CS2 vs VALORANT: Which competitive shooter should you play in 2025?

Choosing between CS2 vs VALORANT isn’t easy if you’re a fan of competitive shooters on PC. Both Valve and Riot Games have put in the legwork to deliver an FPS experience that rewards precision, patience, and teamwork, unlike many other shooters on the market in 2025. Whether you’re a casual player looking to take one of these games seriously or are looking to try them out for the first time, we’re covering everything you need to know. 

Both CS2 and VALORANT are competitive shooters focusing on slower-paced, deliberate movement with a heavy emphasis on precision aiming instead of fast-paced run-and-gun action. The core gameplay experience for the two titles is to compete in small teams of 5v5 playing attack and defence; one team goes in to plant a bomb/spike, and the other must defuse it. 

Where things differ with CS2 vs VALORANT is in the approach to the teams. The former is more realistic with either Terrorists or Counter-Terrorists, whereas the latter is a hero shooter featuring agents that have special abilities. It’s what makes them different. 

CS2 features vastly more weapons than VALORANT, with 53 compared to 17. Terrorists and Counter-Terrorists will have different kits, with the former using the AK-47 compared to the latter’s M4A1-S, for example. In VALORANT, the weapons are divided into two categories, where any agent can use any gun. 

Sources: CSGO Database / VALORANT Fandom

Every round in Riot Games’ shooter begins with The Classic, a starting pistol, and you can then use the “buy menu” to upgrade to a different type (or size) of firearm, depending on your playstyle. Both CS2 and VALORANT feature seven maps for their ranked play, so you won’t need to learn many. 

Sources: Liquidpedia / Play Valorant

Source: VALORANT Fandom

A deciding factor in CS2 vs VALORANT is how the two games play. CS2 goes for a realistic approach with its two teams of Terrorists and Counter-Terrorists (with bespoke gear), whereas VALORANT’s agents can be drastically different from one another. More specifically, VALORANT agents are categorized into four different roles: Controllers, Duelists, Initiators, and Sentinels, each role dictating their strengths (and weaknesses) on the map. This is more free-form than in CS2, which sees the two sides more rigidly in their roles; Terrorists plant bombs and Counter-Terrorists try to stop them. You’ll know what to do on each side. 

A good way to judge the fanbases of both games is to analyse how the CS2 player count vs VALORANT’s. Based on SteamDB’s latest metrics, Valve’s shooter attracts almost a million players every single day, with an average 24-peak of 1.8 million on Steam alone. It has an all-time peak player count of 1,862,531, and has seen its popularity steadily rise since 2023, when the game became CS2 from CS:GO. 

The VALORANT player count is much higher, with daily players of around five million and an all-time peak nearing seven million (via Tracker.gg). Therefore, on the VALORANT vs CS2 player count battlefield, it’s a decisive win for VALORANT.

Both CS2 and VALORANT are keenly watched and played competitive shooters with thriving esports scenes. CS2’s highest level of competitive play is known as the Major Championships, where 32 teams compete to win a total prize pool of $1,250,000, compared to Riot Games’ VCT (VALORANT Champions Tour), which has 48 teams (across four international leagues) fighting to win a prize pool of $2,250,000. CS2 is the most-watched esports shooter when compared to VALORANT when accounting for all-time peak viewers; the former sits at 2,748,434 against the latter’s 1,687,848.

CS2 ranks vs VALORANT’s ranking system is initially quite similar, with the two games following a tier system comprised of different levels that correspond to your MMR or rank rating points, respectively. Where things get more complicated, however, is the fact that CS2 has both a rank for its Competitive mode and a CS Rating for the Premier mode, with the latter being stricter in match selection and stipulations. 

VALORANT ranks vs CS2’s are a little more transparent, and there are more ranks with a higher amount of tiers needed to reach. While VALORANT has no rank decay, you’ll quickly notice your CS2 rank starts dropping if you’re inactive anywhere from 17 to 30 days. You have to maintain.  

Deciding between CS2 vs VALORANT isn’t easy, as the two games demand a substantial time investment to take them seriously, thanks to their high skill ceiling. In 2025, VALORANT player count vs CS2 is a clear victory for VALORANT when taking the stats into account, with more maps to use, agents to try out, and a higher prize pool at the highest level. However, CS2 remains consistently popular, having evolved from 2012’s CS:GO, still pulling in nearly a million players every day. As both are free to play, we recommend downloading both and seeing which one clicks with you.