To no one’s surprise, the meta and go to composition for teams in Overwatch is Dive. Regardless of what level you’re playing at, dive is one of the easiest and most effective compositions to play. Professionals in the Overwatch League have nearly perfected this playstyle, being able to swiftly wipe a team and capture the objective. With a wide variety of heroes to choose from, not every dive composition looks exactly the same, but the core heroes and overall gameplan does.
What is Dive and How does it Work?
Dive composition does exactly what it states: you dive onto the enemy team. Many heroes such as Tracer, Winston, and Genji have movement abilities that can close the gap or distance between yourself and the enemy team. The goal of a dive composition is simple: multiple people dive onto a low health enemy – such as support or dps player – to eliminate them instantly. Once you’ve been able to eliminate one person the numbers advantage should be in your favor, thus greatly increasing the chances of winning the fight. If this is well coordinated and everyone on your team arrives at the same time onto the enemy, the burst damage is so great that there is not enough enemy healing to keep them alive. Dive compositions are simple, effective, and great against teams who aren’t as coordinated or when enemy players are mispositioned. Below is a clip of the Philadelphia Fusion running dive on defense.
Common Heroes in a Dive Composition
As mentioned earlier, heroes with movement abilities and dashes are the core reason why dive works. The standard dive composition is 2-2-2: two tanks, two dps, two supports. The two tanks that remain almost unchanged in any dive composition are D.Va and Winston. Both tanks have gap closing abilities and abilities that can negate incoming damage, with relatively short cooldown times. The only other reasonable option is Zarya or Reinhardt because they can shield players while closing the gap, mitigating damage to teammates who are diving. Tanks lead the charge and are core pieces of running dive.
When it comes to DPS heroes in a dive composition, Genji and Tracer are the two most common heroes. Both have a high amount of burst damage and movement abilities which close the gap. Additionally, if Genji is a part of a kill, his dash ability Swift Strike resets and it allows him to dash through other enemies. Although uncommon, other heroes such as Doomfist and Sombra could be options for a dive composition.
As for support heroes in dive comp, Lucio and Zenyatta are the most common. Lucio does area of effect healing and can speed boost his team, making them reach their opponent that much faster. Zenyatta players on the other hand can call out and Discord enemies, so that they take more damage, allowing the team to burst down a single target that much faster. Two other supports that could be played are Mercy and Moira. Both heroes provide much more healing as opposed to Lucio and Zenyatta. Regardless of hero choice, the overall idea of dive remains the same.
Weakness of Running Dive
Even though dive is easy to play, it can be exploited. dive requires communication from the whole team. If one person decides to dive in and the rest of the team isn’t there, it makes it easier for the enemy to eliminate that person, giving them the numbers advantage. Also, some compositions and heroes are dive resistant. Enemies who play Bastion, Junkrat or Reaper can complete shred enemies when they dive in.
Lastly, teams are left susceptible to counter-dives. Teams must fully commit because when diving, with this they use most, if not all, of their movement abilities to close the gap. If someone doesn’t dive in, good teams will recognize this and eliminate players who are by themselves or who are unable to get help from the rest of their team.
Final Thoughts
It is obvious that dive is the most played composition in Overwatch. It is easy to play, requires little communication, and can be used on almost every map. Unless teams learn to adapt or create unique strategies to counter it, dive will continue to be the go to composition. To see how professional players execute it and come up with strategies to counter it, tune into the Overwatch League.
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Featured Image Credit: Josh Armstrong | Hero Portraits: Blizzard Entertainment
Videos Clips: Overwatch League