Overwatch
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Overwatch Role Queue arrives in latest update, implementing 2-2-2 meta
Fariha Bhatti
The Role Queue beta has arrived in Overwatch. While the 2-2-2 role lock has been standard in Overwatch League for weeks, the new matchmaking system has now come to the retail version of the game available to casual players. It’s a big update on its own, but it comes with a collection of additional changes to support it. As the name suggests, role queue allows players to choose whether they …
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Guangzhou Charge debut surprising new tactic in Overwatch League
Nina Forneloza
The Guangzhou Charge have some next level plays up their sleeves. The team demonstrated some shockingly effective stall tactics during their recent 4-0 victory over the New York Excelsior, showing how to hold an objective without even killing an enemy. The win comes as a huge boost to the 9th-ranked team, who pulled off a big upset over the league’s No. 2 squad. After capturing the first point on the …
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Kevin Garnett enters esports industry by investing in Triumph Esports
M Alzamora
Former NBA star Kevin Garnett isn’t playing basketball these days, but he’s keeping his competitive side fed with esports. Garnett’s sports management company Big Ticket Sports, LLC has invested in Triumph Esports. The organization has two separate branches including tournament organizer Rivalcade and Triumph Gaming. “Our relationship with Triumph Esports is a natural fit as we look to showcase and elevate shared lifestyle experiences through competition, content, and live events,” …
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Overwatch patch 1.39 brings role queue and Sigma to live servers
Fariha Bhatti
A new Overwatch patch has been released by Blizzard for the retail version of the game and is now available on all platforms. Overwatch patch 1.39 introduces the 31st hero to the game, along with the role queue system for the competitive game mode. There are also a number of balance changes coming along with this patch. Hero 31, better known as Sigma, was first revealed to players three weeks …
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Florida Mayhem announce Gift of Life Marrow Registry partnership
Olivia Richman
The Florida Mayhem, through parent company Misfits Gaming, has announced a partnership with the Gift of Life Marrow Registry. To help fight blood cancer, Gift of Life registers volunteer bone marrow and stem cell donors. These donations can help cure leukemia, lympoma, sickle cell, and 100 other diseases through transplantation, according to a press release. The partnership kicks off August 8 at the Blizzard Arena. The Overwatch League team, including …
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LA Valiant’s FCTFCTN talks globalization, Orisa, and OWL fans
Olivia Richman
The Los Angeles Valiant took down the Dallas Fuel, bringing them to a 10-14 record for the Overwatch League’s second season. Currently in 14th, the team is aiming for at least 12th place, which would give them a chance to fight for a spot in the playoffs. Tank main Russell “FCTFCTN” Campbell told WIN.gg that his team is taking it one match at a time. How are you feeling about …
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Atlanta Reign’s Babybay wants Widowmaker duel with Birdring
Olivia Richman
Atlanta Reign need to win seven games to make it to the playoffs. Andrej “babybay” Francisty doesn’t want to jinx his team, but he’s pretty sure they can do it. After defeating Paris Eternal 4-0 today, there’s definitely reason to feel confident. WIN.gg sat down with the Widowmaker specialist to find out more about his team’s strengths in the 2-2-2 meta and what it will take to make Soldier: 76 viable …
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Florida Mayhem Sayaplayer discusses surprise win over London
Olivia Richman
The Florida Mayhem surprised fans and analysts alike when they dominated the London Spitfire, taking all four maps in the series. This win puts Mayhem at a 3-21 record. When compared to Spitfire, who now sit at a 15-10, it’s quite clear why this win was a huge shock to the Overwatch League community. After Mayhem took Lijiang 2-0, and then all but destroyed Spitfire on Volskaya, caster Brennon “Bren” Hook …
Sigma’s first set of skins revealed in Overwatch PTR update
Fariha Bhatti
News
Blizzard has updated the Overwatch PTR to reveal the unlockable skins for Sigma. As with most heroes on their day of release, Sigma has a total of 10 additional cosmetics that can be obtained through loot boxes. Four of them are simple recolors of his default skin, which come in blue, green, orange, and pink. Sigma’s rare skins are similar to the common recolors but with more detail. The first, …
Hangzhou Spark detail Krystal’s attitude problems, behavioral issues
Olivia Richman
News
The Overwatch League has suspended the Hangzhou Spark’s Cai “Krystal” Shilong after the player avoided participating in matches and practice. Earlier this week, Krystal was fined when he didn’t tell the Chinese team’s management that he would be absent for 10 days. While the Spark had agreed that Krystal could return to China for a family emergency, he extended the trip without any communication with the team. In an official …
