Overwatch 2 pros keep banning this unexpected hero

Insights about the most effective heroes in the current game meta were revealed through the ban choices made during the recent Overwatch Champions Series (OWCS) NA and EMEA qualifiers.

In the timeframe between January 16th and January 19th, the Overwatch Champion Series ran a series of open preliminary rounds. During the subsequent phase, the top 16 teams from each region had the chance to prohibit one character for every map played. Any characters that were banned could not be selected by either team during gameplay.

One participant gathered information about the most frequently restricted characters during the tournament, and while most top-banned heroes were predictable, there were a few exceptions that could make players think twice.

This one dive hero was the most picked Damage hero

In the comparison between Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) and North America (NA), it’s clear that Genji, a character not usually a strong contender in the game’s meta, is the most commonly banned Damage hero. However, with Hazard’s introduction, dive compositions have become more prevalent due to the strength of this new tank. Additionally, Ana has been quite popular lately, and when used alongside her, Genji can be formidable, frequently dealing nanoblade attacks.

Hero Bans and Map Picks from OWCS NA Qualifer Top 16
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Speaking comparatively among Damage heroes in the two regions, Genji racked up a total of 18 bans across the two tournaments. Sojourn followed closely behind with 17 bans between the same events. Additionally, Pharah, Tracer, and Widowmaker were often restricted due to their significant impact on matches.

In non-professional play too, Genji’s influence in the game is significant. As per Overbuff data from the last month, Genji is the second most frequently chosen Damage Per Second (DPS) character and boasts a high victory rate of 51% across all rankings.

Hero Bans and Map Picks from OWCS EMEA Qualifer Top 16
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Although Genji had a significant ban rate, neither of the two events saw him banned as often as support characters Lucio and Ana. In fact, over both tournaments, Lucio was banned an impressive 23 times, and Ana followed closely with 22 bans.

It appears that Lucio has returned to the competitive play meta and has traditionally been one of the most powerful characters in competition. The high ban rate for Ana might be due to her strong synergy with Genji, as their nanoblade combination makes dealing with Genji a bit trickier when Ana is present. Without Ana, however, Genji becomes slightly less challenging to manage.

Among tank characters, Hazard was frequently the top choice for bans, while Mauga, Junker Queen, and Wrecking Ball were also commonly targeted for bans.

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2025-01-21 01:53