Tag Archives: Overwatch League

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Overwatch- Stage 1, Week 2

The Overwatch League has closed out its second week, with a great deal of excitement. There were certainly some very strong performances, some heartbreak, and a very notable suspension. With a strong showing of fans, this new eSports venture is only getting better every week. So let’s dive into the takeaways from Week 2 of the Overwatch League.

The first thing that needs to be discussed is the suspension of xQc. Felix “xQc” Lengyel was suspended and fined by the Overwatch League for homophobic insults towards Austin “Muma” Wilmont, who plays for the Houston Outlaws, after the Dallas Fuel/Houston Outlaws match-up. Lengyel is no stranger to controversy. The Twitch streamer/pro-gamer had previously been banned from the Overwatch for 7 days for throwing matches. This time, xQc was fined $2,000 and forced to sit out for 4 matches for violating the Code of Conduct. Jeff Kaplan has consistently expressed his desire to do whatever he could to create a less toxic environment for players so that they can have more fun while enjoying Overwatch. His push for kindness has definitely had a more positive effect on the game, including the way they turn phrases like “ez” into something more positive (or in some case, a mocking commentary to the person trying to be a jerk). This made it no surprise that when xQc said what he said about Muma, he was going to get punished by the Overwatch team. However, the fact that Dallas Fuel took it a step further to suspend him for the remainder of Stage 1 shows the true spirit of what Kaplan aspires Overwatch to be. It’s a bit depressing that this news has overtaken the conversation on the Overwatch League this week but it shows the high level of character that they hold their players to. (For more on this story, this is a great place to read the details.)

Boston Uprising continues to struggle this week. They were utterly demolished by Seoul Dynasty on Friday, which is to be expected considering the fact they are the best in the league, losing all 4 matches. On Saturday, they played against the San Fransisco Shock. This was a closer back and forth battle that was awesome to watch. The problem with this team still seems to be their inability to conquer these control points. They do not have a strong showing here and this is something that they should be focusing their efforts on. Their next match on Thursday, January 25 is against the London Spitfire (my second favorite team). Spitfire is a very strong team that is going to be incredibly difficult for Boston to overcome. Stage 1 just started, so there is plenty of time for them to turn this around.

It was an exciting week for Overwatch League fans and I hope this momentum keeps up. It should also be mentioned that Pine is more than just a McCree, as his Widow was also very deadly. He is one of the most dangerous players on New York. Jake had another strong showing, especially on his Junkrat, which he seemed unstoppable on this week. Birdring was another amazing player to watch this week. There are so many amazing players in this league that they all really have something to offer viewers at this point. It is going to be an incredible rush to the finish and I can’t wait to see how it ends up.

 

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The Overwatch League Opening Week-Stage 1

On January 10th, Stage 1 of the Overwatch regular season kicked off. Since the Overwatch League was announced, eSports fans were excited that there was a “major league” for a game. This could potentially lead to the popularity of eSports on a more mainstream level. (Maybe ESPN eSports? I would love not having to fight with streaming the matches on my TV.) There has been a lot of hype surrounding this league, especially since big names like the Kraft family got involved with their own pro team. (Go Uprising!) I will try not to be too crazy about them in these posts, but I am genuinely excited to have my own “home” team especially since it is run by the owners of my favorite sports team.

After spending the weekend watching the matches, there are some very clear points to make. First of all, if the NFL could find more casters like these guys it would be a lot less annoying. (More Romo please.) They are knowledgeable and passionate about the game, but they also seem to get as excited as viewers do watching the matches. I don’t dread the commentary at all, which is something that I think can make or break a sport.

The next point is the players. There are a few that I watch Twitch streams of when I head to bed, such as Jake, Linkzr, XqC, and Agilities that are just great to watch. Pine, though I didn’t see as much of him as I thought I would, utterly destroyed as McCree. I mean, he obliterated on Ilios so much to the point where it was almost unfair to have him in the matchup against my Uprising. Shaz on Zenyatta also seemed unbeatable. These are two players that are really artists. I also really liked DreamKazper’s performance but I was really hoping to see more of Mistakes. So far though, I can say that it is going to be an amazing journey to watch all of these players evolve over the inaugural season.

Then there is approaching this as a player. I find that since watching the matches, my skills as a player have become a lot better. I have yet to snipe a Valk Mercy out of the air while jumping around as Widow, but I did headshot a Widow who was trying to snipe me back. I won that Widow-War. This is a sport that I think anyone can get into and it would be interesting to see how this league grows if its popularity does.

I hope that this League explodes into the mainstream. Esports is still viewed as something “just for the geeks” but this can be just as thrilling as a “real sport”, though I would argue that it is a lot more thrilling that most of the sports people watch on television. I’m looking at you, baseball. If the first  weekend of matches are any indication of how this year is going to go, I’m excited to be on this ride.