The long-awaited debut of Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev for Team Falcons took place today in the group stage of the Thunderpick World Championship 2024 in CS2. This event attracted more than 200,000 viewers simultaneously on streams worldwide. In this article, together with Serhii "sergiz" Atamanchuk and Oleksiy "yXo" Maletskyi, we will discuss how the match went for s1mple and whether he met the fans' expectations.

s1mple's return to the professional CS2 scene was announced at the end of September when Falcons revealed that the Ukrainian sniper had joined the team on a loan deal. He replaced Alvaro "SunPayus" Garcia in the lineup. According to insider rumors, Nikola "NiKo" Kovač is also expected to join Falcons in 2025.

This time it’s serious

Let’s recall that this is not s1mple's first stint with Falcons. The Ukrainian esports player previously played for the club in March of this year. Back then, his loan lasted only one best-of-three series. In the first playoff round of BLAST Premier: Spring Showdown 2024, the team lost to Metizport 1:2. As for s1mple, he played as a rifler in that match, and his performance was quite mediocre.

Now everything looks different. The loan is set to last until at least the end of 2024, with an option for a full transfer. Additionally, s1mple himself is more determined this time. Right after the announcement of his joining Falcons, Sasha started grinding FACEIT, playing 12-15 matches a day. In most of the games, it was s1mple who carried the team. However, matchmaking is one thing, and official matches are another…

Defeat for Falcons and a composed s1mple

In s1mple's debut match for Falcons, the team lost to Team 3DMAX 0:2 — 10:13 on Anubis and 9:13 on Nuke. Despite the addition of the greatest player in Counter-Strike history, Falcons' playstyle didn’t change. Wins in rounds still relied on individual plays by the players. There was no talk of any serious tactics. But what about s1mple?

Individually, s1mple completely failed on Anubis (rating 4.2) and was utterly dominant on Nuke (rating 8.9). The contrast within a single match was unbelievable. Oleksandr finished the match with a K/D ratio of 33/30. He was the only Falcons player to finish the series with a positive score. s1mple also achieved an average ADR of 82 and won 7 opening duels. His performance on Nuke was very promising and gave fans hope that the old s1mple, who could fight for the title of the best CS2 player in 2025, might return.

It’s also worth noting how s1mple handled the team’s setbacks. In the past, he would react very emotionally to every death, teammate mistake, or lost round. Now, however, he appeared calm and composed. Even after a disastrous showing on Anubis, Sasha managed to regroup and demonstrate on his favored Nuke map what he is truly capable of. It can be said that signing s1mple seems justified and could bring even more impact to the team in the future.

Expert's Take

Ukrainian commentator and CS2/CSGO analyst, as well as a former professional Counter-Strike 1.6 player, Oleksiy "yXo" Maletskyi, watched s1mple's first match after returning to the pro scene and gave an exclusive comment specifically for Bo3.gg.

s1mple's first game after such a long break, almost a year, was very interesting, and the whole world was watching. As for the game, he was practically invisible on Anubis. He played very poorly and made only six kills. He had a few decent AWP entry frags, but that was about it. The team was playing around him, but they still lost. On Nuke, I thought Falcons had more chances, but the thing is, 3DMAX play Nuke regularly and love it. s1mple, in particular, played excellently. He got 27 frags. He fully made up for the stats he lacked on the first map. I think this is a transitional roster, and it's too early to draw conclusions. s1mple is the GOAT.

Oleksiy "yXo" Maletskyi

Former professional Counter-Strike player Serhii "sergiz" Atamanchuk also watched s1mple's debut match and shared his impressions with us.

This was a different s1mple emotionally, but definitely not in terms of gameplay. I saw the same amazing moves from him. His composure was sometimes impressive, even after the disastrous Anubis performance. But we shouldn’t romanticize it too soon. We need to see what happens over time and whether he will remain emotionally stable. As for his play on Nuke — total like. It was a banger.

Serhii "sergiz" Atamanchuk

What’s next?

Next up, in the Thunderpick World Championship 2024, Falcons will face an elimination match against the loser of the Virtus.pro vs. OG matchup. The match is scheduled for October 21, 18:30 EEST. Besides that, Falcons will start their journey in ESL Challenger Katowice 2024 on October 25, with SAW being their first opponent at the event. And then, not far off, comes the European RMR... So there will be plenty of chances to enjoy s1mple's gameplay.

We urge you not to jump to conclusions about whether s1mple can regain the form he had in CSGO. This was just his first match, and even for the GOAT, it takes time to adapt after a year-long break from the pro scene. More constructive conclusions can be made after the first tournaments are completed.