Power Rankings: Final Beta Edition

Image courtesy of /u/stlemons, creativelyferalart.tumblr.com/

It has been a long and glorious ride through beta, a beta which saw over 10 weekends filled with GosuGamers Weekly Overwatch tournaments, and countless other competitive events as well. As we eagerly await the next stage of Overwatch, which releases on May 24th, this is how we rank the top of the competitive Overwatch scene.

1. Cloud9 (GosuGamers Global Rank #1)

It seems like only yesterday that Cloud9 was a little known team called GoogleMe making a their mark on the North American competitive scene. Shortly after, they took two maps off of a then-undefeated IDDQD squad and people took notice. Possibly as a result of that success, Cloud9 signed GoogleMe as their Overwatch team, and yet people still questioned the validity of the team's results. Cloud9 has done nothing but win since. They are 26-3 as Cloud9, with their only losses to other top teams, REUNITED, IDDQD (EnVyUs), and MixUp (Luminosity).

There is not a single weak spot on this team from an individual perspective, and they have the rare luxury of their flex (Grego) running a very solid Widowmaker, which frees up DPS players Reaver and SureFour to play flank damage, or in some occasions, a second Widowmaker. Cloud9 is not afraid to try new strategies, and some of their more unorthodox compositions have baffled and dominated opposing teams. They have established their dominance not only of the North American scene, but over the Global Overwatch scene as well, recently defeating REUNITED (5-3) in the Overkill.gg Finals.

2. REUNITED (GosuGamers Global Rankings #3)

It seems fitting, somehow, that REUNITED takes second place on our final beta power rankings. They have always been the second team in the conversation, save for a few weeks when they shuffled their roster and struggled, before coming back stronger than before. REUNITED has been around since day 1 of Overwatch; branded as Fnatic early on, this core group of gamers who’ve been playing together for years, has been a pillar of consistency, even if they consistantly take 2nd in tournaments. They are able to beat any team they face, and going forward into the game’s release, look like the team most capable of beating Cloud9, after they handed Cloud9 the most one sided defeat our #1 team has ever suffered on Dorado in the Overkill.gg Finals. Each individual player on this roster is capable of carrying this team to victory, and when they are all on their game, REUNITED is truly a frightening team to face. Suffice to say that to win tournaments, teams are at some point going to have to go through REUNITED.

3. EnVyUs (GosuGamers Global Rankings #2)

This roster could be dubbed IDDQD Redux, as it is largely what remains from the behemoth that was IDDQD. During the Overwatch beta, IDDQD was easily the most dominant team, putting together a win streak of over 50 sets before unexpected changes to the roster left them scrambling to find replacements for two of the top DPS players in the game(Tviq and Mendo). With EnVyUs’s strong North American team disbanded, the organization looks to pair the remaining member of that roster (Talespin) with the core 4 of IDDQD (Chipshjagen, InternetHulk, Cocco, and HarryHook (Nbrgbup)) and DPS player Taimou. Rumor has it the EU division of EnVyUs will move to North America and challenge within that region. They are off to a good start, as their most recent set saw them defeat North American team Luminosity Gaming 4-0.

4. Luminosity Gaming (GosuGamers Global Ranking #5)

While the core of the team formerly known as both NotEnigma and MixUp^ remains the same (Seagull, Enigma, Milo, and Esper), it’s the the new additions of Pookz and Gods which have leveled Luminosity up in recent weeks. While they are both strong players in their own regard, the addition of Gods and Pookz to this roster in particular has allowed core players Enigma and Seagull to play to their strengths in a meta which often requires several dps and hitscan heroes. While their results against top teams have not been stellar, the in-game footage tells a different story. Luminosity has had moments in which they look more than capable of defeating Cloud9, those moments often feature extremely creative gameplay coupled with individual playmaking. This roster has time to gel, but they must find a way to consistently compete against the teams ahead of them.

5. Creation eSports (GosuGamers Global Rankings #4)

Of course the fifth spot on this list goes to a team from the European region, as it is simply stronger and deeper than the top-heavy North American scene right now. Creation eSports, formerly #FlatEarth, was one of the only teams able to take maps off IDDQD during their dominant run, and never looks outclassed against any team. To that end, Creation has taken sets off of IDDQD and REUNITED, and managed to win a map against Cloud9. They've taken advantage their opportunities, closing out hot streaks of play with tournament wins, including a GosuGamers Weekly, and the Game On Overwatch Arena. Iit is impossible to count Creation eSports out of any bracket they're in.

Honorable Mention: Rogue (GosuGamers Global Rankings: #6)

Formely known as MyDong, Rogue features a lot of familiar names. The roster is half Swedish (TviQ, Re1nforce, iddqd), and half French (uNKoe, aKm, winz), with an American coach (roflgator) thrown in for good measure. Each individual player has experienced some success in Overwatch with various teams, and a version of this squad was able to beat our #2 REUNITED to win the Gamers Origin Overwatch Cup. Rogue is definitely a team worth keeping an eye on, as they look re-establish themselves amongst the top teams of EU Overwatch.

For more competitive Overwatch news, follow us @GosuOverwatch.

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