CS2 matches can be insanely close. And sometimes, they are so tough for both sides that they last for a long time. To know the longest CS2 maps, first know that the standard map format is best-of-30. But if the score is 15-15, more rounds are played until one of the teams manages to win a 6-round overtime session.
Sometimes, from 15-15, we get to 18-18, 21-21, 24-24, or even higher. In the history of professional CS2, maps have lasted nearly 90 rounds! That’s roughly the equivalent of 4 entire maps being played into one! Such instances are rare, but they should make Valve consider changing the regulations for maps that extend beyond a certain limit.
In chess, for instance, the world championship continued until someone won convincingly. In 1984, in the match between Garry Kasparov (the challenger) and Anatoly Karpov (the world champion), there were so many rounds that the organizers had to stop the battle and restart with new rules. The match went on for months!
Longest CS2 Matches
Here are the 3 longest CS2 matches in the history.
GUNRUNNERS versus eSuba (2020) – 72 rounds
This was an epic match between two relatively unknown teams. However, it occurred in Sazka eLEAGUE Spring 2020 and was a highly disputed Bo3. The first two maps of the match, Mirage, and Train, had already required a lot of rounds to conclude. Their scores were 16-13 and 17-19.
The CS2 players have played 65 rounds on the first two maps, everyone expected a quick victory for one of the sides on the third. But what happened was the exact opposite. Overpass required 72 rounds to end, and the score was 35-37 in favor of eSuba.
The total number of rounds for the match was 137, roughly the equivalent of a highly disputed Bo5 Grand Final. No doubt, the players felt exhausted after this one.
DenDD versus PixelFire (2016) – 79 rounds
In 2016, at PGL Regional Minor Championship, two teams that few people had heard of started their Bo3 series with an absolutely epic duel on Mirage. The final score on this map was 38-41 in favor of PixelFire, and DenDD were so mentally crushed by this defeat that they lost the second map of the match with a score of 5-16.
The total number of rounds for the match was 100.
XENEX versus exceL (2015) – 88 rounds
These two British teams encountered each other in the ESL UK Premiership Spring 2015 Group Stage. And they played with such determination that both maps of their Bo3 series required overtime. The second map, Cache, required just two sessions of overtime and ended with a score of 21-18.
But the first one was one of the most spectacular maps in the history of the game. It lasted for 88 rounds and had a final score of 46-42.
The match required a total number of 127 rounds to conclude. That’s pretty epic for a match of just 2 maps.
Future Considerations
Valve should think about this issue carefully. Because if something like this happens at a Major, the organizer and everyone involved will have serious problems.
In CS2, given the current map format, matches could be hours longer than anticipated. Regardless of the map pool, it’s possible to have two CS2 teams that are just as good at establishing map control, and then, on a balanced map, they will win rounds around 50% of the time.
The match doesn’t have to take place on the most balanced map in the game. It’s enough for the played map to be roughly balanced and for the teams to be equally skilled on it, and this is what might happen.
If you’re curious to know why the matches aren’t so long now, check out: How Many Rounds Are in CS2?
