There is now an updated version of this tier list for November 2019/Season 19! It can be found by clicking this link.

October is a busy month for Overwatch and one that is certain to see a large shakeup in the meta. With an extremely impactful set of patch notes having just gone live, and Overwatch’s Halloween Terror event just starting, there are some slight changes coming to the current double barrier meta.

[Now that these patch notes are live, this tier list will reflect how they have affected the meta.]

Overall, this tier list reflects heroes that are both individually well-kitted and how well they fit within the current meta. With each month, there will be a new tier list released with updates coming throughout the month to reflect patch updates.

Here is the current tier list for October 2019. Now that the changes are live from the latest patch notes, changes in rank will be shown next to each hero from the September 2019 tier list, which was being played on the previous patch.

Tier 1: Optimal heroes with high win-rates and synergy

Orisa

Sigma

Reaper

Moira

Winston (+1)

The biggest shocker in this first tier was that Sigma remained dominant despite his nerfs. While others like Symmetra and Zarya have fallen out of dominance, Sigma remains a top tier hero, alongside Orisa, Moira and Reaper.

Winston is the only hero that moves up to this tier in this month’s notes, due to the buff he received in the latest patch notes. This makes him a powerful dive hero that is much more capable of willing fights in the backline. Overall, the double-barrier meta is still strong, but Winston provides a viable alternative at tank.

[Related: Blizzard Unveils 2019 Blizzcon Virtual Ticket Overwatch Skins]

Overall, this is a strangely tank-centric meta. The combo of tanks, whether it be Sigma/Orisa, Sigma/Zarya, Sigma/Wrecking Ball or some other combination, will determine the pace of the game and shapes which DPS and healers are viable.

Tier 2: Good alternatives to Tier 1 and still viable overall

Wrecking Ball

Doomfist

Symmetra (-1)

Mei (-1)

Hanzo

Zarya (-1)

Ana

Lucio

D.Va

Pharah

Baptiste

Mobile heroes like Doomfist and Wrecking Ball climb up to Tier 2 for their ability to get around shields and force a quicker tempo. This is often a good way to either mesh with Sigma as a pseudo-dive style composition or counter an Orisa/Sigma composition. In the same vein, heroes like Winston, Lucio or Pharah do well in their mobility and ability to work around barriers.

Symmetra falls to this tier after nerfs from the patch notes, but she still remains quite strong overall, along with Zarya and Mei.

[Related: Biggest Takeaways from Overwatch’s Latest PTR Patch Notes]

Ana and Baptiste drop out of the top tier along with Hanzo due to bunker being less powerful overall. They are still strong behind an Orisa, but less powerful due to their lack of mobility.

Tier 3: Good situational picks but less strong overall

Reinhardt

Mercy

Bastion

Junkrat

Brigitte

Sombra

Torbjorn

Genji

McCree

These are all heroes that struggle to be viable in the early stages of Season 18, but could enter into the mix more as the meta develops. Reinhardt, for example, some believe could be viable as a way to push tempo and get past barriers. However, that just hasn’t been apparent in pro or ladder play at the current time.

Others like Genji, Bastion or Sombra are good map-specific picks but are far from being serviceable in multiple situations. These are still heroes that can be strong as comfort picks and can dominate at lower ELOs, but don’t look for these to carry a team through the majority of competitive play.

Tier 4: Difficult to have success in the current meta

Ashe

Roadhog (-1)

Solider: 76

Tracer

Zenyatta

Widowmaker

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Heroes like Zenyatta and Widowmaker haven’t been nerfed but have fallen to the bottom tier because of changes made to other heroes and the style of the current meta. As with the tier above, these can still be effective comfort picks and may very well enter into the meta at a later point. For now, tend away from these heroes in favor of other, more dominant heroes in the current meta.

As a reminder, this tier list is currently operating off of the latest live patch, 1.41. This list will be updated as patches continue to come out throughout the month of October. In the meantime, stay tuned for more news on Overwatch and the OWL here, at The Game Haus.

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