The Twitch streamer Félix “xQc” Lengyel is on an incredible winning streak in Counter-Strike 2 (Steam). This raises suspicions among some players.
What is Counter-Strike 2 about? On September 17, 2023, Counter-Strike 2 finally released, the long-awaited successor to Valve’s tactical shooter. More than 1 million players crowded on Steam almost immediately, and for many streamers, it meant: “Into the cases.”
Because alongside realistic gunplay, Counter-Strike is primarily known for one thing: loot boxes that can contain incredibly valuable skins. Félix “xQc” Lengyel, one of the biggest streamers in the world, couldn’t resist opening a few cases at launch – and had almost unbelievably good luck (via 3DJuegos).
$30,000 in one hour
What did xQc draw? The Twitch streamer’s luck began with a “factory new” Karambit Doppler. Besides the rarity and special features of a skin, it’s primarily the “wear” that determines the value in Counter-Strike. There are 5 tiers, differentiated by the so-called float value:
- Factory New, Float: 0.00-0.07
- Minimal Wear, Float: 0.07-0.15
- Field-Tested, Float: 0.15-0.37
- Well-Worn, Float: 0.27-0.44
- Battle-Scarred, Float: 0.44-1
With a float of 0.06, the knife just barely landed in the highest quality tier and is currently being traded for around $1,200, equivalent to €1,132, on trading sites like CSGOSkins. Skins in Counter-Strike become even more valuable with stickers – then you might even get the equivalent of a sports car.
You can watch xQc’s exuberant reaction to his winning streak here:
xQc continued to test his luck and traded his unwanted skins through the “Trade Up Contract” function for a chance at a more valuable collectible. Even if not all trade-ins went well, the streamer secured another 3 valuable skins in a very short time:
- an AK-47 Fire Serpent, which in the Stat-Track variant is traded from $5,000 (via CSGOSkins)
- an AWP Gungir worth $12,500 (via CSGOSkins)
- an AWP Dragon Lore worth $12,000 (via CSGOSkins)
In total, xQc got skins worth $30,700 in just over an hour, spent opening cases on Twitch before he continued streaming on Kick. Such luck seems suspicious to some players.
What are the reactions like? Under a post on X.com, formerly Twitter, many users can hardly believe the luck of the Twitch streamer. Many even go so far as to claim that it cannot be right.
They believe the Steam accounts of Twitch streamers have an increased chance of getting especially valuable skins. This is supposed to encourage their viewers to invest their own money in the game. However, this is just a conjecture.
At the same time, another game, EA FC 24, is launching that is frequently criticized for its loot box mechanics. However, it was not a Twitch streamer, but a regular player who hit the jackpot:
