March was a very busy month, due mostly to the Overwatch Pit Championships. Europe has started to regain their momentum.
With the first stage of the EU Overwatch Pit Championships in the books, I decided to revisit our Gosugamers Rankings and evaluate how our new information matches up with our older assumptions.
Oddly enough, out of all the teams on this list, Misfits are the ones with the most to prove. After a rather disappointing showing at OGN’s APEX Season 2, Misfits return home just in time to face the most stacked competition in recent memory in the Overwatch Pit Championships. With the first round of the tournament in the books, Misfits has been looking incredibly strong going through their group without dropping a single match. Their rise comes off the transition of Nevix back onto his DPS role, allowing the skilled aimer to work in tandem with TviQ to rout their enemies. The sheer talent on this roster makes it rather unlikely another team will be able to brute force their way to the top, but Misfits still looks a little shaky from their three-way trade in December. Keep an eye on Zebbosai, as he pilots another lineup into a powerful position for the Overwatch League.
2. Ninjas in Pyjamas (-1)
When the triple tank meta started to rotate out of favor due to nerfs to Ana, NiP looked to be in a rather bad position. Their reliance on Hymzi’s Roadhog should have been the doom of a team who have never been forced to adapt. Their opening loss to Laser Kittenz in the OverPit group stages could have been the start of a steady decline in the rankings, but the Fins came out with a vengeance, showcasing a terrifying DPS duo in Zappis and Mafu to bring them out of the group stage in first place. Their immediate transition out of the tank meta means bad news for the rest of EU, as teams finally have to figure out how to deal with the Ninjas now they have some range. Of course, most analysts still expect to see triple tank as a common archetype in team compositions, which will allow NiP to abuse their experience playing the matchup. Outside a potentially questionable mastery of the dive comp, look for NiP to continue as a major threat to any top contender in the European Scene.
3. eUnited (+1)
While most teams find success in adapting to enemy setups mid game, eUnited been trying to push their dive composition to the limit. The addition of Sharyk and Rubikon from ANOX has gone relatively smoothly, as the team successfully pushes the boundaries of Kruise’s Genji against top European competition. Oddly enough, the core of the dive composition lies in uNFixed’s ability to play Pharah and Soldier at equally high levels, adding a layer of flexibility to their bread and butter. It also helps Vallutaja’s Tracer to stay alive in even the most unlikely of situations and creates space of the rest of his team to execute optimally, although their recent 2-0 loss to NiP does put a small dent in an otherwise exceptional record in the recent months. As their familiarity against specific matchups grows, look for eUnited to make substantial gains before their move to North America.
4. Team Dignitas (-1)
After a series of personnel changes and lack of competitive exposure, Dignitas has finally found their footing as a team. While their win condition of “keeping Finland’s gift to esports alive” still holds true, it has been the growth of Wat7 and Veineless which has added another gear to the Dignitas engine. Linkrz’s immense skill opens the door for ToxikeN and Bromas to surgically cut into enemy backlines. The team still lacks a true win condition if Linkrz is unable to take off, resulting in several extremely close matches against teams able to neutralize the big threat. The return of Misfits, NiP, and eUnited to competition can only be good news for Dignitas, as they will look to isolate their weaknesses and make their case for an Overwatch League spot.
5. Ex-Cyclone (-)
There are a lot of teams with potential in Europe, and ex-Cyclone is probably one of the best. After leaving their organization, the roster picked up iuKeee as a coach, and the rest is history. While they missed qualifying for the Overwatch Pit Championship, their latest results include a victory over Red Reserve in StriveWire Monthly Overwatch Brawl: March and two consecutive Go4OW Monthly Final victories. This team is full of exciting talents, who may catch teams by surprise. Poks has proven to be a formidable projectile carry, while the tank cores of destro and mowzassa have been able to bully and outskill most of their competition. The only thing preventing this roster from cementing their spot at the top of the rankings is strength of schedule. Luckily, the April iteration of the HND Invitational should give them the opportunity to pull some upsets on route to becoming the best new team of this quarter.
6. Movistar Riders (New)
The odd thing about Movistar Riders is how they have flown under the rader despite some rather excellent results. This roster reformed after the breakup of the Mousesports lineup, bringing with them competitive experience. Finnsi’s ability to pilot a variety of heroes to great effect has been been cores to the Riders’ ability to match up their opponents. By creating room on off tanks, the team is able to leave victory in the hands of Cwoosh and Logix, who have shown the ability to go one-on-one with any flanker. Their surprising (but not really) second place finish in Group B of the Overwatch Pit Championship included key victories over Dignitas, Hammers, and Singularity Ninjas. A relatively easily quarterfinal matchup puts them in prime position for a deep run at their first top level tournament. Fully expect Movistar Riders to bloom into a top competitor in a stacked region.
7. Vivi's Adventure (New)
Vivi’s Adventure is the perfect example of an unrecognized European mixed team with serious potential. Most of their victories have been limited to Go4OW weekly wins, but their consistency in beating tier two European teams leaves room for further evaluation. Vivi’s has the ability to turn up a gear when facing stronger opposition, but the lack of a true hard carry will put them in a tough position when facing more skilled adversaries. With this being said, Vivi’s Adventure is still waiting for a victory over a tier one team, but given their rapid improvement, we might see it by month’s end.
8. Team LDLC (New)
LDLC remains on this list due to their strong showings prior to their roster changes. The departure of the Le Mixx core has created some uncertainty around the roster’s future performance. While the team should see an immediate improvement in synergy due to the lack of a language barrier (the entire lineup is French speaking), pulling out of the Overwatch Pit Championship reflects badly, especially since this tournament will be the biggest congregation of European talent in months. Given enough time, LDLC should be able to return to form, but their inconsistent results and general mystery in roster performances flashes warning lights for their immediate future in the rankings.
Agree with our rankings? Think we are overlooking another team (Hammers, Red Reserve, Laser Kittenz)? Let us know in the comments
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