Should the AWP price be increased? Top CSGO pro says yes

The AWP is the most powerful gun in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, but it’s not actually the most expensive. Should that change?

CSGO esports star Keith “NAF” Markovic apparently thinks it should. The longtime member of Team Liquid discussed what he would change in CSGO, and he honed in on the AWP. NAF thinks that AWPers tend to be the most impactful players in the game, and that’s not just down to their individual skills.

“One thing that honestly I’ve kind of thought about, and people will probably hate it, as you can see a lot of the players at the top that are statistically the best are AWPers. So in my opinion they should maybe raise the price of the AWP…I was thinking something like [$6,000],” NAF told Pley.gg.

While many would scoff at the idea of raising the price, there is some logic to it.

The AWP is the most impactful weapon in CSGO, allowing skilled snipers to block off an angle or choke entirely unless enemies commit significant utility. Despite that, the AWP is not the most expensive gun. 

The AWP costs $4,500 at the time of this writing, while the M249 machine gun costs $5,200, and the SCAR-20 and G3SG1 auto snipers both cost $5,000. In both high-rank casual games and professional matches, the M249, SCAR-20, and G3SG1 all go nearly untouched while the AWP is a staple of the game.

The fact is that the AWP is arguably the best gun in CSGO while being only the third-most expensive weapon available to players. It could be argued that either the M249 and auto snipers should have their prices reduced, or the AWP’s price should be increased.

Who is the best AWPer in CSGO right now?

Statistically speaking, Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev is the best AWPer in CSGO esports at the moment.

That shouldn’t be surprising for anyone that tracks professional CSGO. s1mple is effectively the best at everything, with the best rating on almost every active duty map and a collection of trophies and awards that covers every premier event in CSGO esports.

Though s1mple has the deadliest AWP in CSGO, he’s also historically been similarly deadly with a rifle. And he’s a big part of the reason why Natus Vincere is the best pistol round team.

While AWPs might offer too much bang for their buck, s1mple is proven as someone that can make an impact with any gun.