By now, most Overwatch League teams are settled on their 2020 roster and identity. Some chose to evolve, others are confident in their previous players. One thing all teams have in common is their desire to be successful, and this year you’d be hard pressed to find a roster building disaster. It’s never too early to rank the teams’ roles, right? Here are the best Overwatch League DPS Lineups.
Photo: Stewart Volland for Blizzard Entertainment
The eighth rank is probably the most difficult one to determine. With many teams striving to upgrade their teams, flex DPS players became a popular necessity after the 2019 season. In particular, those that prospered in Korean Contenders attracted the most interest from League managers.
Kim “Yaki” Jun-Ki was one of the most hyped up prospects, playing a number of heroes successfully for Runaway and MVP Space in the past. Despite this, he was underage, which prevented him from joining the League.
Now, paired with superhuman hitscan Ha “Sayaplayer” Jung-Woo and Lee “BQB” Sang-Bum, the Florida trio is shaping up to be the best in the world.
For the third year running this damage line maintains its familiarity based on fan favorites Kim “Libero” Hae-Seong and Park “Saebyeolbe” Jong-Ryeol. It is by no means a bad decision, as both are impressive players, yet there is a certain feeling of stagnation.
Kim “Pine” Do-Hyeon doesn’t get game time, arguably wasting a roster slot. Jeong “Nenne” Yeon-Kwan is a great player, but there is not much that he brings to the team that Libero or Saebyeolbe don’t. In Hwang “Fl0w3r” Yeon-Oh they had a great player that could play both projectile and hitscan heroes, and they dropped him. The leading rumor for a roster change features Lunatic-Hai legend Lee “WhoRU” Seung-Jun, which does nothing to address the possibility of staleness and inflexibility that the team faces.
Again, not a bad group of players, they will definitely be successful in 2020, but the questionable decisions don’t inspire confidence.
The 5 players signed to the Shanghai Dragons are all outstanding. Though their flexibility is in doubt, their past performance definitely places them in the top rungs of Overwatch damage dealers.
Newcomer Lee “LIP” Jae-Won impressed many with his Reaper in the Esports Shanghai Masters, and Kim “Fleta” Byung-Sun is as good as ever.
Bae “Diem” Min-Seong impressed on hitscan heroes throughout 2019 and his skill led Shanghai to a decent run last season. Yang “DDing” Jin-Hyeok has many fans, and is considered one of the best projectile players in the world. Alongside LIP and Fleta this team will have some of the best spearheads in Overwatch.
It remains to be seen whether this will be taken advantage of, or thrown away in a manner that would not exactly be unfamiliar to the players on the team.
With the Guangzhou Charge comes a clear, distinguishing line from the teams below into the truly world-class DPS trios, quartets and even a quintet. Sure, basically every team has good players in this role, but coming into number five, the position becomes stacked.
With Charlie “Nero” Zwarg on projectile, Lee “Happy” Jung-Woo on hitscan, and Ou “Eileen” Yiliang to round out the flex spot, the Charge are looking like an offensive juggernaut.
After the numerous roster moves Guangzhou seem to have to rebuild their synergy. Assuming their performance in Esports Shanghai Masters is a product of the revamp, coming into the season with reestablished cohesion will create one of the strongest teams in the League.
The Fusion come in with fan-favorite and World Cup staple DPS duo, Lee “Carpe” Jae-Hyeok and Josué “EQO” Corona, former Toronto Defiant star Lee “Ivy” Seung-Hyun, one of Korean Contender’s best hitscan exports since Happy, Jeong “Heesu” Hee-Su and Philip “ChipSa” Graham, for good measure.
These five players complete an incredible backline for a team that is aiming for the top. Spectacor said this was their year, and this is how they would take it.
Everyone is familiar with Carpe and EQO. The flexible duo that will destroy teams if they don’t give them the attention they deserve. Heesu and Ivy could arguably start for over half the League, including the Fusion should it be necessary. ChipSa will be great for a Doomfist meta if the hero maintains his spot as the main selection for DPS players. Overall there is no doubt that the Fusion are in a solid position.
The addition of Huang “Leave” Xin is indeed enough to propel the Chengdu Hunters into third place. Already boasting a good duo in Yi “Jinmu” Hu and Lo “Baconjack” Tzu-Heng, as well as a former teammate of Leave’s, Zhang “Yangxiaolong” Zhihao, Chengdu are becoming a force to be reckoned with.
With Leave’s incredible hero pool, alongside Jinmu’s mechanics, the Hunters’ duo is one of the most impressive yet. It is unfortunate that fans could not get a glimpse of the duo in the World Cup, but this week’s Esports Shanghai Masters provided a look into the future.
If fans are not yet excited for this DPS lineup, then here is an introduction to the Overwatch esports scene. What Brad “Sephy” Rajani built here is an incredible team, capable of rivalling the best of the San Francisco Shock and Vancouver Titans.
ErsTer is one of the best flex DPS players the OWL has seen in the League so far, dishing out some of the best projectile play that has been seen yet. As well as hitscan play uncharacteristic from a player thought to be a Genji main.
Kim “Edison” Tae-Hoon and Hugo “SharP” Sahlberg are best known for their hitscan displays in Contenders, both recently eligible only for Season 3. Edison can, however, play other heroes should it be needed.
Last, but not least, is Sephy’s prodigal son, so to speak, Andrej “Babybay” Francisty. Following him from the San Francisco Shock, Babybay has never exactly been the best, but he is extremely reliable and consistent. Whether he starts, is in rotation, or a sub, Babybay is a great compliment to the rest of the team.
Image Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
Unfortunately, the world has a total of one Kim “Sp9rk1e” Yeong-Han. Fortunately for the Gauls, the Paris Eternal have successfully brought him on to their team. It would be unsurprising to learn that all 20 of the League teams bid for this player, and he definitely has the highest expectations set on to him.
He is, however, underage until May 31st. Usually, this would mean that for a large part of the season a DPS player would fill in his place until that date. For Paris, this likely means that half the season they would be playing with Nicolas “NiCOgdh” Mouret as their starter. Which is not exciting, to say the least, considering the large number of players available in the market.
For starters, there are all the damage dealers in Europe and Korea. Two of which were playing for the Paris Eternal last year, mind you. Not to mention those playing in the North American region, such as Jeffrey “Vizility” De Vries, Stanislav “Mistakes” Danilov, and Stefan “Onigod” Fiskerstrand.
Sure, Terrence “SoOn” Tarlier and Jun “Xzi” Ki-Hyo are amazing players, but they both have overlap in their hero pools. Realistically, one would only see them both fielded in a double hitscan or sniper meta.
Should the experiment work out, Season 3 will be a huge success for the Parisians, but it is likely that they would look to build for a successful Season 4 or a late push into playoffs.
No, they are not automatically number one because they won the second season of the Overwatch League. No, there is (probably) no recency bias on Jay “Sinatraa” Won’s performance due to the World Cup and League playoffs. Yes, this is one of the best DPS groups in the history of the game.
Every hero is covered by the four damage dealers in the Shock. They have two flex players, two more specialized players, and all four boast a top pick or two. Sinatraa’s Doomfist, Kwon “Striker” Nam-Joo’s Tracer and Widowmaker, Kim “Rascal” Dong-Jun’s and Park “Architect” Min-Ho’s everything.
All in arguable contention for top five, top three, or best in the world.
What’s not to like?
Featured Image Courtesy of Jen Smith
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