S1mple’s $149 CS2 Course Faces Backlash and Refunds

Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyljev, a renowned professional Counter-Strike player, recently faced backlash over his educational course, PlayLikeS1mple, which has now been taken down. Launched on June 3 in partnership with ESL FACEIT Group, the course was designed to educate players on Counter-Strike 2 with lessons from s1mple and other guests. It included over 70 educational videos, monthly tournaments, a private Discord channel, personal communication with s1mple and his friends, and access to private streams for a year, all for a price of $149.

However, less than two months after its launch, the course has come under scrutiny. All-Stars Promotion, the promoter of the course, has claimed that they were ripped off and presented evidence to support their claims. The community’s suspicions were initially raised when free access to the course was abruptly closed.

Starting on July 17, users in the project’s public Discord server began reporting that the lesson videos were suddenly set to private. By July 22, reports of refunds being issued began to surface. Many buyers claimed they received refunds without any notification or request. “I got issued a refund, so I think they are just refunding everyone and moving on”, one Discord member explained.

Additionally, several users complained that they never received an invite to the promoted private Discord with s1mple. This added fuel to the fire of dissatisfaction among the course purchasers.

Despite the refunds, the courses can still technically be purchased, though the video tutorials remain inaccessible. The project’s social media pages have been silent since June 6, and s1mple himself has not addressed the issue publicly. His latest social media post, unrelated to the course, was on June 15 about the Copa America final.

Criticism of the course began even before its official launch, with many expressing that the initial lessons were not worth the $149 price tag. “No hate but imo it’s a pure scam, I’ve seen better guides for free on YouTube for newbies and semi-advanced players,” commented one user on the public Discord.

S1mple’s recent professional activity includes playing for Team Falcons at the BLAST Premier Spring Showdown in June, marking his return to competitive CS2 since October. However, this latest controversy has overshadowed his return to the professional scene.

The sudden closure and refunding of the PlayLikeS1mple course have left many fans and buyers feeling deceived and questioning the future of such educational projects within the gaming community.