[The June Tier List is Now Out]
Competitive Season 21 has come to a close. And with it, the majority of the Overwatch playerbase waves goodbye to Hero Pools. From now on, the pools will only affect matches in Masters and above (3500+ SR). Additionally, map pools no longer exist in Competitive play. Horizon Lunar Colony and Paris have been removed from rotation for retuning or reworks, but the rest of the maps are available for play.
Since the last tier list, the biggest patch was the sweeping crowd control changes. Mei, McCree, Reinhardt, Ana, Sigma and Roadhog all saw changes to their stuns and sleep dart. These changes were geared towards toning down the times where a player loses control of their character. None were overly reduced, but the nerfs to Earthshatter, Sleep Dart and Mei’s freeze are definitely noticeable.
Echo has been out for a month now, seeing frequent use in the Overwatch League. She has a high skill ceiling and is incredibly powerful in capable hands. But at the same time there is a lot of room for error. If the wrong target is duplicated, her ultimate can get little value and be wasted. Time has shown she may be overtuned but is not nearly as broken as initially anticipated.
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 (April 2020) so be sure to check back next month to see what changes lie ahead.
Tier 1: Optimal heroes with high win rates and synergy
- Reinhardt
- Echo
- McCree
- Mei
- Ana
- Lucio
Reinhardt still remains in a strong position despite the Earthshatter nerf. The ultimate does not feel as powerful anymore, requiring more team coordination to capitalize on it. Likewise, Ana is still strong despite the nerf to sleep dart. Her Biotic Grenade can still win fights on its own, yet she might fall out of Tier 1 soon as they are experimenting with nerfing her healing output.
The new hero, Echo, rewards high skill. Thus she is has been a staple in the Overwatch League since release. But she is quite vulnerable to hitscan damage, plus if played poorly her ultimate ability can get little value. Mei still remains strong despite more nerfs to her freeze abilities. Smart usage of her Ice Wall can isolate targets and makes for easy cleanup. McCree’s flashbang was also nerfed, but he still remains one of the strongest DPS heroes in the game.
All in all, if these heroes aren’t banned, they’re clear favorites.
[Related: When does Competitive Season 23 Begin?]
Tier 2: Good alternatives to Tier 1 and still viable overall
- Ashe
- Torbjorn
- D.Va
- Tracer
- Sigma
- Brigitte
- Baptiste
- Moira
- Winston
Several of these heroes are either good substitutions to those in Tier 1 or can provide good counters to those heroes. Ashe has seen a handful of improvements and quality of life changes in the past months, leaving her in a solid spot. Against coordinated teams, her ultimate can struggle to get value, which keeps her out of the top tier. Dynamite and her Coach Gun provide nice utility to keep away from enemies and rain down damage on them.
Sigma has risen through the ranks as he can provide a lot of extra protection alongside Reinhardt. He and D.Va are equally viable, with D.Va gaining an edge on maps with high ground and Sigma preferred on those without. D.Va has also seen a return to Dive compositions against Echo. She is not as much of an obvious choice for off-tank anymore, so she has fallen to Tier 2 just as Sigma has risen from Tier 3.
Overall, look for these heroes to maintain the same style of play as the ones in Tier 1, just with slightly less oppressive kits.
Tier 3: Good situational picks but less strong overall
- Pharah
- Soldier: 76
- Doomfist
- Hanzo
- Mercy
- Reaper
- Symmetra
- Orisa
- Wrecking Ball
- Widowmaker
These heroes can all be perfectly good in niche situations or when being played by players who are specialists in that hero. Some, like Symmetra, can be good on certain sections of certain maps. However, when it comes to rating them against the rest of the Overwatch roster, they are currently more easily exploitable or have better options. Look for these when certain heroes are banned to come up with mini-metas comprised of less popular picks.
[Related: When is the Next Overwatch Event?]
Tier 4: Difficult to have success in the current meta
- Sombra
- Roadhog
- Zenyatta
- Zarya
- Junkrat
- Genji
- Bastion
Overall, these are slightly less powerful overall. than other heroes in the game. Some, like Sombra and Genji, are too reliant on their ultimate abilities. This means the team has to play slower to accommodate that, and the current meta does not favor that passive style. There are moments where they can fit into niche compositions, however, there are typically more viable options that are available. Look elsewhere, if possible.
As a reminder, this tier list is currently operating off of the latest live patch, 1.47.1.0. This list will be updated as patches continue to come out throughout the month of May and a new list will be published in June.
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