Topic: Overwatch: new IP from Blizzard

[Quemaqua]

I have no idea why I assumed PST. But hey, even better then.

[Pugnate]

Great. Hopefully it will let us play competitive together. I just finished the trial games and have been given the Silver rating. I am sure you guys are at Gold.

Also, do you all have mics? I don't, and can't use one anyway as the family is sleeping.

Sorry, yes I should have mentioned the time zone. I am on EST too.

Let's play soon. I will be definitely up for it on Saturday though we can try for sooner if we are all free.

How exciting!

[Quemaqua]

Awesome! Yeah, we use mics. Even if you don't have one you can join the voice chat and get the benefit of when we yell stuff like "oh god this Genji is so good guys help this is bad oh shit oh shit", etc.

I think gpw and I are both gold, but if memory serves, we qualified as silver also. I forget. That or we've been stuck at gold the whole time. I don't really care about ratings all that much, honestly. I just care about winning.

WINNING.

WINNING.

[Pugnate]

 I played Season One rabidly but missed out on S2 because of traveling etc. After you left I played for a few hours and won quite a few matches, but barely climbed. I don't know why. :/

I dropped from 1896 to 1720 like a fly after losing 6 matches. Since then I've won most of my games. In total, of my 26 I've lost 12.

At the very least I should be back at 1896 yet I am still in the 1700s. Strange.

[Quemaqua]

Yeah, the math has seemed broken on this from the beginning. It may have to do with the overall rating of the opposing team and your own team's rating. Like if you lose to a lower-rated team, you lose way more points, and beating a lower-rated team gets you very little. Most rating systems work that way. It just doesn't work AT ALL in something like Overwatch because A) the ratings mean dick in general as far as actual skill, and B) team ranking doesn't reflect in the least how well a team will work together (unless they're a group who actually plays together all the time; but of course most of us play mostly with randos).

Which is again why I sort of don't care. I think my high this season is 2,400, which is slightly up from where I started (like 2,300-something), but I don't really even keep track of wins/losses. When gpw and I compared our stats, they didn't even make sense. We mostly play together, not solo, and the number of matches it said we'd each played seemed way off.

[Pugnate]

After you left I played four more. Won two, lost two. Two of the ones I lost I had one gold and the last one I had 4. I was unlucky to be on a shitty team. At the very least my score should be the same. But it's dropped. So strange. At the very least shouldn't be penalized if you lose but were carrying the team.

[gpw11]

I get it though - awarding points based on win/loss encourages team play and strategizing more than if they we were just ranked on individual performance stats.  This way people aren't punished for picking healers and tanks and we don't have to worry about teams of 4 DPS characters  chasing down kills rather than minding the objectives.

[Pugnate]

The thing is that it isn't exactly rewarding fairly for wins losses either.

Let me give you an example. I lost a game. 4 gold with Dva (I am good on with her on those close quarter hold the points map. Usually 3-4 gold). I lost I think 60 points. Next game we won and I performed well in the first round. Had 4 gold. Next I took a supporting role. My golds dropped to Bronze. And I ended up gaining 20 points. It seemed very unfair.

I understand what you are saying. On paper it makes sense. I am just noting there is an issue with execution.

It's far easier to win when you are playing with friends. Sometimes you have bad luck and are playing against a group of 3+ and you are screwed.

At the end, I love this game though!

[Quemaqua]

Again, I don't think the point wins/losses have anything to do with individual performance. I think it's a comparison of team rankings. I don't think you get any fewer points for having bronze over gold. You probably got fewer points because in the 2nd game the opposing team's cumulative rank was lower.

[Pugnate]

While playing Overwatch last night I came across a kid with an English accent. He couldn't have been more than 14 or 15.

Me: "Hey, how come you aren't playing on the closer and faster EU servers?"

Him: "Because of Brexit I'm afraid."

Me: "What? But you are free to try Americas, Europe, or Asia, regardless of location."

Him: "No, it's because as soon as I enter European servers and they realize I'm English, it's 30 minutes of nonstop sarcasm, abuse and mockery because of the vote."

