So far, BC.Game’s gamble to sign Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev to their tier-two CS2 team has paid dividends. One month into his stint with BC.Game, the Ukrainian superstar is proving doubters wrong — even if his teammates are far from matching his individual skillset.
When BC.Game announced s1mple’s shocking transfer in July, many questioned whether he’d have the drive to grind through tier-two after winning HLTV’s Best Player of the World award three times, lots of tournaments, including the PGL Stockholm Major 2021.
However, s1mple seems determined to prove he can be just as dominant in CS2 as he was in CS:GO. Since s1mple joined, BC.Game have won 64.3% of the maps they played. Their winrate in the months prior to s1mple’s arrival is 54.61%.
The GOAT is tearing tier-two apart. Credit: Helena Kristiansson | © ESL
He was, unquestionably, the catalyst behind most victories, based on both the eye test and the stats. S1mple is averaging a 1.25 rating and 85.6 ADR after 28 maps played.
For comparison, his numbers in this past month with BC.Game are similar to Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut’s own numbers in 2025. S1mple’s eternal rival has averaged a 1.33 rating and 88.5 ADR throughout the year. Of course, ZywOo got these numbers whilst playing much more and against tougher opponents, but the fact that s1mple is already this impactful says plenty.
And, this is happening after a long stretch away from competition. He spent way too much time on Natus Vincere’s bench, and apart from a couple of tournaments where he stood in for Falcons, s1mple didn’t practice CS2 until FaZe came knocking this year ahead of the BLAST.tv Austin Major.
His performance on U.S soil was respectable. For the first time, we saw glimpses of the old s1mple, who is the best CS:GO player ever, in CS2. He helped FaZe get out of the slump they were going through with Helvijs “broky” Saukants, and they qualified for the Major playoffs.
And now, he’s consistently putting up good numbers in BC.Game. So, what is the problem with that? He’s clearly too good for the level he’s playing. Over this past month, the media has reported that the organization is trying to buy a tier-one core to build around him. Should this happen, BC.Game would inherit the Valve Regional Standings (VRS) points of said core, and possibly qualify for the StarLadder Budapest Major.
But if that doesn’t happen, they’ll have to keep grinding enough to qualify for a big event, in which they can earn points and climb positions. However, given how VRS works, this could take at least six months, thus costing s1mple the opportunity to play at the Major.
And that’s too bad for Counter-Strike esports. At a time when some of the other best CS2 players in the world are either bland or too shy on the stage, having s1mple is a must. The CS2 scene needs s1mple at the biggest events, not stuck farming tier-two teams.
S1mple had some good games under the FaZe banner earlier this year. Credit: Michal Konkol | © BLAST
If BC.Game can’t improve their team to get out of tier-two, several tier-one teams would instantly improve by signing s1mple.
After all, s1mple is someone who can win games single-handedly. He’s not the type of player who sits back and plays ultra-safe angles with the AWP.
On the contrary, due to his skillset and personality, s1mple enjoys placing himself right in the middle of the action. He’s not afraid to take duels, and more often than not, he has the perfect read of what the adversary is doing.
These are some of the teams that would benefit from s1mple’s firepower and bold playstyle:
Whether a bigger team snatches s1mple ahead of the Major or BC.Game builds around him; it’s time to welcome the GOAT back to tier-one. He’s just way too talented and entertaining not to be playing on the big stage.
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