CS2 and PUBG Named Among the Most Toxic Online Games According to ADL

The American civil rights organization Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has published research focused on the safety of popular online games and the effectiveness of their systems for dealing with hate, antisemitism, extremism, and toxic behavior. According to the report’s findings, Counter-Strike 2 and PUBG were among the weakest-performing titles by these criteria.

According to ADL’s conclusions, the main issue with CS2 and PUBG was weak or insufficiently specific rules regarding extremism and hate speech, as well as the lack of a clear policy toward certain forms of aggressive and discriminatory behavior. The organization believes that these gaps in moderation and policy create a favorable environment for toxic content and abuse.

At the same time, the study notes that the strongest results in terms of user protection and anti-toxicity measures were shown by GTA Online, Minecraft, Call of Duty, and Fortnite. Games placed in the middle tier for protection included Roblox, Madden NFL, VALORANT, and Clash Royale.

For CS2, this assessment looks especially painful against the backdrop of constant criticism from players - not only because of cheaters, but also because of the overall atmosphere in matches. ADL had previously published data showing that Counter-Strike and VALORANT were among the games in which players most frequently reported harassment during play sessions.

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Thus, ADL’s new report strengthens the discussion that modern competitive games need more than just anti-cheat measures - they also need clearer and more effective systems to combat toxicity, hate, and extremist content.