Spitfire pull off dazzling Widowmaker teleport play against Charge
William Davis
News
The London Spitfire pulled off one of the most creative plays in Overwatch League history during their match against the Guangzhou Charge. At the start of map three on Blizzard World, Ji-hyeok “birdring” Kim used the teleporter ability on Symmetra to quickly transport superstar DPS player Joon-yeong “Profit” Park to the high ground. From there, Profit used his top-tier Widowmaker skills to take the head off the Charge’s flex support …
Toronto Defiant Mangachu on pressure, Torbjorn, and positivity
Olivia Richman
News
After a lot of back and forth action, ties, and some overtime, the Toronto Defiant defeated the Shanghai Dragons. This brought the Defiant one step closer to the playoffs, but it’s still a tough road ahead according to Liam “Mangachu” Campbell. WIN.gg chatted with the DPS main after thir victory to discuss the future of Torbjorn in Stage 4 and how the team has helped him through a depressive state …
Washington Justice Corey on reversing the team’s fortunes with 2-2-2
Olivia Richman
News
After an intense match, the Washington Justice reverse swept the Florida Mayhem in a five-map series. Despite having a 2-0 record in Stage 4, the D.C. team is already out of the running for the playoffs. But that hasn’t stopped Corey “Corey” Nigra from enjoying his time on the Blizzard Arena stage. WIN.gg sat down with Corey to find out more about his team’s 2-2-2 strategies and how they plan …
Blizzard to use streamers to boost Overwatch League viewership
M Alzamora
News
With Overwatch League’s declining viewership keeping Activision Blizzard up late at night, the company is seeking outside help to draw crowds back to the game. Blizzard will look to partner with platforms like Twitch to strengthen its relationship with streamers and will execute strategies to increase the league’s visibility, Dexerto reports. At its most basic level, the agreement essentially offers “bounties” for select Twitch streamers who are willing to send …
Profit doesn’t miss GOATS, feels ready for Vancouver showdown
Olivia Richman
News
The London Spitfire have stopped the Guangzhou Charge’s steady climb up the ranks. With a 3-1 record, the Spitfire easily kept their sixth-place spot in the Overwatch League Season 2 rankings, and they’re still in the running for a playoffs spot. DPS specialist Park “Profit” Jun-yeung doesn’t see his team slowing down any time soon thanks to the 2-2-2 role lock this stage. WIN.gg talked DPS heroes with the skilled pro after …
Australia and China reveal rosters for the 2019 Overwatch World Cup
William Davis
News
Australia and China revealed their rosters for the 2019 Overwatch World Cup. The fourth edition of the event is a few months away and the national teams are starting to come together. The two countries unveiled their star-studded lineups for the event. Australia surprised everyone with a 6-man roster. The team decided to bring along one extra coach instead of a substitute player. Talon Esports coach Sam “Face” Mereweather …
Washington Justice’s new tank duo not playing Stage 4 due to Visas
Olivia Richman
News
The Washington Justice’s two new tank players won’t be able to compete in Stage 4. Newly signed Elliot “ELLIVOTE” Vaneryd and Lukas “LullSiSH” Wiklund won’t be playing in Season 2 thanks to visa complications according to Justice vice president Grant Paranjape. Instead, the tank mains will make their debut in the global 2020 season. Paranjape went on to tweet that the Swedish visa application process currently has a long wait time. …
Chengdu Hunters produce first Mercy MVP of OWL Season 2
Olivia Richman
News
Even with the insanity that is the first week of the 2-2-2 role lock, the Chengdu Hunters somehow managed to still surprise people with their gameplay and team compositions. That’s what helped the Chinese team defeat the Boston Uprising after finishing the match with a 3-2 score. “Even though we’ve gone to 2-2-2, they remain the most unpredictable team,” said analyst Robert “Hexagrams” Kirkbride, referencing the still undecided meta the teams are …
Chengdu Hunters announce signing of hot prospect and OWWC star Leave
gabhernandez
News
The Chengdu Hunters are making plans for the future. The team announced the addition of Huang “leave” Xin as a “contracted talent.” He will not be joining as a member of their Overwatch League roster due to age restrictions but the team indicated that it is aiming to remedy that following the season two finals. “To clarify for our fans, Leave is not yet eligible to sign an OWL player …
Twitch Rivals Overwatch Workshop features LEGO charity donations
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
News
Twitch has hosted its second Twitch Rivals Overwatch Workshop. The workshop featured a collaboration between Twitch, Blizzard Entertainment, and LEGO, and was set as a charity tournament. The Twitch Rivals: Lego Overwatch Showdown was played over the weekend of July 25. It featured 24 players and streamers in teams of six competing for Lego sets, which were then donated to a charity of their choice. The winner got 100 Lego …
Overwatch has become a mainstay in competitive gaming, though the Blizzard creation hasn’t always had a smooth road to travel. From massive peaks of success to major controversies and dips in popularity, the Overwatch franchise has proved resilient, still playing host to legions of players and fans.
