Cloud9 ended the closed beta period as the definitive “Kings of Overwatch” — while Team EnVyUs was on break for the month leading up to release, Cloud9 took home a streak of first place finishes. Though their streak ended after winning the Agents Rising LAN, Cloud9 still looked promising in that they consistently placed behind only Team EnVyUs. For a period of almost a month, Cloud9 would place 2nd at every tournament, but they soon faced struggles once more when Gale Force eSports rose to prominence.

Gale Force eSports became perhaps the biggest thorn in Cloud9’s side. Regardless of the name the team fell under — they went by Code7, Team Solomid, and compLexity during different periods of time — the squad always managed to have a slight edge over the “Kings of Beta.” As Cloud9 lost more and more, fans searched desperately for a scapegoat. Surefour was clearly playing well, and KyKy’s Zarya was as strong as ever. Naturally, eyes turned towards reaver, who simply was not as effective as he once was.

Out with the old…

reaver originally made a name for himself on Widowmaker, a sniper whose ability to get quick picks is unmatched. While Widowmaker was certainly a bit too powerful, reaver made her look downright insane. In a metagame without a hero limit, reaver was able to play only the heroes he felt best on and had no reason to dabble outside his comfort zone.

C9 reaver // Photo credit: Cloud9.gg

However, numerous metagame changes hit Cloud9 at once. Widowmaker was nerfed to oblivion and McCree was temporarily removed from play due to nerfs; alongside these changes, Blizzard finally agreed to implement a hero limit in all competitive formats.

reaver’s impact on matches was severely hampered in the new metagame, and whenever Cloud9 faced a loss, fans would immediately harp on him. Twitch chat was incredibly toxic, and Twitter and Reddit were no better. Fair or not, reaver faced criticism wherever he looked. Despite the criticism, he continued to work to improve, and eventually found comfort on Tracer towards the end of the summer.

After a disappointing exit at gamescom, reaver continued to work on his new preferred hero, and at times he even appeared to be carrying Cloud9. The team’s “big bang” combos were very good, but unfortunately fans continued to use reaver as the scapegoat for Cloud9’s losses. Whether or not the widespread criticism affected reaver is a question only he can answer. However, after teams realized reaver was adamant about choosing Tracer, people developed better answers to stop him in his tracks.

While streaming for several hundred viewers, Grego accidentally let slip that deBett would be retiring. Though the news was not entirely unexpected, the decision came down to a choice between a traditional job and an opportunity to continue in eSports. Though KyKy was traditionally the stronger of the two tank players on Cloud9, deBett was still very well known as a top player, so his decision to quit eSports to further his career outside the sector was at least somewhat surprising.

Grego himself left Cloud9’s starting roster due to what seemed like a struggle to get along with select players. While Cloud9 was traditionally seen as a group of friends, especially with the core group of players having known each other for over four years, clearly losing repeatedly had taken its toll.

I left the team because of personality conflicts that I believe were [affecting the speed at which we learned].

Grego was traditionally seen as one of the more solid players on Cloud9, so his departure was a bit surprising. Nevertheless, he ultimately set the stage for the entire rebuild of Cloud9.

…and in with the new!

The first evidence of a Cloud9 roster rebuild came in the first Alienware Monthly Melee of October. Cloud9 added Mendokusaii, ryb, and Wolf as players on trial. While the team got off to an unceremonious start, losing 2–0 to Team Liquid, Cloud9 actually took home the title. The team began to work together better and better until they defeated FaZe Clan, Team Liquid, and compLexity Gaming—all top teams in North America.

While Wolf did not last long, Roolf stepped up to take his place. Previously, Roolf played with Method Gaming, a team that actually defeated Cloud9 during the group stages of the Overwatch Open. Though he wasn’t extremely well-known before the tournament, he stood out alongside ultimawep in their victories. Roolf’s Zenyatta and Ana provide the perfect compliments to Adam’s newfound main in Lucio, and ultimately serve as a solid replacement for Grego.

ryb is best known for his Overwatch Open performance as well—due to a family issue, skipjack of Misfits had to stay home. In his stead, ryb stepped up and played the main tank role for Misfits. ryb demonstrated top tier Reinhardt play in his week-long stay in Atlanta, but despite taking home a title with the team, Misfits decided to stick with skipjack. Cloud9 actually made a very contested signing—ryb’s performance over the tournament only improved, and he played exceptionally well during the grand finals on national TV.

Mendokusaii (left) // Photo credit: TaKeTV

Mendokusaii is best known for his tenure on Team IDDQD (not to be confused with the player, iddqd). While the rest of IDDQD left to become the team now known as EnVyUs, Mendokusaii floated around mid-tier teams until he settled down and started simply streaming. Once a top-tier DPS player, Mendo’s lack of play in the professional scene will likely require a month to fully recover from. In his time on Cloud9, the team finished in 1st and 2nd in the two Alienware Monthly Melees they participated in, but only managed a 5th-6th place finish at the DreamHack Winter qualifier. Additionally, the team lost to The Rise Nation in the MGA Regional, a team that Cloud9 has no business losing against.

The future’s so bright…

This Cloud9 roster is undeniably loaded with talent. Both DPS players have taken the top spot on the ladder at numerous different points, and the team has solid tournament experience from every single role. While the old Cloud9 appeared to be fueled on a strong bond, the statements following the team’s collapse prove that not to be the entire story. Nevertheless, the new roster is solid from all perspectives.

Surefour, Adam, and KyKy are the three players that remain, and were traditionally known as the strongest of the bunch. Surefour in particular has the ability to play both hitscan DPS and projectile heroes at a world class level, meaning whatever DPS accompanies him has the freedom to pick whatever they need. Mendokusaii has this same strength—while he’s traditionally known for his outstanding McCree, he can play any DPS at a top level, opening up numerous possibilities and scenarios that can allow Cloud9 to adapt faster than other teams with distinct roles.

Though it has only a month of experience, the roster has shown great potential. Winning an Alienware Monthly Melee against the top teams in NA—bar Fnatic and EnVyUs—shows that the team does have the ability to win. Whether or not Cloud9 can find consistency is the biggest concern. Previously the team would lose to lower ranked teams (Method comes to mind) but then go on to put up tight sets against EnVyUs the very next day. Cloud9 cannot do that if this roster is to be a successful. The team must strive for consistency early on, and use that as a building point for more successful results in the future. All of the new acquisitions are clear investments for the future, and the team must treat them as such before challenging for the title of “best.”

Can they do it? There’s no way to truly know—but this roster certainly has the talent to make it.