This week the Overwatch League had a wonderful Week 20 with exciting games throughout the weekend. With reverse sweeps completed by the Guangzhou Charge and the Shanghai Dragons, the APAC region had its fair share of drama. Last week’s touted match was between the Valiant and Mayhem, and the teams delivered. This week is littered with more power matches, but the highlight belongs to the Shock versus Fusion. The undisputed top-two teams in the NA region face off Sunday evening, and it’ll surely be can’t miss entertainment. This week also does away with hero pools, so every hero is on the table for play. With all of that out of the way, here are The Game Haus power rankings heading into Week 21.
(High is the highest an individual ranked the team, Low is the lowest an individual ranked them, and LW= Last Week’s Power Ranking Position)
1. San Francisco Shock (High: 1 Low: 2 LW: 1st)
2. Shanghai Dragons (High: 1 Low: 3 LW: 2nd)
The Dragons find themselves as the second overall team behind the Shock once again, and they deserve it. While going down 2-0 to the Hunters was concerning, the Dragons were able to pull off the reverse sweep and secure the W. Every time this team gets pushed down and to the limit, they reveal their hand and swiftly crush their opponents. It’s basically a hustle, learning the secrets of their opponent before countering them at every turn. This week they’ll have the opportunity to showcase this ability against the Dynasty and Spark. If you weren’t planning to watch these games, find the time.
- Dalton Jewell
3. Philadelphia Fusion (High: 2 Low: 3 LW: 3rd)
Philly continue to do their thing, winning. Boston were a team that was showing promise and it is still probable that they will continue to do so. Just, not against teams like the Fusion. Philly are going to be playing in what should be the match of the week next week against the Shock. They can finally have a chance at showing who is the top dog in North America.
- Rocco Romeo
4. Guangzhou Charge (High: 4 Low: 7 LW: 7th)
Well that was a hell of a weekend wasn’t it? The Charge brought it all the way back against a very streaky Dynasty team AND the Spark. Even with many moving parts, Guangzhou are able to adapt and play consistently at a high level. Once they are able to settle into a rhythm there is no telling what this team could do.
- Robert Hanes
5. New York Excelsior (High: 4 Low: 8 LW: T4th)
The NYXL split the week, beating up on the lower Spitfire and being shocked by the Spark. This week, it’s just a battle with the Charge on tap. Noticeably absent has been Hae-seong “Libero” Kim, who may return to the DPS rotation as Echo becomes playable once again. With the meta wide open once again, the NYXL have the luxury of four quality DPS to rotate through. The only issue becomes the predictability of the team composition when a DPS is subbed in. This team can make a statement with a strong showing against Guangzhou this weekend.
- Dalton Jewell
6. Los Angeles Valiant (High: 4 Low: 9 LW: 9th)
The LA Valiant before the season were a bottom-five team. Now they are probably a top-six team. Their DPS line is one of the best in the whole league and their roster is filled with underrated pieces. This team can flex across multiple metas and succeed. This is THEIR meta and they are the scariest team in OWL right now.
- Christian Wisniewski
7. Florida Mayhem (High: 4 Low: 10 LW: T4th)
The Mayhem lost their first regular-season match in over a month against a red-hot LA Valiant team. Despite this, Mayhem fans shouldn’t forget that their team recently toppled a titan like the Philadelphia Fusion, and stuck it to the San Francisco Shock like no other team has been able to do recently. And for that, the Mayhem should still find themself toward the top of these power rankings.
- Sam O’Dwyer
8. Hangzhou Spark (High: 6 Low: 10 LW: 12th)
While the Spark left the week once again with another 1-1 record, it came alongside a high-profile win against one of the top teams in the league: the NYXL. They were also able to go up 2-0 on the Charge before losing the bout in a reverse sweep. Only after losing the second match by a single map, the team looks poised to make a push as a championship contender with this new-look roster. If this is what the team’s results are with less than a week of practice, then the sky’s the limit for this squad moving forward.
- Jordy Garcia
9. Paris Eternal (High: 6 Low: 10 LW: 6th)
The Shock are the Shock and there is not much else to say. They have had all their pieces working together at a high level for a long time. The Eternal just got their DPS back/started and while they weren’t outstanding, they had plenty of solid moments. This team has a lot to look forward to and will only continue to grow.
- Robert Hanes
10. Seoul Dynasty (High: 5 Low: 13 LW: 8th)
The Seoul Dynasty had another tough week. This week coming up opens up a whole new door with hero bans being thrown out the door before the Summer Showdown. If Seoul cannot pick up at least one win this week, the outlook for the Summer Showdown looks bleak.
- Lauren “daebakowl” Olson
11. Atlanta Reign (High: 9 Low: 13 LW: 11th)
The Atlanta Reign looked strong in their decisive victory against the Toronto Defiant, proving that they are capable of utilizing their roster effectively. They will however need to show this skill against other teams besides the Defiant if they want to pull up from the middle of the pack by the end of this season. They have an opportunity to keep this momentum going this week against the Vancouver Titans, and then enter the Summer Showdown with confidence.
