{"id":98489,"date":"2018-04-18T16:34:16","date_gmt":"2018-04-18T14:34:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=98489"},"modified":"2025-07-01T23:32:47","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T06:32:47","slug":"6-tips-to-get-started-in-competitive-overwatch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/6-tips-to-get-started-in-competitive-overwatch\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Tips to get started in Competitive Overwatch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Overwatch<\/em> was released in 2016, and the game has continued to grow in popularity ever since. The game has won numerous awards, and the development of the official Overwatch League has established the game as a serious e-sport, with the first season beginning in 2018. However, many new players find that the game has a steep learning curve. Overwatch<\/em> differs from more traditional first-person shooters in several major ways, and catching on to those differences early is the key to success in the game.<\/p>\n

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Most Overwatch<\/em> players focus primarily on Competitive mode.<\/strong> Unlike Quick Play or Arcade, Competitive has stakes. Players risk losing Skill Rating (SR) points every match<\/strong>, and with too many losses they may even lose their rank. Those high stakes lead to intense matches, and the rush that players feel in Competitive mode keep them coming back for more. However, the path to victory is not as straightforward in Overwatch<\/em> as it is in traditional shooter games like Call of Duty<\/em> or Battlefield<\/em>. While other games are often nothing more than a race to hit a certain number of kills before the enemy team does, Overwatch<\/em> matches have a variety of objectives. Rather than simply competing for kills, teams must escort a payload across the map, capture or defend certain areas, or juggle a combination of these two objectives in the Hybrid game mode. This article will cover the basic strategies you will need to succeed in Overwatch\u2019s<\/em> Competitive mode.<\/p>\n

6 Tips to Get Started in Competitive Overwatch<\/h2>\n

Focus on the Objective<\/h3>\n
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Source: Overwatch moments \u2013 Gaming Curios\u201d YouTube Channel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many new Overwatch<\/em> players feel most comfortable in offensive roles, playing DPS (damage per second) heroes with the primary objective of dealing damage to the enemy team. However, it\u2019s important to remember that even as a DPS hero, damage and kills aren\u2019t everything.<\/strong> The ability to threaten the enemy team and control their movements is often equally important. When your team is attempting to defend a point in the Control game mode, the real objective is just that \u2013 defend the point. You can chase after a player on the enemy team to try to get a kill, but you might be better off behind a shield, keeping the enemy from advancing. Getting kills won\u2019t help your team if you leave the objective unprotected.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Die<\/h3>\n
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Source: \u201cOverwatch Moments \u2013 Gaming Curios\u201d YouTube Channel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This might seem obvious, but it\u2019s more important than you might think. Overwatch<\/em> teams (the good ones, at least) operate as groups. The DPS heroes deal damage and keep the other team at bay, support heroes take care of healing, and tank heroes absorb damage while protecting everyone else. If any single hero falls, the team is left at a severe disadvantage until that hero can respawn and run back to the battle \u2013 and by then, the fight might already be over. Epic, aggressive plays can work, but they frequently end badly. It\u2019s usually best to stay with your team<\/strong> and stay alive.<\/p>\n

It is also necessary to note that not every hero is equal in certain situations.<\/strong> If you are playing Soldier:76, and you die while taking out the enemy\u2019s Ana, you have probably made a poor trade. You may have killed the enemy team\u2019s healer, but your team is now at a disadvantage in terms of firepower, and may be unable to hold its ground against the enemy team\u2019s counterattack. A self-sacrificial play where you kill someone but die in the process might feel heroic, but it doesn\u2019t do much for your team.<\/p>\n

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Counter Enemy Heroes<\/h3>\n
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Source: \u201cPlayOverwatch\u201d YouTube Channel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Every hero in Overwatch<\/em> is different, and every hero has a counter. One obvious example is Soldier:76 and Pharah. Pharah\u2019s flight abilities make her difficult to hit for many heroes, but Soldier\u2019s long-range gun is perfect for taking her out. Take advantage of counters!<\/strong> If the enemy team has a Tracer, try playing Winston. If the enemy team has a Winston, try Reaper. Learning each hero\u2019s strengths and weaknesses and successfully exploiting them is one of the keys to success in a Competitive match.<\/p>\n

On the same note, make sure the enemy team doesn\u2019t counter your own picks. If you realize that one player on the other team is constantly killing you or preventing you from being effective, simply trying harder is not likely to work! Instead, try switching to another hero<\/strong> \u2013 maybe one that counters your new nemesis.<\/p>\n

