OK, so donk can hit 47 frags in regulation despite only just being able to legally drive in the UK. Forget him and all the prodigies hitting FACEIT who weren’t born when Fall Out Boy broke up. What hope is there left for us esports boomers? Time to look at some players who have been late bloomers with CS2.
Author’s note: all stats have been updated to reflect HLTV’s Rating 2.1 changes.
Tomáš ‘oskar’ Šťastný
Age: 33
Oskar was a title-winner with MOUZ in his glory days taking home ESL One New York 2018 and Starseries Season 4, among others. He sank into tier 2 after that, including a stint on Sprout, before two spells with SINNERS, his current place of work. Those were punctuated by a trip to the ill-fated GORILLAZ / TITANS project headed by Flusha and MOUZ team-mate sunny.
The end of CS:GO was not a happy time for SINNERS. In oskar’s first run, they qualified for ESL Pro League, but despite a win in local LAN MCR 2024 after the veteran’s return, internationally they spent 2023 cycling through players, only finding limited success once CS2 was released. Despite improvements such as 3rd place in ESL Challenger League, titles still eluded them. 2024 started off on a similar footing. The return of NEOFRAG may not have worked out however SINNERS opted to promote two academy players, and they have ridden this embrace of the youth to success, including back-to-back CCT Online Series titles defeating GamerLegion.
Oskar in particular seems to have found a new lease of life in CS2. In the EU RMR Closed Qualifier, he was the top-rated player with a 2.03 average rating (albeit only over 4 maps). Since CS2 dropped just over a year ago his average rating is sitting at a tasty 1.12 (in 2.0, this was 1.16), whilst also contributing the most flash assists (0.05 per round) and has the highest success rate in opening kills (63.5%). Now coming into the RMR oskar has a chance to tackle top-tier opposition on LAN again.
William “draken” Sundin
Age: 29
It can’t be nice to be primarily known for a meme. Draken was known for the “30-degree window”, referring to how he would hit outrageous flicks but miss sitters. That was in spite of a playing career that took him to Fnatic and NiP, claiming a victory at IEM Oakland 2017 with the latter. He left for VALORANT in 2020, returning at the start of 2022 with Savage, albeit the project didn’t quite take off. The Swede would then move to Into the Breach, the team winning Assembly Summer 2022 but struggling to make a long-term impact in the rankings, before returning to his native Sweden.
The Swedish homecoming with GODSENT flopped — playing alongside joel may not have helped — and a move to international mix #7006 IKLA was largely forgettable. At the start of this year, however, he formed local squad Johnny Speeds, and their rise during the summer has made them look like a formidable lineup. Back-to-back United21 titles in seasons 14 and 15 were backed up by a LAN win in Svenska Elitserien Spring 2024. This got them to the EU RMR Closed Qualifier, which they played with a substitute after disagreements with chawzyyy, unfortunately falling short of qualification.
Draken’s stats during that time are remarkable – a 1.11 average rating in CS2 (down from 1.16 in 2.00 rating, but still strong) – all the more impressive when you consider that Draken took on in-game leadership duties when Lekr0 was signed by BC.GAME in July. Now unburdened of leadership duties by hampus, it remains to be seen if Johnny Speeds can make the leap and take the next step at a tier 1 event – though draken has also said that the team may disband if they cannot find an organisation. In order to do so, they will need to call on draken to return to his very best. Or maybe a return to NiP? He can hardly make them worse…
Vincent “Brehze” Cayonte
Age: 26
This one comes with the caveat that it’s been achieved against lower-quality opposition (NA ESL Challenger League). Sadly, with NRG failing to make the RMR, we will have to wait until next year to see them take on their global peers. Despite the disappointment of missing the event in China, Brehze’s performances have been a standout.
Brehze was the last remnant of the NRG roster that signed for Evil Geniuses and peaked at #1 in the world on HLTV. Mismanagement from the organization during the early 2020s, exacerbated by the loss of Ethan and tarik to VALORANT, meant a number of below-par rosters were assembled around him. All of this played out in the public eye due to Evil Geniuses’ presence in ESL and BLAST’s partner programs, mocked with every single last-place finish and brought to an end in 2023 amid the organization’s near collapse.
