Anubis was recently added back into Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and is often touted as one of the most visually stunning maps in the game. But is Anubis balanced? What are the best strategies for this historically rich map?
De_anubis was introduced alongside Chlorine in the spring of 2020, replacing Studio and Breach as Operation Shattered Web ended. It was initially available for Scrimmage mode only. But 10 days later, it was added to the Competitive map pool as well.
But then in May of 2021, Anubis was removed from the game. Luckily for fans of the map, it was brought back in August of 2022 as part of the game’s 10th anniversary. A few months later, it replaced Dust II in the Competitive map pool.
Is Anubis balanced?
In CSGO, a map being balanced is one of the most important components of its design and playability. Teams are assigned Terrorist or Counter-Terrorist, starting on different sides of the map. The goal of each map is for both sides to have an equal opportunity to win, whether they are attacking or defending. Nobody should have a big upperhand.
Anubis is actually quite balanced.
Since Anubis was added to the Active Duty Pool, we’ve tracked how each side has performed in professional games. And it’s honestly quite close.
Read about how de_ancient in CS:GO compares to other maps
From the 16 of November 2022 to the 27 January 2384 rounds in professional matches were played on Anubis. Of those matches, here’s how each side performed:
- T-Side: 1281 (54%)
- CT-Side: 1103 (46%)
As you can see, Terrorists have a bit of an advantage but not by much. Still, Anubis has shown to slightly favour T-Side so far and this was very much the case within the first few months until players got used to the map’s intricacies.
Why T-Side has the advantage on Anubis
Anubis started off very much in favour of Terrorists back when the map was newer and hadn’t been explored as heavily. That’s thanks to its many forked entries and fakes that were difficult for defensive teams to master utility on right away. Since then, however, pros have found some valuable smokes and molotovs, helping to even it out.
Read up on the latest data and statistics from VALORANT
The map’s layout also partially favours T-Side due to how the teams both start. Terrorists can quickly get control of the map due to where their spawn is, giving them guaranteed lurking spots. While CT still has intricate pathways to take advantage of, this usually happens after they take the site.
Strategies for Anubis
Based on pro play and esports match outcomes gathered by Abios, we can gather some strategies that will help you excel on either side of Anubis.
If you’re on CT-Side, communication is key. Terrorists have a lot of opportunities to take over the site, so you need to have a game plan and a lot of cooperation. There are many access points for Terrorists to take advantage of, so become a master lurker. You need to gather as much intel about the enemy team’s positioning as you can so you can be prepared to counter it. Be careful around Canal & Bridge, which is where a lot of lurkers will get caught by Terrorists.
Learn about balance differences in CS:GO and VALORANT
And if you’re T-Side, be on the lookout for lurkers. Create strategies focusing on Canal & Bridge, where you can quickly overtake enemies. Work together to come up with alternative pathways whenever you suspect a CT lurker is up ahead.
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