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Communicate<\/h3>\n
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Source: \u201cGigaWatch\u201d YouTube Channel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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The most crucial element of good teamwork is good communication. Good communication is often the only difference between an effective team and a disorganized mess. If you decide to break away from your team to sneak behind enemy lines in hopes of eliminating their healers, your team needs to know<\/strong> so that they won\u2019t count on your absent firepower in another part of the map. If you play Zenyatta, your Orb of Discord can increase the damage an enemy takes by 30%, which provides your team with a huge advantage \u2013 but only if you call it out and make sure your team knows where it is. If you are playing Reinhart and you need to lower your shield, let your team know so that they can find cover elsewhere.<\/p>\n

If you want to be successful at Overwatch<\/em>, you need a microphone.<\/strong> You can find a decent quality mic for less than $30, and it will drastically improve your in-game quality of life. (Need some suggestions? See what our Solutions community recommends<\/a>.) If you can\u2019t get one, at least join the voice chat so you can hear what other players are saying. If you don\u2019t even do that, don\u2019t expect to win.<\/p>\n

Protect Your Healers<\/h3>\n
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Source: \u201cYour Overwatch\u201d YouTube Channel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Good healers can extend the lifespan of everyone on your team.<\/strong> They\u2019re arguably the most valuable heroes on the team, and the enemy team will target your healers before anyone else. The death of a healer can put the team at a huge disadvantage, so protect them! If your team needs to retreat, don\u2019t run away and leave the healers to die. DPS should cover the healers and try to keep the enemy from focusing on them effectively, and tanks should always position themselves between their healers and the enemy team. Finally, if you\u2019re the one playing the healer, don\u2019t overextend! Stay near your team, and stay safe.<\/p>\n

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Play More Heroes<\/h3>\n
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Source: playoverwatch.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Overwatch<\/em> is a team game, and it\u2019s very uncommon for a team to win without a well-balanced team composition. This usually means two DPS heroes, two tanks, and two supports.<\/strong> Teams composed of four or more DPS heroes rarely experience victory. Unfortunately, this happens all too often, and many players consider other players\u2019 refusal to switch to more useful heroes one of the most irritating aspects of the entire game. Nobody loves a one-trick \u2013 a player who only uses a single hero, regardless of the circumstances. Players who choose a hero that is optimized for defense on an attack map are particularly reviled, but those who choose to play as a team\u2019s third or fourth DPS hero instead of a tank or support are just as bad.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be that guy! Your team will hate you, and you\u2019ll lose a lot of matches that way. As your SR drops, you\u2019ll end up playing with progressively worse teammates, and it won\u2019t be easy to crawl back up the ranks. You can\u2019t count on your team to choose helpful heroes, so the task of balancing your team will often fall to you. Fortunately, Overwatch<\/em> is a well-designed game, and all of the heroes are enjoyable once you get used to them. We strongly recommend that you try every hero at least once in Quick Play or Arcade mode, and then continue to practice and improve with the heroes you enjoy the most. To guarantee that you will be a valuable player on any team, learn to play well with at least two heroes in each class. Attack and Defense heroes are designed for slightly different situations, but both classes are essentially DPS. If you want to be great at Overwatch<\/em>, you\u2019ll need to be good at a minimum of six heroes: two DPS, two tanks, and two healers.<\/p>\n

Stay Positive<\/h3>\n
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Source: \u201cHarryRex\u201d YouTube Channel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Admit it: Overwatch<\/em> can be infuriating, but only if you let it be. Sometimes your teammates will be uncooperative. You will occasionally run into trolls. There will be times when you and your team do everything right, but you still lose match after match to teams that are just slightly better. Adrenaline runs high, and it\u2019s easy to lose your temper. When this happens, take a step back and relax<\/strong>. Don\u2019t allow yourself to become negative, because you\u2019ll only play worse if you get tilted. If you become negative, you\u2019ll drag your team down with you. Angry teams don\u2019t play well.<\/strong> Lift your team up! Accept shortcomings, don\u2019t let bad plays get you down, and treat your teammates with respect. When the team feels good, everyone plays well. You win more often, and everyone has more fun \u2013 and in the end, isn\u2019t that the point?<\/p>\n

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Overwatch was released in 2016, and the game has continued to grow in popularity ever since. The game has won numerous awards, and the development of the official Overwatch League has established the game as a serious e-sport, with the first season beginning in 2018. However, many new players find that the game has a … Continue reading “6 Tips to get started in Competitive Overwatch”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2040,"featured_media":98698,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":0},"categories":[2441],"tags":[2712],"usertag":[784],"vertical":[],"content-category":[],"class_list":["post-98489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-how-to","tag-app-subdomain-redirectionoverwatch","usertag-gamer"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2040"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98489"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":328071,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98489\/revisions\/328071"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98489"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=98489"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=98489"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=98489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}