Something Just Doesn’t Feel Right - Remembering The 2019 World Cup
In 2019, we entered a new era of Overwatch esports. Introduced in Stage 4 of the 2019 Overwatch League season, the competitive meta was now role locked in 2-2-2, two tanks/two damage/two supports. It was a radical solution from the development team, aimed to stem the dominance of the game’s most infamous and oppressive composition, 3/3 or GOATS. It was also the end of the beginning for the San Francisco Shock’s era as the best Overwatch team in the world, securing a 4-0 victory in the finals of the Overwatch League, after a perfect lower bracket run in the tournament.
However, this tournament just can’t shake the feeling of having reduced importance to the rest of the world cups, and for the moment, it’s unclear why. There are a lot of things about this world cup that seem unpolished, overlooked, and downright disappointing. This feels controversial to say, but this was not a particularly fun tournament to revisit, especially after the 2018 world cup being so surprisingly refreshing, and the overall positively associated nostalgia for the 2016 and 2017 world cups. All of this still made them entertaining and which serve as captivating snapshots into the different eras of Overwatch.
But the 2019 Overwatch World Cup, doesn’t necessarily feel that way, in part due to when you look at the event as a whole - it was barely an event at all. Not only were there only six matches played on the main stage, but they were also all played on the same day. The 2019 Overwatch World Cup format is probably the least entertaining of the four, because even though 48 teams showed up in Anaheim, California for the world cup, only six of them would actually play in front of a crowd.
Click to enlargeYes, in 2019, there were no city-based qualifiers like in the previous two years, or even a group stage that took place on a stage like in 2016. This world cup had its group stages played with the players off-camera, and the broadcast talent relegated to office desks, with varying degrees of microphone and camera quality. In all honestly, the online matches of 2020 had a better look and production than some of the games showcased at the world cup.
This is on top of many lesser-known teams having to find their own sponsors and having to pay out of their own pockets to be able to play at Blizzcon - it doesn't feel great to look back on. Many of the teams would, of course, never play in front of a crowd, no matter if they secured a sponsor, boot camped, or made it to the group stage. In addition to the format only intrinsically allowing six teams to play on the main stage, many of the teams who did have to pay their way to Blizzcon, dropped out early due to technical issues, lack of practice, and an overall indefensible lack of resources from Blizzard while they were there. And who can forget the infamous fire alarm?
A fire alarm going off during a match isn't the end of the world, these things happen with live events, but the ensuing unpreparedness from the casters, the lack of urgency from the players - it does not look great for the moment to be broadcasted like that. This isn't blame being thrown at Connor "Avast" Prince, Andrew "ZP" Rush, or the players at all, as their reactions and confusion are understandable, but it's the lack of guidance or definitive action from a higher-up or manager that's a bit troubling. It seems downright messy looking back, something that you wouldn't expect from such a big event like the Overwatch World Cup.
Click to enlargeEven with the admitted doom and gloom, there were some positives from this world cup - and those have to be stated. Europe had huge representation in the final ten, with five squads playing in the group stage. Many of the European teams featured Contenders heavy rosters with newer and lesser-known players, a first for countries like France and Sweden, who had historically relied on the 'old guard' of beta-era stars to represent them on the international stage.
Here, players like Thomas "brussen" Brussen, Brice "FDGod" Monsçavoir, and Mads "fischer" Jehg, got to showcase their talents to a wider audience, and even gain enough recognition to land some spots on Overwatch League rosters.
Of course, the USA's win can't be discounted either. They were more than prepared for the lingering Doomfist/Double-Shield meta that originated from the 2019 OWL playoffs, and it was Jay "sinatraa" Won, Corey "Corey" Nigra, and Indy "SPACE" Halpern, who really showcased their freakish mechanics to only drop one map the whole tournament. It was so dominant from sinatraa's Doomfist, Corey's Reaper and Hanzo, and SPACE's Sigma, that it was nowhere close for any other team facing the USA. Even South Korea, three-time champions and host to some of the best players in the world, just didn't have the right roster for the meta to take on the USA's clear-cut focus, synergy, and firepower.
At the end of the day, the 2019 Overwatch World Cup still has something to offer in some cases, but overall, the tournament is a bit too disappointing, and a bit too mismanaged for comfort. The same magic of the previous years just doesn't resonate completely, except for the matches featuring the United States. The meta might be the stalest it ever was, with not a lot of variation seen from the teams. This tournament truly felt like playstyles and personalities that were developed by nations in the previous years, were no longer really present, and it devolved into each match being a who can play the meta the most efficiently.
The 2019 Overwatch World Cup, feels incomplete; like there's something missing that no matter how hard you look and try to find it, you're not going to end up being satisfied. Congrats to the USA, they put on an incredible performance and one fans should be proud of, it's just unfortunate it wasn't a win at a better tournament.
Images via Blizzard Entertainment