I felt bad for him but I also thought it was super funny.

[Pugnate]

I am pretty close to uninstalling this game. I think I am done. Don't need the frustration. In the last nine competitive games four people quit after the first 30 seconds, while in one other game had Sym and Tracer on attack when we desperately needed another tank and a healer. It's just too frustrating and the lower you go the more trolls you'll find.

[Quemaqua]

That sucks. I mean you can't get away from occasionally getting lumped in with a bad team, but my experience has been mostly positive. Playing with randos just kind of is what it is in any team game. Sometimes people aren't very good, don't know the mechanics too well, or are just stubborn. I try to just be as versatile as I can so I can swap when need be (I can play almost the whole roster except for snipers at this point), inform the team when I'm making a change, and usually the people who know what they're doing do their best to work together to make up for deficiencies. There are always off nights, of course, but I don't feel like I've met many trolls.

[Pugnate]

Lower ranks are just toxic. I try to do the same as you, but I've dropped from 1900 to 1400 now and at 1400 it is just pretty terrible.

Someone quit again after one round. We could have salvaged a draw.

[Pugnate]

A few guys were discussing this on voice chat. As soon as they hit 1500 they found their experience was getting worse.

[Quemaqua]

Hmm, I guess I couldn't comment. I don't think I've ever been under 2200, so maybe people aren't as lame up there. But honestly man, if you're having a shit time in comp, just don't comp. Quick is usually friendlier in general, more lighthearted, and the only thing comp really gets you is a few sprays and stickers or whatever. After you've qualified, you get all that at the end of the season anyway, so it's not like you have to keep going. There are times when I just want to have fun more than test my skills, so I'll do QP instead of comp for a while.

[Pugnate]

Well I hit the low 1300s because I was just getting let down by my teammates. I had a few bad performances too, but the lower you go the more toxic it is. Leavers, trolls... Tracers at defense etc.

So I teamed up with two people I played with yesterday. One wasn't great while the other guy was decent. Both higher than me, but I figured that this lowers the probability of having morons on my team as they seemed normal enough.

We lost 3 of the 10 games we played. I got play of the game 5 times and gold every time using Dva and Bastion. It was just refreshing to play games without feeling frustrated. Climbed from 1300s to 1480 before it went down slightly, but it was fun. The lesson for me is that you don't play with randoms at this level.

[gpw11]

If I were you I'd just QP when you're not in a group until the servers reset.  Que and I had the advantage of playing a fair bit before they even initiated comp so we had our heads around it a bit more before being ranked the first time.

They reset the servers every three months, I think, so it should be fairly soon.  I have no doubt you'll place higher off the bat next time and find it more enjoyable.

[Pugnate]

New Overwatch patch! Trying out the new class.

[Quemaqua]

Sombra is pretty cool, I like her. Takes quite a bit of getting used to, though, as she doesn't really operate like any other character. I think she'll be a staple as soon as people start learning her. Her ability to potentially lock down the specials of multiple characters AND short-circuit multiple enemy ults all in one shot is probably the most OP thing in the game right now.

The other additions are nice too, though gpw and I had long waits last night to get into a No Limits 6v6. I'm afraid all those options may lead to longer wait times as the user base gets a bit fragmented. We'll see. But the brawls were pretty lame, so it's nice to have some better stuff in there.

[Pugnate]

It can be irritating to play alongside a bad Mei player. Ice walls are excellent when used right, but annoying when used rashly and can be counter productive. Today our Harambe started his ult jumped at the enemy and was blocked by his own Mei's wall.

[Pugnate]

Not sure why people hate Sombra. She is a good class and a lot of fun. I think once people get used to her she could be more deadly.

[Xessive]

Take The Nexus Challenge

Update: The Nexus Challenge is now live in Europe! Team up with a friend and start unlocking rewards today! The Nexus Challenge will activate around the globe over the next couple of days as soon as this week's patch becomes available for download in each region.

