Speculation: Is the decrease in CS2 player count a sign VAC Live is working?

VAC Live in CS2 is supposedly an advanced version of the original VAC anti-cheat system that was first established with CS:GO. The purpose was simple: keep the game safe from hackers of all kinds. CS2 initially had trouble doing so as the VAC system wasn't fully running, but after recent developments, it appears many bans across servers have been put in place. Does this mean VAC Live is actually working?

In a recent observation, it seems that the number of online players in CS2 has rapidly gone down. This development came in right after a series of bans and canceled matches. Perhaps it's a healthy sign of a restored CS2 security system.

NOTE: This article is speculative in nature and contains the writer's subjective opinions.

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The number of online players in CS2 declines as VAC Live reportedly finds success

Recently, reports of hosts of players being banned mid-game went viral on the internet. Recorded footage showed ongoing matches being emptied as one after another got banned and removed from the server for good.

On top of that, the VAC Live system would also cancel ongoing matches based on "irregular gameplay" to keep players safe from potential cheaters. Subsequently, the number of online players went from 1,551,625 on April 28 to 1,306,744 on May 3.

A massive drop that seems only reasonable after the VAC Live waveban that swept many spinbotters and blatant cheaters away from the game. Of course, the reports are not yet confirmed, but there's a good chance it's all related.

Another big factor could be the overwatch system which has also found space in CS2 in recent days. In CS:GO the game often invited trusted and well-experienced players to investigate irregular gameplay to decide on a ban. This was the old overwatch system.

With the new one, players have so far not reported active invitations to review footage. Perhaps a separate VAC Live team of specialists from Valve will work on the overwatch system by themselves or a different group of people will be picked.

Either way, the fact at hand is that VAC Live has been working and in recent history, finding success. The brand-new updates also helped with the VAC bans across the game.

There's also the argument that the drop in player count is merely because people are losing interest in the game due to all the hacking which gets worse in higher elo.

While the claim is valid, it cannot be proven otherwise since the drop in player count is sudden and hackers have been a common occurrence since CS2 dropped in September 2023.

Regardless, VAC Live is seemingly up and running. This means there might be a steeper drop in the number of online players in the days to come. Especially with the overwatch system in the works, CS2 might soon be more secure.