Brehze returned to NRG as soon as the organization re-entered CS and after some wobbles and roster changes, their veteran lineup (average age 26.3) has been putting the hurt on the NA scene. They won the qualifier for the BLAST Premier Fall Showdown but forfeited their spot to M80 due to an overlap with the RMR Closed Qualifier. They have also secured at least top 2 in ESL Challenger League Season 48, meaning they will compete in the new-look ESL Pro League Season 21.
Throughout 2024 ex-Evil Geniuses team-mate HexT has topped the scoreboard, but Brehze has not been far behind. Having dropped into negative numbers near the end of CS:GO, a 1.14 average rating as a rifler in CS2 has given hope to those who want to see him take on the world’s best again – and put NRG back into tier 1.
Bryan ‘Maka’ Canda
Age: 27
Maka has always been closer to tier 2 than tier 1. Always competing within the French scene during stints with 3DMAX, DBL PONEY, and a spell with Falcons’ French team, Maka often flirted with the HLTV top 20 but was never quite able to break inside it.
Until 2024, with the latest iteration of the French core that started as DBL PONEY. 3DMAX won the Skyesports Championship 2024 for a cool $100,000 payday, defeating The Mongolz – then ranked #12 – in the grand final. Maka himself, having taken on IGL duties following bodyy’s departure, is comfortably their top fragger; a 1.14 average rating in 2024 is the highlight. With the core set to depart 3DMAX before the RMRs, a big payday — either under an organization, or retaining all the sticker money themselves — could yet be in the offing, with Maka in a prime place to solidify his legacy.
Henrique “HEN1” Teles
Age: 29
HEN1 seemed to be on the up in Brazilian Counter-Strike, winning the Cevo Gfinity Professional Season 9 Finals with Tempo Storm and Dreamhack Zowie Open Summer 2016 with Immortals. He continued the streak once he ended up at FURIA, winning 3 North American tournaments in the pandemic-afflicted 2020 season, making him HLTV’s #16 for the year. But he opted to leave FURIA to play with his twin brother LUCAS1, a move that was widely mocked, especially when the O PLANO project signed with 00Nation and the brothers were benched just two months later.
He had short runs with GODSENT and MIBR, but while MIBR managed victories in ESL Challenger League and CCT Central Europe, it seemed the tier 1 days were behind him – especially when they failed to make the BLAST Paris Major. Step forward, Imperial, who signed the Brazilian to replace the FURIA-bound FalleN. Imperial won the CBCS Invitational 2023 and topped the Americas RMR for the PGL Major, and though they missed out on play-offs, they did so after a brutal draw pitted them against FaZe, Vitality, Spirit and Virtus.Pro.
His benching by Imperial came as a big surprise, with a 1.10 average rating so far this year. Now loaned to RED Canids alongside fellow 29-year-old coldzera, HEN1 has a chance to stay strong into his 30s.
João “felps” Vasconcellos
Age: 27
You try summarising felps’ career in a paragraph. Brought into the legendary SK Gaming lineup to replace fnx, he won five Big Events but still ended up leaving due to internal conflicts. He took on in-game leadership duties and then gave them up, cycling through a number of Brazilian teams; after making the semi-finals of the Katowice Major with MIBR, the post-pandemic years were less successful for felps. He exited PGL Stockholm 2021 and the BLAST Paris Major 2023 in last place, then joined Imperial at a time of flux with FalleN leaving for FURIA.
That move has worked out significantly better. In CS2, felps has a 1.14 average rating – that’s higher than his AWPer, HEN1, and the fifth-highest Brazilian player of all (the others being a much younger breed). He’s been key as Imperial try to move on from the “last dance” lineup they initially signed, as they came second in GET Rio to paiN. They were handed a tough draw in the Elimination Stage of the PGL Copenhagen CS2 Major (FaZe, Vitality, Spirit, and Virtus.Pro their opponents – their only win was a Bo1 against the latter), which saw felps struggle after a strong performance in the Opening Stage (1.21 average rating). While lots of eyes are on FURIA, Imperial could be dark horses to give Brazil their first trophy in some time — and maybe felps will finally get his first MVP since 2016.