The Summer Showdown made quite the splash in terms of the Overwatch meta. In case it wasn’t obviously clear, Genji was one of the big winners from his recent changes and as he skyrocketed in the rankings. Players like Brady “Agilities” Girardi and Yong-han “SP9RK1E” highlighted what the cyber-ninja could do with a team behind him, and Josue “Eqo” Corona displayed how good Genji can be even without a team.
The overall meta has warped around the devastating impact Genji has in each match. If the hero can’t help or hinder Genji in some way, they are more than likely left on the sidelines. Support’s worst nightmare has come to fruition – the “Nano-Blade” meta has begun.
The following tier list exists precisely to help guide players through this more dynamic meta, reflecting how individually well-kitted Overwatch’s 32 heroes are and how well they synergize with other powerful heroes. With each month, there will be a new tier list released to update changes in each hero’s performance from month-to-month so be sure to check back next month to see what changes lie ahead.
[Previous Tier List: June 2020]
Tier 1: Optimal Heroes with High Win Rates and Synergy
- Ana
- Ashe
- Baptiste
- Brigitte
- Genji
- McCree
- Orisa
- Sigma
Well, the Genji buffs certainly proved to completely revitalize the hero. Genji was a must-pick in the Summer Showdown, and continues to absolutely terrorize ranked matches at all levels. The reduced shuriken spread allows Genji to build his ultimate incredible fast. Dragon Blade serves as an almost “instant-win” ability, forcing opponents to expend every resource and cooldown to stop the ultimate.
The heroes around Genji exist to only help him build Blade or support him through the duration of the Blade. Orisa’s “Halt!” is important to help pull in the enemy team for massive shuriken damage. Sigma’s “Accretion” is a strong deterrent to diving Genji’s, Â and “Gravitic Flux” locks down potential targets for Genji to slice through. Brigitte’s “Rally” keeps Genji topped off with plenty of armor while he goes dashing around cleaning up enemy supports.
Speaking of which, Brigitte is still powerful despite her recent nerf. The ability to burst-heal allies while sustaining herself keeps her in the top of the tier list.
Tier 2:Â Good Alternatives to Tier 1 and Still Viable Overall
- Echo
- Moira
- Reinhardt
- Torbjorn
- Tracer
- Widowmaker
- Zarya
If Genji isn’t quite working out for the team, Tracer is still there as a perfectly fine fall-back plan. “Pulse Bomb” is perfectly capable of winning a team fight by itself, with a little help from an Orisa pull. Her ability to cause havoc in the back line is important, as it opens up more space for the friendly front line to take space. Tracer pressures Ashe well enough, but a damage-boosted Ashe can easily put an end to the flanking speedster.
Echo is slowly falling out of favor thanks to the prevalent Echo/Ashe meta. Echo copying Genji is still quite powerful, as getting a “Dragon Blade” is even easier in “Duplicate” form. Although it may be easier just to play Genji to start, Echo does open much more in terms of flexibility and creativity depending on the enemy composition.
Tier 3: Good Situational Picks but Less Strong Overall
- D.Va
- Hanzo
- Lucio
- Mei
- Mercy
- Pharah
- Reaper
- Soldier: 76
- Symmetra
- Winston
- Wrecking Ball
- Zenyatta
The odd thing about some of these third-tier characters is their alleged ability to counter first-tier strategies. Lucio and Zenyatta have extremely strong defensive ultimates, and Mei should be able to freeze down important targets or wall off sightlines to stop snipers from doing too much damage. The unfortunate reality is that these heroes just don’t bring the same value as other metacharacters. Zenyatta and Lucio can’t keep the team healthy enough, and a properly boosted “Dragon Blade” slices right through their ultimates.
D.Va still remains a tier three option, although her recent buffs did make her a little more viable on more vertical maps. The “Defense Matrix” cooldown reduction will go a long way to helping prevent devastating pull-dynamite combos from Orisa and Ashe. While “Self-Destruct” is a little trickier to land due to a double-shield meta, D.Va is the most likely candidate to rise in the tier list.
Tier 4: Difficult to Have Success Within the Current Meta
- Bastion
- Doomfist
- Junkrat
- Roadhog
- Sombra
Doomfist falls to the lowest tier as his one-shot potential is continually decreased with the double-shield meta. Between Orisa pulls, Baptiste lamps, and Brigitte armor, squishes just don’t die like they used to. Diving into a beefy front line like Orisa/Sigma can be incredibly tough without a clear way to get out. Doomfist needs a little help from a subpar enemy composition to truly do something meaningful.
The usual suspects find themselves down in the lowest tier, and it may take some considerable buffs to elevate them from the bottom.
As a reminder, this tier list is currently operating off of the latest live patch, 1.49.1.0. A new list will be published in August.Â
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Featured image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
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