Counter-Strike 2 vs Apex Legends™
Counter-Strike 2 and Apex Legends™ both land in Action, Free To Play on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Action, Free To Play on Steam. Counter-Strike 2 (2012) is 8 years older than Apex Legends™ (2020). Counter-Strike 2 scores higher on Steam reviews (86.4% positive) than Apex Legends™ (76.6% positive). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Side-by-side comparison
 Counter-Strike 2 |  Apex Legends™ | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2012 | 2020 |
| Genres | Action, Free To Play | Action, Adventure, Free To Play |
| Platforms | Windows, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Unsupported |
| Price | Free to play | Free to play |
| Steam reviews | 86.4% positive (2,531,026 reviews) | 76.6% positive (441,156 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Cross-Platform Multiplayer | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | Valve | Respawn |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Free To Play on Steam.
- Counter-Strike 2 (2012) is 8 years older than Apex Legends™ (2020).
- Counter-Strike 2 scores higher on Steam reviews (86.4% positive) than Apex Legends™ (76.6% positive).
- Both are free to play.
- Apex Legends™ has co-op; Counter-Strike 2 does not.
- Steam Deck: Counter-Strike 2 is Deck Playable, Apex Legends™ is Deck Unsupported.
Counter-Strike 2 vs Apex Legends™ — FAQ
- Which is better, Counter-Strike 2 or Apex Legends™?
- On Steam reviews Counter-Strike 2 scores higher (86.4% positive) than Apex Legends™ (76.6% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, Counter-Strike 2 is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Counter-Strike 2 or Apex Legends™ first?
- If you want chronology, Counter-Strike 2 (2012) came out before Apex Legends™ (2020). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are Counter-Strike 2 and Apex Legends™ similar?
- They overlap on Action, Free To Play on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.