missharvey calls out Valve for not supporting competitive CSGO

Olivia Richman Published 09/09/2020

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive veteran Stephanie “missharvey” Harvey was not afraid of calling out Valve in a recent column where she discussed the game’s competitive scene. 

In a column for Dexerto, missharvey said she was worried for CSGO’s future due to the first-person shooter’s lack of fresh material. For that, she blames the game’s developers, Valve, who she feel don’t properly “cherish” their players or “strive to make the scene better.” This has led to a steady decline in players in 2020, she noted. 

“CSGO is at a stage where it simply needs more. For decades, that ‘more’ came from us, the community. We invested the money, hosted the tournaments, made the mods, improved the websites, played in our leagues, created our launchers, provided the content, just name it.” missharvey explained. 

But as the esports landscape evolves and new games keep popping up in the competitive scene, missharvey is worried that the community’s efforts won’t be enough on their own. The esports outreach director noted that Riot Games has been very open about their plans for Valorant, even taking the Counter-Strike community’s feedback into consideration. Meanwhile, Valve’s passion for its own game seems lacking.

Riot’s responsiveness to Valorant players has made many players, including missharvey, leave CSGO in favor of the new FPS title. 

“There have been a lot of times in my career where I wish Valve showed us more, and once again we seem to be at a crossroads. They have everything they need to stay on top, but seem to be happy to just sit back and let other games play catch-up. I mean, c’mon, 64-tick competitive servers in 2020?” missharvey ranted. 

Valve doesn’t seem interested in investing in CSGO competitive scene

But it isn’t only the game itself that doesn’t seem to have Valve’s support. Counter-Strike’s competitive scene also appears to be a bit ignored by the game’s developers. It has been noted that it’s tournament and league organizers keeping the esports scene alive, not Valve. 

While this model has kept the tier-one CSGO scene vibrant, it also left many esports insiders pining for a franchised model. This would help players at lower tiers feel more supported, which would also get more casual players engaged with the game’s esport scene. 

Even though Valorant is new to the esports scene, it has already outlined its Ignition Series. Many retired CSGO players and fresh Counter-Strike competitors have opted to pursue Valorant instead, most likely in anticipation of the competitive support the game will receive. In turn, this means the game will most likely surpass CSGO, something that many popular esports personalities have already predicted. 

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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