This season, the Overwatch League will field eight new teams, including a large cast of new players, coaches and managers. This past offseason has allowed teams from the Inaugural Season to sharpen their rosters and improve where they saw weaknesses. New teams, on the other hand, have had the ability to see what previous teams have done and invest their resources in what they believe will make them most successful.
Considering all of that change and all of the different philosophies of success, teams pulled talent from a variety of different places, often with no previous OWL experience. And with the great amount of new talent to sift through, it may be easy to get lost and left unaware who exactly your team has picked up.
The Game Haus has broken down the Top 10 OWL Newcomers you need to keep an eye on, along with a few honorable mentions, so you know which new faces to keep an eye on this season. Due to the length of the list, we will first be looking at the Top 5 OWL Newcomers, with the remaining five and a few honorable mentions coming tomorrow.
Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
The Inaugural Season of the OWL proved that for a team to be a dominant force in the league, they need an elite main tank player. The Hangzhou Spark have found just that in 2018 Overwatch World Cup standout and former LGD Gaming star player, Guxue. Hangzhou fields a mostly Korean roster with the exception of Guxue and his former team China teammate Krystal. For an otherwise all-Korean roster to pick up these two markee Chinese players speaks volumes to the Spark’s belief in their ability to make an impact on the team.
Guxue stands out for his aggressive and unorthodox play on both Winston and Reinhardt. This play allowed him and Team China to catch opponents completely off-guard in the World Cup, leading China to a 2nd place finish in the tournament. While OWL teams will likely focus Guxue in an effort to shut him down, just as Team SK did in the World Cup, Guxue is an adaptable and smart enough player to understand that he is being focused and make necessary changes on the fly.
With the recent announcement by League Commissioner Nate Nanzer that Stage 1 will be played on the patch that is currently on the PTR, we will likely continue to see the tank-centric meta of GOATS played frequently. A good coordinated main tank is an absolute staple in GOATS, which moves Guxue’s stock up even more. But, even if the meta shifts, there is no doubt Guxue will be able to adapt. All of this combines to make Guxue the top OWL newcomer for 2019.
After last season, the LA Gladiators had a fissure in their roster that was left from the departure of a very handsome main tank, on his way to the Seoul Dynasty. With their other option being a two-way player, a great opportunity formed for the newly acquired main tank, r0ar, to shine brightly for this squad.
R0ar hails from South Korea, having most recently been with Team KongDoo Panthera, who was mostly poached by the Shanghai Dragons after last season. However, r0ar and former teammate Decay were both acquired by the LA Gladiators, likely due to their larger asking price. Each of these players was an integral part of KongDoo’s 2nd place run in last season’s Korean Contenders.
The Gladiators were evidence last season of the importance of having a top-tier main tank in order to have success as a team. Now, going into OWL 2019, they have that role filled yet again in r0ar as this team looks primed to make a run deep into the playoffs.
On July 25th, the Dallas Fuel announced the hiring of popular streamer and content creator Jayne. Since being hired, Jayne has gone on to coach Team Canada in the 2018 OWWC, create and operate several T2/T3 tournaments and lead a great deal of conversation around the subjects of hero bans and the state of Overwatch. Jayne has proven to be one of the most dedicated individuals in the entire OW scene, with a great deal of knowledge to boot.
Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
Currently listed as an Assistant Coach, it will be interesting to see exactly what role Jayne plays for the Fuel in the 2019 season. He may find his way helping the Fuel stay ahead of the meta or may spend time helping the players improve individually, as we have seen him do in the past on stream. Regardless, it’s clear that, whatever position he finds himself in, Jayne will have an instant impact on the Fuel’s success going into the 2019 season.
Another non-player that is sure to make a large impact for their team in OWL 2019 is Kate Mitchell, GM for the Washington Justice. Mitchell’s first few weeks with the team were shrouded in rumors and controversy around the hiring of Harsha Bandi, who now works for Vancouver.
Can’t tell you how amazing it is to be working with these guys. 30 days 💪💪💪 pic.twitter.com/fptYNTj1Qj
— Justice Kate Mitchell (@KateMitchellOW) January 17, 2019
Outside of this, Mitchell has a proven track record of developing talent and coaches to help her team succeed. Mitchell was a key part of a team in Last Night’s Leftovers that made it into NA Contenders and was good enough to be acquired by the Atlanta Reign to form their academy team, ATL Academy (who just made it all the way to the 2018 S3 finals, if you missed it).
While a great many preseason power rankings have Washington towards the bottom, Mitchell and the Justice have a lot of doubters to prove in the upcoming season. Yet, time and time again, Mitchell has proven that she has the skills to develop unexpected talent into a successful team, despite low expectations. Washington is hoping she can work her magic yet again in OWL 2019.
With the crowded DPS core for the Gladiators and the condition of the current meta, Decay comes in a little lower at the number five spot. Decay, as mentioned, was teammates with r0ar on Team KongDoo Panthera through 2018 Contenders: Korea. Decay has proven to be volatile in whatever meta he finds himself in, boasting great skill with Tracer and Genji in dive metas, Widowmaker in sniper metas, and Zarya in GOATS.
Image Courtesy of Inven Global
How he will contribute to the Gladiators, however, is a bit unknown. With Lane “Surefour” Roberts and João Pedro “Hydration” Goes Telles already holding down the DPS slots, Decay may struggle to get a lot of play time early on. But, if the team decides his synergy with r0ar constitutes a starting spot, we may see Hydration or Surefour warm the bench. This is still largely up in the air.
However you slice it, Decay is a massive pickup for this team and is among the most dangerous DPS pickups across the league. Both he and r0ar make the Gladiators a very dangerous team heading into next season.
Follow me on Twitter:
@GoopyKnoopy I would love to dialogue with you about anything I’ve written!
You can also shoot me a line on Discord!
(GoopyKnoopy#2205)
Featured Image Courtesy of Paste Magazine
Follow The Game Haus for more sports and esports coverage.
Twitter: TGH Esports
Facebook: The Game Haus
“From Our Haus to Yours”
Players must be 21 years of age or older or reach the minimum age for gambling in their respective state and located in jurisdictions where online gambling is legal. Please play responsibly. Bet with your head, not over it. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, and wants help, call or visit: (a) the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey at 1-800-Gambler or www.800gambler.org; or (b) Gamblers Anonymous at 855-2-CALL-GA or www.gamblersanonymous.org.
