CSGO grenades can be used to block bullets, survive headshots

One of the worst situations to encounter in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is having an enemy pop out while there’s a grenade in your hand. One player has stepped forward with a solution to this that gives a player a slight chance of survival in an otherwise unwinnable situation.

During a game against bots on Mirage, a player was posted up in market only to have an enemy emerge from the CT spawn area wielding a flash grenade. Because the enemy was a bot, the player was allowed the chance to stop, crouch, and line up their shot with an AK-47 as the bot stood in place. 

Right as the player fired, the bot threw their flash grenade. Even though the player’s shot was perfectly lined up to be a headshot with an AK-47, the bot survived the shot thanks to the fact that the bullet dealt reduced damage after it passed through the grenade. Though there’s no audio on the clip, there’s no question that this was a headshot as the bot’s head can be seen snapping back from the hit.

The exact numbers behind this interaction are unknown. It’s not certain exactly how much damage was dealt on the first shot and whether different types of grenades might offer more protection than others. It doesn’t seem as though the grenade’s trajectory was changed by being shot.

This is an interesting and funny moment, but fans shouldn’t necessarily start strategizing around this interaction. Lining up a grenade throw with a bullet is very difficult, even with practice. This isn’t something CSGO players can rely on. They should instead work on their comms and situational awareness to better guarantee that they don’t get jumped while lining up a smoke.

What’s a wallbang in CSGO?

Wallbangs in CSGO and other FPS games are when a player is damaged with gunfire that penetrates through cover. This could be shooting completely through thin objects like tarps and plywood, or piercing a bullet through the corner of a wall.

In this case, a bullet pierced through a grenade for a “wallbang” effect, without the wall. The grenade reduced the damage that the player would’ve taken, as AK-47 headshots are meant to be a guaranteed kill, and allowed them to survive for a bit longer.