Looking to get serious in Overwatch 2? Even if players don't intend to go professional, that's a reasonable goal. Many only ask that every player try their best with a reasonable understanding of the game. The Quick Play open queue option is frankly not the place for that kind of experience.
So how do players bust onto the competitive scene and get matched with players at their skill level and against players of their skill level in Overwatch 2? How do gamers determine what their rank means when compared to the rest of the player base? Those answers can be found in this brief guide.
Unlocking Competitive Mode
- Win 50 games win Quick Play.
- Check progress: Challenges > Competitive
Initially, playing competitively is disabled. To see how close the account is to playing competitive matches, check the challenges. This can be done by clicking the 'Challenges' word on the main screen or by clicking the orange medal icon by the player's username and friends button in the upper right-hand corner.
From there, click the 'Competitive' tab and see how the progress is coming. Players have to win 50 Quick Play matches to unlock competitive games; it's a lot at the start, but play every hero once, then play some favorites again and it should be a breeze. It doesn't hurt to use the best DPS heroes available.
Competitive Skill Tiers
Generally speaking, there are five ranks most players need to be concerned about: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Players will be assigned a rank after playing a few games. The game will then place gamers in one of these tiers based on their performance. To move up or down, either net seven wins or lose twenty games. These tiers can't play with anyone more than two skill tiers away from them. For example, bronze players can play against gold gamers but not platinum-ranked opponents.
There are five divisions within each skill tier, with five being the lowest and one being the highest. If players are at either of those extremes, a few losses can move them down or a few wins can bump them up.
Skill tiers are unique for each role. Players who use the best support heroes and have a talent for the class can get a higher-ranked healing tier than their tank or damage tiers, for instance.
If players truly excel, they can move into higher skill trees called Master, Grandmaster, and Top 500. Their players can play against fewer opponents of other skill trees due to how strong they are.
At the end of the season, these ranks are partially reset. A Top 500 player won't go back down to Bronze, but they will be placed down a few leagues, forced to earn their way into this bracket during the next season.
Overwatch 2 is available now on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch.