Reinforce cut from Overwatch League analyst desk, Fusions signs with Boston Uprising

Last week, long time Overwatch professional player turned analyst Jonathan “Reinforce” Larsson announced his departure from the Overwatch League analyst desk via Twitter. This announcement marks the end of a near three year run as an analyst where he got his big break providing work for the 2016 Overwatch World Cup. The Swedish born professional gamer will be taking his talents back to his streaming platform where he plans to stream regularly via Twitch.

After a stellar World Cup performance at Blizzcon 2018, British Main Tank Cameron “Fusions” Bosworth has been picked up for a two-way contract as Boston Uprising announced their latest signing this week.

Reinforce says goodbye

Reinforce broke the news of his departure from the Overwatch League in a heartfelt message to his fans over the weekend. In order to enjoy the festivities, he waited until after Blizzcon 2018 to make the announcement in order to not take away from the competition. While many fans respected the gesture, there were a few pundits questioning the move considering Reinforce’s depth of knowledge for the game.

This move marks yet another high profile departure from the Overwatch League analyst desk as Alberto “Crumbz” Rengifo’s contract was also not renewed for the 2019 season. With Reinforce also facing the axe, it might be possible that Overwatch League may be headed for more of a comedic angle with their coverage of the games instead of an analytical approach.

While those types of approaches have been fun for charity events, serious events like the World Cup and Overwatch League should always be treated in a professional manner with the best analysis possible. Losing great minds for the game like Reinforce when breaking down some of the highest caliber gameplay in the sport could have a negative impact over the course of next year.

Regardless, Reinforce is far from leaving the scene as he made it clear his one true passion is still the game of Overwatch and he will continue striving to improve his craft. With eight more teams being added to the league, and the number of games sure to increase, it’s interesting to see exactly which direction the Overwatch League takes as they attempt to cover all those games and teams in an adequate format

Fusions makes his mark

If there was any player worthy of an Overwatch League call up after Team United Kingdom’s heroics at the World Cup, Fusions is one of the first players that come to mind. His ability on staple tanks like Reinhardt and Winston made waves throughout the whole weekend, and his 1v1 capability against even the most seasoned players like xQc and Muma showed he is worthy of a trial.

The trials leading up to Blizzcon paid off as it was secretly announced that Boston Uprising were looking to pick up his contract as a two-way player for Overwatch Contenders and the Overwatch League. Two-way contracts have become popularized in both the NBA and NHL as it serves as a method for farming players and getting good practice.

At the moment the rules state that a player that competes in the Overwatch League cannot compete in Contenders during the same week. If Fusions appears more than two times for Boston Uprising, he loses his eligibility to compete for Toronto Esports. If Fusions becomes a hot commodity for the team, that may be a possibility, but with two Main Tanks ahead of him on the depth chart its not likely in the near future.