Rachel Schaffner – Staff Writer

rls6117@psu.edu

Photo Credit: Blizzard Entertainment

Twelve teams went in, only one emerged victorious! Welcome to the “Overwatch” League Playoffs. Starting back on October 30 and playing in Anaheim, California, 12 teams solidified their spot in the playoffs, but only one team was destined to win it all. The twelve teams who made their way through the ranks and got into the playoffs are: Philadelphia Fusion, London Spitfire, Hangzhou Spark, Shanghai Dragons, Florida Mayhem, Atlanta Reign, Toronto Defiant, Houston Outlaws, Seoul Dynasty, Los Angeles Gladiators, San Francisco Shock, and Dallas Fuel. Being new to the whole esports scene, especially the “Overwatch” League, I went in not knowing what to expect from these teams and going in with no bias except for when it came down to the finals. 

Now for those who were like myself going into watching the “Overwatch” League, here is what I caught from what I watched. The teams needed to get three points to move on and the “Overwatch” players know that Team Deathmatch mode is not a selected mode in the “Overwatch” League. All maps that were seen in the playoffs consisted of payload or push maps. Payload maps are where teams capture an objective before the payload appears and push maps are where teams ‘push’ a robot to the other team’s side. With that in mind, now we can get into the bracket system they employed. The losers of each match were moved down to the losers bracket, giving them a chance to come back and compete in the finals. And there was one team that crawled back from their loss in Round 2 of the winner’s bracket. As for the others, they did not stand a chance.

To kick off the playoffs, Philadelphia Fusion faced off against London Spitfire, resulting in London shutting out Philadelphia 3-0. This was a notable pattern for the first round in the winner’s bracket. Hangzhou Spark, Seoul Dynasty, and Houston Outlaws shut out their opponents, not giving them a chance to make it a long series. However, Hangzhou Spark was not able to keep their fight in the playoffs when they faced off the no. one team in the league, Dallas Fuel. The Seoul Dynasty shut out Florida Mayhem, stopping them in their tracks. Houston Outlaws were given the fight of their life when they went up against the no. two teams in the league, San Francisco Shock with a 3-2 win for the Outlaws. London Spitfire went on to win the second round in the winner’s bracket against the Los Angeles Gladiators. Dallas and Houston went into the third round on fire and both teams shut out the teams they went up against. Dallas went against Seoul and was crushed in that round. The same can be said when the London Spitfire went up against the Houston Outlaws. Unfortunately for Houston, they could not keep their motivation when facing up against the Dallas Fuel. 

Did viewers think that Houston could come back to win it all from the loser’s bracket? If they did, they thought wrong. Houston Outlaws faced off for a second time against the San Francisco Shock, but not without some struggle for San Francisco. The team had to go up against the Los Angeles Gladiators, Seoul Dynasty, and Hangzhou Spark before facing off with the familiar team. This time, the San Francisco Shock shocked, pun intended, the entire crowd in Anaheim on November 4 leading up to the grand finals two hours prior. What’s a playoff in any sport without recognizing the most valuable player? Instead of the most valuable player, the “Overwatch” League recognizes the rookie of the year. The Rookie of the Year award went to San Francisco Shock’s DPS player known as Proper or Dong-Hyun Kim. Fueling the fire within San Francisco, the team had won the “Overwatch” League two years in a row and were looking for a third. With the win over the Houston Outlaws, San Francisco Shock would set their eyes on Dallas Fuel, the only team standing in their way to receive a third title. 

Unlike the normal rounds where teams had to reach three points, the first to four is now the rule for those competing in the grand final. Watching the teams go back and forth in the series, it was like I was watching overtime in a hockey game. Hockey fans know that feeling of watching OT in both the regular season and the postseason. I was never really invested in an esports event other than EVO and their “Super Smash Brothers Ultimate” tournament, but watching San Francisco Shock and Dallas Fuel battle it out on a virtual battlefield, made me want to get into more esports events like the “Overwatch” League.

Unfortunately for San Francisco Shock, their fight to reach another third title was stopped short when Dallas Fuel denied them when the score was 3-3, forcing a tiebreaker. Winning it all, the team from Dallas raises their first-ever championship trophy in the “Overwatch” League. Going into the grand finals, I was expecting San Francisco Shock to pull out a winner after they had to go through more rounds in the losers bracket to get back to a chance of winning a third title. However, Dallas Fuel, being the no. one team in the “Overwatch” League showed the no. two team, being San Francisco, who the boss is, causing Dallas to Shock the crowd in Anaheim.