Along the way, the game served as host to one of the most ambitious projects in the growing history of esports, and saw the release of a sequel that changed in form and function multiple times before finally releasing to the public.
What is Overwatch?
Overwatch is a prototypical “hero shooter,” a game that combines first-person shooting gameplay with heroic abilities that are unique to each of the game’s diverse cast of characters. One character might swing a giant hammer and wield a protective shield behind which teammate can take cover, while another might zip around the game’s world with twin guns blazing, warping time and space at will.
That variety of characters and playing styles is a big reason for Overwatch’s success. When no two characters play exactly alike, the sheer variety available in the game becomes a draw. Throw in colorful visuals, dynamic and responsive gameplay, and action-packed battles between teams of opposing players all combining their different abilities together, and you can begin to understand the popularity of Overwatch.
When developers at Blizzard first released Overwatch, there was nothing else quite like it. The closest any major release had come was likely Team Fortress 2, which also featured teams of opposing characters wielding varied abilities in prolonged battles. But Overwatch leaned even further into the unique qualities of its characters, including their presentation. Across PCs and consoles alike, the game proved to be a sensation upon its 2016 release.
What happened to the Overwatch League?
Originally founded in 2017, the Overwatch League was meant to serve as a long-term competitive hub for the game’s professional teams and players prior to its official shutdown in 2024. The league was created with big ambitions in mind, as Blizzard, by then partnered with massive publisher Activision, planned to seed local teams in a variety of cities spread across the world. The idea was to emulate traditional professional sports by rooting pro teams in certain cities and regions in the hopes of cultivating local fan followings.
This was a big change compared what had become the standard in esports, with esports organizations representing themselves to their fans regardless of region. At most, broad regions such as North America or Europe were most often marketed to by individual teams. To hone that in on a specific city was a significant change.
Activision-Blizzard also took the step of making pro Overwatch a closed system; that is, high-level tournaments were broadly restricted outside of official OWL events. While this exclusivity offered theoretical opportunity for the OWL through scarcity, it was also a different approach relevant to the established norm in esports, which traditionally saw smaller grass-roots events feed into a game’s highest levels as tournaments gradually scaled up in prominence and prize offerings.
Demanding tens of millions of dollars from investors who sought to own an OWL team and signing big-money exclusive broadcast deals with streaming platforms, the OWL got itself off to a hot start. But concerns over flagging viewership and overall revenue struggles persisted as the league marched forward. Its intended model proved unsustainable, and the league was eventually shut down.
Do people still play Overwatch?
Despite the fate of OWL, Overwatch remains broadly popular in its current form: Overwatch 2. The game remains under active development at Activision-Blizzard, regularly receiving new in-game events and more unique heroes with special abilities that allow the game to be played in different ways.
The release of Overwatch 2 was itself not without some controversy, as Blizzard’s plans for its contents changed and shifted through the sequel’s development cycle, and the final version of OW2 released as more of a continuation of the original game than a distinctly different sequel. But that continuation still preserved the gameplay and overall experience so many players had come to love about OW. For them, getting more of the same ultimately was not an issue.
