 in his favor. Since the match was so close, Team Vitality needed their star players to rise and pull their team out of the stalemate.
ZywOo started by getting an insane flick on to roeJ and later tricked the whole team of Fnatic by making them think he was heading to A-Ramps. ZywOo sneaked his way to DEACON and played the post plant brilliantly by forcing his enemies to take 1v1s instead of ganging up on him. This display of cleverness and mechanics was enough to extend his team’s lead and later on, take the victory.
8. Ax1Le’s Insane Spray Transfer
During the BLAST Premier: Fall European Showdown 2023, Semi-Finals between Cloud9 and G2 Esports, C9’s Russian rifler, Sergey “Ax1Le” Rykhtorov, was in a 1v4 post-plant situation on the T-side. Despite a dominant lead, C9 were quickly falling under the curse of G2’s comeback.
As he was swarmed by 4 players from G2 who were sticking the bond defusal, Ax1Le knew he had to pull off a magic trick to get this round in the bag. As he spotted m0NESY creeping above the smoke he gunned him down from behind the Big Box. He later sensed HooXi behind him and flicked back without letting go of the spray, and proceeded to go for the defuser in the smoke which was huNter, and got him too. Although he was taken down by NiKo right after, he bought enough time for the bomb to go down, winning the round and later the whole event.
7. KRIMZ still has it
During ESL Pro League Season 17, Fnatic Esports found themselves against Team Eternal Fire. The match was a Lower Bracket Elimination Match. Both teams fought tooth and nail and ended up on the last map of Nuke with a score of 14-14.
As FNC were put in a 1v2, the player on the other end of the clutch was legendary Swedish CS player Freddy “KRIMZ” Johansson. When he wasn’t able to get the immediate trade he went to look for the other player. After getting the first frag outside Hut he quickly flicked back to A-Main to get the last kill and went for the bomb defusal with just enough time. Off the back of this exemplary clutch, FNC went on to win the whole series with a score of 2-1.
6. m0NESY Banana Hold
Going back to IEM Cologne 2023, the young prodigy from G2 Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov was facing off Astralis during their first Group Stage match. During the 25th round of the second map on Inferno, m0NESY was looking to peek toward Banana when he realized his opponents were on an eco and decided to rush the B-Site. As he was being charged by the entirety of Astralis, m0NESY dropped one of the craziest aces of 2023.
After getting the first frag on Buzz, instead of falling back m0NESY held his ground and pulled out a Deagle. Aiming straight on headshot level he tapped 3 more players as they walked into his crosshair. He then proceeded to finish the job landing the final kill with the Deagle onto blameF getting a sensational ace, which propelled G2 to win the whole tournament later on.
5. ZywOo Aggressive Entry on Inferno
This was during the last round of the BLAST Premier: World Final, where Vitality and G2 faced off on Inferno. Amid all the smokes in Bananda, ZywOo was boosted up to try and clear out the entry into B and he most definitely cleared the entry.
Starting with two headshots on to rain and frozen, ZywOo felt the fire rise in him as he pushed into the site to take out karrigan as his teammate found a kill at Apertments while lurking. With the only player remaining, ZywOo finishes the tournament in style with a beautiful tap to the head.
4. Ropz Clutches with 1HP
This year has been exceptional for FaZe Clans lurker Robin “ropz” Kool, especially after the release of CS2. However, even before CS2, ropz has been hitting insane clips, like this one on ESL Pro League Season 17 during the Quarter-finals against FORZE with only 1 hp.
After getting one kill, the Estonian Rifler gets gushed in the head as he gets put in a 1v2. Despite the intricate situation, ropz cleverly maneuvers around his enemies, isolating them and hitting the cleanest shots. This brilliance allowed him to get the defuse and even win the whole event with FaZe Clan behind him.
3. flameZ Mirage Entry
This goes back to IEM Rio 2023 Group Stages, where Team Vitality took on OG Esports. During an evenly tied first map on Mirage, the side of OG were having trouble getting into the A-Site when Shahar “flameZ” Shushan decided to take matters into his own hands.
He jumped straight down from Palace landing a kill on ZywOo and proceeded to annihilate the rest of Vitality with some amazing headshots. He got 4 kills on that entry, two of which were the crispiest one-taps of the season. Even though they lost the series and got eliminated in that match, this was a play that will not be forgotten anytime soon.
2. cadiaN’s Ace To Keep Heroic Alive
Here’s one from one of the most energetic players in CS, Casper “cadiaN” Møller, during the BLAST Premier: Spring Groups 2023 Gran Finals. Heroic were struggling against the powerhouse of Team Vitality, but when cadiaN picked up the AWP and peeked from Deacon on Nuke, he shattered the confidence built by his opponents.
Even though the clutch wasn’t enough to save his team from losing the series, it will be on the highlight reels for quite some time.
1. m0NESY 1v5 Clutch on Anubis
The future prodigy of CS from G2 Esports, m0NESY is here to take the crown for the best play of CS in 2023. This was during the BLAST Premier: World Final, the last event of the year. G2 had lost all of their players while trying to get into the B site of Anubis against Natus Vincere. The Russian wonderchild was able to sneak a couple of kills during the entry leaving him in a 1v3.
After a patient rotation through Mid, he was able to catch the players off-guard. Isolating every player and taking gunfights to clutch the round in the most insane manner. Even though G2 lost the match, this clutch is one of the best moments of the year from the genius that is m0NESY.
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