The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive esports scene wouldn’t be as popular as it is today if it wasn’t for Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev. Widely regarded as one of the greatest Counter-Strike Global Offensive (CS: GO) players of all time, S1mple’s talent is undeniable, but what helps him also are his CS: GO settings, including crosshair, which perfectly complements his aggressive playstyle, then his mouse settings, video configuration and more.
Each choice makes him a little bit better, and if you want a percentage of a skill S1mple has, then your best chance is to imitate the settings of a CS: GO legend.
Oleksandr “S1mple” Kostyliev The Man, The Myth, The Legend
Born in Ukraine in 1997, S1mple’s passion for Counter-Strike ignited at a young age. He was just four years old when he started playing the game with his older brother. Despite his young age, it was obvious immediately that he had a talent for the game.
By 2013 S1mple was already making strides in the Ukrainian scene as a professional player. His first team was LAN DODGERS and was then picked up by Courage Gaming. It didn’t take long for him to sign a deal with Hellraisers, where he became a member of the team that consisted also of ANGE1, Kucher, Dosia, and Markeloff, who was S1mple’s idol.
Unfortunately, s1mple’s early career was also marked by controversy. In January 2015, he was removed from Hellraisers due to inflammatory comments and an in-game cheating ban (reportedly from Counter-Strike 1.6). This ban also extended to CS: GO and was further complicated by accusations of ban evasion. He later found himself on Flipsid3 Tactics but his time there was short-lived as well.
Nevertheless, the following year, he started working his way up. He joined Team Liquid and it was during ESL One Cologne 2016 that his exceptional AWP play even earned him a commemorative graffiti from Valve.
All of this led to a pivotal point in his career as S1mple joined Natus Vincere, also known as Na’Vi. He secured his first major win with them at ESL One New York 2016 and ranked #4 on the HLTV top 20 players list. However, 2017 brought challenges. NaVi struggled for consistent results and underwent roster changes. While s1mple maintained his strong individual performance, the team’s success remained limited.
2018 marked a defining year. Na`Vi finally consolidated with S1mple’s aggressive style leading them forward. They secured multiple victories, including StarSeries & i-League Season 5, ESL One Cologne 2018, and BLAST Pro Series: Copenhagen 2018. More importantly, S1mple’s brilliance shone. He became a consistent MVP contender, considered the #1 player globally, and achieved the highest HLTV rating ever recorded at the time.
S1mple’s dominance continued for years. He remained an MVP contender and helped Na`Vi achieve incredible feats, including a historic undefeated run at the PGL Major Stockholm 2021. His exceptional performance earned him the tournament MVP and recognition beyond esports, winning Best Esports Player at The Game Awards 2021.
Since 2021, S1mple has been on and off the scene, with his most recent stint with Team Falcons in February 2024. While he has critiqued Counter-Strike 2, S1mple’s settings, especially for crosshair remain a great option for all players.
S1mple Crosshair Settings
Many successful plays wouldn’t be possible without settings that complement his playstyle.
Here is S1mple’s crosshair settings for 2024:
Style: Classic Static
- This means the crosshair remains a static image and doesn’t dynamically change size or shape.
Follow Recoil: No
- This setting is highly recommended as it means the crosshair will not move to visually represent the recoil pattern of your weapon.
Dot: No
- There will be no central dot in the crosshair.
Length: 2
- This setting refers to the length of the crosshair arms, and in this case it will 2 units long.
Thickness: 0
- This means that the crosshair arm thickness is set to 0.
Gap: 0
- This means there will be no gap between the arms of the crosshair if they form a closed shape.
Outline: Yes (-3)
- The crosshair will have a black outline that is 3 pixels wide.
Color: Yellow (with Transparency)
- Red: 0
- Green: 255
- Blue: 165
- Alpha Value: Yes (250): This setting confirms the use of transparency for the crosshair color. A value of 0 is fully opaque, and 255 is fully transparent.
T Style: No
- This means that the crosshair is in its full shape. In T-style crosshairs, the top horizontal line is missing.
Deployed Weapon Gap: No
- There won’t be an additional gap around the viewmodel when weapons are deployed.
Sniper Width: No
- There won’t be an adjustment to the width of the ViewModel when sniping.
S1mple uses a small, static yellow crosshair in 2024. This is a minimalist and simple design, which mainly helps him land shots at his target with the highest precision. Known for his aggressive playstyle, S1mple crosshair settings only complement it. However, it is important to note, that crosshair settings suit individuals, and while you can copy the crosshair code, you can further experiment and see what is best for you.
Crosshair code: CSGO-24JmN-TMFyF-dqavU-3JAkA-CW9vO
While we have covered the most important of the success in Counter-Strike 2, there is far more to S1mple’s success than his crosshair settings. This includes the mouse, ViewModel settings, and even the monitor he uses that will give him high FPS.
S1mple Mouse Model and Settings
Logitech G Pro X Superlight 2 Black
DPI: 400
Sensitivity: 3.09
eDPI (effective DPI): 1236
Zoom Sensitivity: 1
Windows Sensitivity: 6
Hz (Polling Rate): 2000
S1mple has opted for a relatively high sensitivity (3.09) with a low DPI (400) for a combined eDPI of 1236 throughout his professional career. This setup is perfect for quick flick shots, which is a crucial skill for an AWPer (sniper player). When you take a look at his lower zoom sensitivity, you get the idea that it provides more precise aiming, while not distorting muscle memory, especially when switching between close-quarters combat and long-range sniping.
ViewModel
- FOV: 68
- Offset X: 2.5
- Offset Y: 0
- Offset Z: -1.5
- Presetpos: 2
Video Settings
- Resolution: 1280×960
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3
- Scaling Mode: Stretched
- Brightness: 110%
- Display Mode: Fullscreen
- Advanced Video:
- Boost Player Contrast: Disabled
- Wait for Vertical Sync: Disabled
- Multisampling Anti-Aliasing Mode: 8x MSAA
- Global Shadow Quality: High
- Model / Texture Detail: High
- Texture Filtering Mode: Bilinear
- Shader Detail: High
- Particle Detail: Low
- Ambient Occlusion: Medium
- High Dynamic Range: Quality
- FidelityFX Super Resolution: Disabled (Highest Quality)
- NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency: Disabled
S1mple plays on a BenQ Zowie XL2566k monitor. What is notable about this monitor is that it has a refresh rate of 360HZ, which provides a high frame rate cap. Here are some other monitor settings that he uses:
- Black eQualizer: 10
- Color Vibrance: 12
- Low Blue Light: 0
- Picture Mode: Standard
- Brightness: 80
- Contrast: 60
- Sharpness: 5
- Gamma: Gamma 3
- Color Temperature: Normal
- AMA: High
This is all you need to know about S1imple settings for CS2 in 2024, including his crosshair, mouse, and graphic settings. All of this helps him be a better player, and while you can mimic his settings, experiment and see what best suits your playstyle.
