Fantasy Game for Stage 3 of the Budapest Major Goes Live with Boosted Season Points

Fantasy Game for Stage 3 of the Budapest Major Goes Live with Boosted Season Points

The fantasy mode tied to the Counter-Strike 2 mega-event, the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, has officially opened for Stage 3—with a major incentive: increased Season points for participants. According to the official announcement on HLTV.org, the fantasy game for Stage 3 is live and players can earn roughly 50 % more Season points compared with earlier stages. 

What’s new in Stage 3 fantasy

The fantasy feature on HLTV’s website details how the scoring system has been slightly tweaked to reflect the heightened significance of Stage 3. For example, team points for a win are set at 6 points and for a loss at -3 points.  Furthermore, the documentation states that participants will receive the approximately “±50% more Season points” for each placement tier in this stage. 

In practical terms, this means that success in Stage 3’s fantasy game will yield greater returns—making the decision of which players to pick and which teams to trust even more critical for those tracking long-term league or seasonal performance.

Background: The Budapest Major & Stage 3 context

The StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 is the fourth Major event in Counter-Strike 2 and features 32 of the world’s best teams vying for a prize pool of USD $1.25 million. The tournament structure consists of three Swiss-system group stages (Stages 1-3) followed by a single-elimination playoff bracket. 

Stage 3 is the final Swiss-stage before the playoffs. It runs from December 4 to December 7, 2025 according to tournament info. The teams entering Stage 3 are comprised of the survivors from Stage 2 plus eight seeded teams that bypassed earlier rounds. The stakes are high: performance here determines advancement to the playoff bracket.  The first-round matchups for Stage 3 have also been published, featuring heavy hitters and blockbuster pairings such as FURIA vs Natus Vincere and Team Vitality vs FaZe Clan.

Why the fantasy boost matters

Increased points = more engagement. By enhancing the Season-point yield, HLTV is effectively encouraging fans to engage more deeply with the fantasy mode at this critical stage of the Major. Participants who have been tracking their performance throughout the Major will find that Stage 3 presents an optimal “multiplication” opportunity for their seasonal score.

Higher stakes reflect the tournament phase. Stage 3 is a make-or-break phase—not only for the teams, but for fantasy players as well. Because the level of competition rises, and because the match stakes are greater, the fantasy scoring boost aligns with the idea that outcomes here carry more weight.

Strategic value for fantasy players. With the boost, fantasy players will need to weigh team stability, player consistency, and matchups very carefully. Mistakes—or picking a team eliminated early—can have a larger negative impact given the boosted scale. On the flip side, those who anticipate well and pick wisely can make a significant leap in seasonal rankings.

Fantasy game mechanics (key points)

• Participants form a fantasy team via HLTV’s “Fantasy Overview” page for Stage 3. 

• For each team in one’s lineup, a win gives +6 points; a loss gives –3 points. 

• Because of the increased yield (≈50% more), each placement tier in the fantasy game awards more Season-points than in previous stages.

• Timing is crucial: the fantasy game is already live, and players interested in maximizing their return should lock in their line-ups ahead of matches starting December 4.

What this means for fantasy players

Fantasy players who have been tracking through Stage 1 and Stage 2 now face a moment of opportunity. Stage 3’s boosted points mean that rivals in the fantasy leaderboard can close gaps, and longer-term seasonal standings are more volatile and competitive. It also adds a layer of strategy: do you play a “safe” core of expected performers, or do you gamble on breakout teams and players given the greater upside?

Moreover, for those playing fantasy across multiple esports seasons (or across multiple Majors), the boost in Stage 3 sets a precedent: high-stakes stages of major events get elevated rewards, and use-cases like these may become more common.

The bigger picture

This announcement comes within a broader trend of esports organisers making fantasy integrations more compelling. As the esports ecosystem matures, fantasy games tied to live tournaments are increasingly important for fan engagement, viewership metrics and brand-extensions. The Budapest Major’s fantasy boost can be seen as part of that evolution—where fantasy modes are not just add-ons, but strategic components of fan experience.

For the Major itself, the introduction of this fantasy boost underlines how critical Stage 3 is. It emphasises to participating teams and fans alike that the event is moving into its most rigorous phase. The increased fantasy reward mirrors the intensity and value of Stage 3 matches in the hierarchy of the tournament.

Final take-away

If you are participating in HLTV’s fantasy game for the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, Stage 3 is your pivotal opportunity. With approximately 50 % more Season points on offer, the decisions you make now carry greater weight. Whether you’re playing aggressively or cautiously, being on time and strategic in your picks is essential. The fantasy boost aligns perfectly with the major tournament’s format escalation—it’s a win for fans, for fantasy competitors, and for the event’s engagement model as a whole.