- Rhiannon Boyce
12. Los Angeles Gladiators (High: 8 Low: 14 LW: 10th)
The Gladiators suffer a loss against yet another winnable team in the Houston Outlaws. While there are many high-quality players on the LA squad, they are certainly struggling when it comes to adapting to how the other team plays. This week it was a Tracer-centric composition and they just struggled to put it all together.
- Joe Gvora
13. London Spitfire (High: 11 Low: 16 LW: 14th)
The Spitfire continue to be an encouraging work-in-progress team that can’t be counted out. They flew over the Hunters in a sweep, and while outgunned against the NYXL, didn’t get rolled. Any wins are great in the development of this team’s identity, which still don’t seem solidified. The Spitfire aren’t a bad team, but they also aren’t necessarily a good team. It would be great to see them play against some of the middle of the pack NA teams to see where they truly belong but for now the middle-tier is where they stand.
- Dalton Jewell
14. Houston Outlaws (High: 11 Low: 16 LW: 16th)
At long last, the Houston Outlaws have shown a glimpse of what their roster is truly capable of. Houston’s upset victory over the Los Angeles Gladiators last Saturday proved they’re not done fighting yet this season. Dante “Danteh” Cruz’s stellar Tracer performance led the way for the Outlaws, and the duo of Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty and Jung-keun “Rapel” Kim was easily the most cohesive support line Houston has fielded all season. The Outlaws need to continue to improve in the coming week if they want to have a chance against Florida Mayhem in their next match. The Mayhem are coming off a loss to the high-flying Los Angeles Valiant, so they’ll be hungry for a win to boost their record for the Summer Showdown. If Houston finds a way to take this match off Florida, teams around the league will almost certainly start to treat them as a legitimate competitor.
- Barry Giglio
15. Chengdu Hunters (High: 13 Low: 18 LW: 15th)
Although the Hunters leave Week 20 without a win, their performance against the Dragons was a step in the right direction. The last-place team in the APAC region have struggled across the board at closing out matches. This week they face stiffer competition than the Spitfire who managed a sweep. The outlook for this team doesn’t appear grand, but with the removal of hero pools perhaps the Hunters meta will be unleashed.
- Dalton Jewell
16. Boston Uprising (High: 15 Low: 18 LW: 17th)
Boston fell well short of their goal to take a map off of the dominant Philadelphia Fusion, but they still appear to be improving each match. There was a little experimenting at the start of the match with a swapped-up tank line, and what better time to try then against a heavily favored opponent? Boston has a shot to break their losing streak against Vancouver in their last placement match for the Summer Showdown.
- Bryan “Brock” Rockwood
17. Dallas Fuel (High: 15 Low: 19 LW: 13th)
The Dallas Fuel are in a weird place right now. Their loss against the Vancouver Titans raised a lot of questions about the team and management. Their success for the rest of the season may hinge on the two newcomers, Stefan “Onigod” Fiskerstrand and Nolan “Paintbrush” Edwards. How quickly they adjust to the rest of the team’s energy will be crucial to any further success.
- London Bishop
18. Toronto Defiant (High: 14 Low: 19 LW: 18th)
As expected, the Toronto Defiant suffered a tough loss at the hands of the climbing Atlanta Reign. Though the team showed moments of promise, the Reign are such a well-oiled machine, and taking them down wasn’t in the cards. This weekend, the Defiant look towards a weaker opponent in the Dallas Fuel. Just this week, the Fuel lost to the Vancouver Titans, a team that Toronto earned a victory against twice in the last couple of weeks. With hero pools lifted, this game could give the Defiant another well-needed shot at victory, and a chance to continue their upswing.
- Mallory McMahon
19. Vancouver Titans (High: 19 Low: 20 LW: 20th)
It may have taken six games to get to this point but the new Titans finally got their first win in a clean sweep over the Dallas Fuel. The team looked vastly improved in this game with the DPS duo of Niclas “sHockWave” Jensen and Dalton “Dalton” Bennyhof looking scary. The rest of the team showed improved synergy and impact which led to their success as well. If the Titans can keep the momentum, there could be hope for the season yet.
- Ethan Butler
20. Washington Justice (High: 18 Low: 20 LW: 19th)
Another week, another disappointing Justice loss. While any team going against the Shock face an uphill battle, the Justice aren’t showing signs of improvement. It’s been loss after loss, and while a new roster does need time to come together, it’s concerning that this team isn’t gelling. This week they face off against the Gladiators, a team that is also in the midst of a crisis. Last season the Justice fought tooth and nail to climb out of last overall in these power rankings. Last time the Justice were at the bottom was Season 2, Stage 3 Week 4. Now at the very bottom once again, they’ll need to give their all if they want to climb higher.
- Dalton Jewell
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Our voters for OWL Power Rankings: Ethan Seftor, Mallory, Robert Hanes, Dalton Jewell, Lotte, Sam O’Dwyer, Bryan Rockwood, Brad Killion, Mandii, Rhiannon, Laruen “Daebakowl” Olson, Matthew Kennedy, Christian Wisniewski, Jordan Garcia, Rocco Romeo, Tiffany Purcell, Joe Gvora, London Bishop, Sebastian Quintanilla, Ethan Butler, Barry Giglio, Jezi Scott