I’m back. After a combination of FOMO and a desire to write, I’ve compiled what I think are the Top 5 storylines to follow at the ESL Atlantic Showdown at gamescom.
5. Introducing the Players
Players don’t like being on camera. Check out the majority of Overwatch streams, and you’ll start to notice. While I accept their desire to stay out of the limelight, gamescom is the first opportunity most organizations and fans will be able to meet their teams face to face. This means more selfies, more embarrassing photos, and finally putting a face to a name. From an entertainment perspective, having your face out there allows for more personable advertising and opening the door to more behind the scenes content with our favorite players. From a writer’s point of view? It just means cooler interviews and better photos to use!
4. World, meet Overwatch
Gamescom is the first time the world will see Overwatch on a major stage. The world will finally be exposed to the growth of the game and the community around it. From a consumer outlook, gamescom will be the first in a long list of platforms for Blizzard development to add fanfare to new releases, as seen this week with the announcement of a new map. At one of the biggest and most iconic venues in Europe, Overwatch has the opportunity to wow the crowd and, most importantly, attract the attention of investors and other organizations looking enter the scene. Holding a successful competitive tournament would also set the groundwork for future events and help to work on kinks in the broadcast itself. Practice for hosting a huge event like this is priceless when we consider how close Blizzcon is. Gamescom is only the first step.
3. Who is the best in Europe?.
Every European team has a claim to greatness. Who do you give the title to? Is it REUNITED who currently sits at the top of the EU rankings on GosuGamers? Is it Misfits who qualified first into the ELEAGUE Faceit Overwatch Open? Is it Rogue who qualified second, while beating REUNITED? How about Dignitas who has arguably been the most consistent of the teams?
In any case, this tournament in the geographic center of Europe will be the final proving grounds for all four teams. Concurrently, this competition finally puts Europe and North America on equal playing ground, offering our most updated comparison of the two regions. An EU win here would be momentous and would pave the way for a very exciting Overwatch Open. Let’s just hope this doesn’t become a contest for second place.
2. "Do it on LAN"
I don’t like controversy. I don’t like allegations. But ask any member of the Reddit community what they are excited for, and you’ll understand why this is at number 2. Since day 1 of release, the community has been clamoring about professionals cheating and hacking, spawning clips with little to no background and arguably the least productive thread since the Jolly Rancher thread. With no way to prove their critics otherwise, pros have had to resort to mouse cams to try to prove their innocence, but now they have a golden opportunity to shut their critics up for a little while. Winning or showing a very strong performance would prove they could indeed succeed in an offline environment and temporarily banish talks of needing tool assistance to be at the top level. Although the stigma of cheating may never vanish, players should be able to point to a successful gamescom as proof enough.
1. Watch the Throne
When’s the last time Envy lost a match? June 12th. To put this into scope, the last time they lost a match, Taimou played Widow and Chips was on Mercy. Since then, Envy has been an image of dominance, tearing through their opponents and leaving little question as to who was the best in the game. Nonetheless, gamescom represents a tournament to challenge this legacy. We haven’t seen EnvyUs on LAN yet, and we all know how playing in front of a crowd can affect players (see: CSGO). Even more seriously, losing this tournament would put an asterix on their streak, labeling NV as the team who “couldn’t win the big one”. In front of a huge German crowd and at the first Overwatch “major”, the pressure will be on our boys in blue to emerge victorious. It won’t be easy, especially being placed in a group with Misfits, Fnatic, and Dignitas. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, but even heavier the head which cannot take home the title.
Let us know what your storylines to watch are in the comments below! You can catch the ESL Atlantic Showdown on Twitch.TV/ESL_Overwatch.
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