Get five Heroes free when you play 30 games of Heroes of the Storm with a Friend before January 4. Bonus: Also includes the Oni Genji skin in Overwatch, which is available after you’ve played your first fifteen games with a friend. Here's how it works:

Your challenge, should you choose to accept, is to party up with one or more of your friends and play at least 15 Heroes of the Storm games in Co-op vs. AI, Quick Match, Unranked Draft, or Ranked modes between November 15* and January 4*.

Upon doing so, you’ll be handsomely rewarded with sweet in-game loot in both Overwatch and Heroes of the Storm. Better yet, those of you fancy yourselves over-achievers can continue your campaign through the Nexus by completing 30 games to add even more to your growing Heroes of the Storm collections.

[Quemaqua]

I haven't seen Sombra hate, but then again, I don't go anywhere where I'd be likely to, beyond the game itself. I think she's cool and suspect once people get good with her we'll see that kind of thing level out. Lot of people just expect to be good at her right away, I imagine.

[Pugnate]

Yup. Exactly. I was looking at the reception on the Blizzard forum for an article and I thought people were being pretty impatient.

Also... here is a glimpse at the Overwatch voice actors:

http://pk.ign.com/ign-pakistan/8566/news/ign-pk-have-you-ever-wondered-what-the-voice-actors-behind-o

[K-man]

This weekend is free-play.  It would appear retailers are taking advantage of that fact, too.  The Origins Edition on PS4, Xbone, and PC have all been marked down to $34.99 this morning.  That's $5 cheaper than the base edition.

[Quemaqua]

Dude, Blizzard forum is basically just a soapbox for idiots and trolls. Terrible community, does literally nothing but complain. So yeah, seeing complaints there is par for the course. I don't think there's any making those people happy.

[Pugnate]

Not that I disagree but you can also find some reasonable comments in there. Couldn't see much.

[Pugnate]

Playing this weekend should be interesting with all the newbies. Guessing they won't be allowed comp.

[Quemaqua]

I don't see why they wouldn't be, but they'd have to qualify just like anyone else, and would probably qualify very low. I'm really looking forward to it since Kman is gonna be picking it up. This will be the most people we've had playing a game together in forever!

And yeah, I mean I'm sure there are reasonable people on the Blizzard forums, but that place is largely a hive of scum and villainy from my experience with it.

[Pugnate]

Oh another player will be fun!

[Quemaqua]

Also me and Pug wrote stuff, just like the good old days: http://pk.ign.com/ign-pakistan/8596/feature/first-impressions-overwatchs-sombra-is-fun-but-is-there-more

[K-man]

Game's so good.

[idolminds]

I agree.

[K-man]

This is honestly the first competitive online game I've really wanted to take some time and get "good" since I played Counter-Strike in 99/00.

Having a ready-made team of friends to play with will certainly keep me interested.

[Quemaqua]

Now you know why we kept yelling at you to get the PC version.

[Pugnate]

Some of these are pretty funny.

http://www.dorkly.com/post/80430/overwatch-comics

[Quemaqua]

Some of those are terrible, but a bunch of them are really great. Those got some genuine laughs out of me.

EDIT - NEW MAP IS SO GOOD

[K-man]

It is a nice map.  I like that it doesn't take long to get back in the action after dying.

[Pugnate]

I decided to play comp randomly with randoms after a long time. Big fucking mistake. The first game we had no healers. So I picked one. The guy who was playing a tank decided to be AFK for the first half. During the second half we had three healers. It was horrid. One guy was Hanjo on both attack and defense. I looked at his profile and he played Hanzo 80% of the time.

I lost the next random game also because the same trolls were on my team.

Third game was new team mates but lost a close game. Anyway... that's it. I have uninstalled the game. I don't think I want to play something that makes me so angry and ruins a few hours of mine.

My only advice is to never play comp with randoms. Play with friends or don't play. Losing and winning is part of the game but the randoms are too unpredictable.

I may come back at some point but so many of games in my backlog to waste over a few hours of frustration a night.

[Quemaqua]

My thoughts are now official:
http://pk.ign.com/ign-pakistan/9909/feature/ign-pakistan-reviews-new-overwatch-map-oasis

Taking screenshots for this was fun. Protip: ALT+Z removes the HUD.