Overwatch Solutions to Common Problems and Complaints

by Gangsir

Hey you. Are you frustrated? Did you just get out of a frustrating loss, because someone on your team wasn’t doing their job, or it just seemed like the enemy was playing better? Maybe you weren’t being healed? Nothing died?

All of these are common problems that people complain about, but so often they can be very deceiving. Problems like these can look straightforward (“If our ana would just heal me….”, “if our widow would stop being garbage”, etc) but are actually only symptoms of a more subtle issue.

Not enough damage | Nothing is dying

Ah, the old classic. If this appears to be the problem, then the issue or issues are:

• 70% of the time, this issue appears due to a lack of target focus. Even if you have very small-packet dps like Tracer/Genji, or Soldier/Sombra, etc, you have plenty of damage barring strange enemy comps (like quad tank). If the enemy comp is normal 222, then “not having enough damage” is simply an illusion for “we aren’t focusing targets, and they’re outhealing our individual damage”. Solution: Call targets if you’re on a team that isn’t throwingis in voice chat. Try to pick targets that the grand majority of your team can focus. (Eg don’t call for a backline target to be focused if you’re a short range team) Pick a target, and call for focus on it. Or, if your team isn’t in voice, then find a target already being focused by somebody, and contribute your damage onto them.
• 15% of the time, it’s because of lack of DPS enablement. Basically, your DPS aren’t able to do damage, because their specific kit has requirements (eg reaper can’t do anything unless he gets close) or because your frontline isn’t providing enough resistance to stop the enemy tank core rolling over you. (Snipers and mid-range hitscans need room to hit shots, if they’re worried about getting reinhardt-ed to death, they can’t focus on shooting) Solution: If you’re the DPS, consider switching up either your hero, or your execution. (Eg instead of flanking, try moving with the team. Instead of going high ground, try staying low. Etc) Try focusing different targets. If you’re in a non-DPS role, enable the DPS more. Toss them a bit more healing, try to draw more attention to yourself so your flankers get ignored, etc. Don’t let them peel for their Zen, make them focus on stopping you.
• 10% of the time, it’s due to uncontested supports. This is especially true if the enemy is running super high healing, for example Moira/Ana. In that case, it is actually possible to outheal you, even with target focus. Thus, you want to shoot at the healers themselves. Even if you don’t kill them, threatening them (“Hey! I’m here, and I could maybe kill you if you don’t pay attention to me!”) will prevent them from focusing on healing, which can create openings for other people.
• And finally, 5% of the time is due to genuinely bad DPS. It’s rare, but it is possible to get DPS that are outright bad, or perhaps even just outplayed by the enemy DPS. Solution: A few options here. You could try enabling them by pocketing them. This can work if a person is offensively skilled, but defensively bad. (Eg good aim, but bad movement so tends to die a lot) You could also enable them by assisting them in 1v1s they’re struggling with. Zen is great for this, as you can discord the enemy and heal your teammate, which shifts the 1v1 strongly in their favor. OR, just accept it, avoid, and go again.

Not being healed | Dying to enemy frontline as tank

Another really common one, and what tanks call out as the problem most of the time.

• 60% of the time, the issue is the healer was unable to heal you. It’s something you did right before you died that prevented healing (you took an ana nade, went out of line of sight, went through an enemy shield, etc), or it was a healer-specific mechanic like Ana reloading or Moira running out of juice. They were right there, they wanted to heal you, but couldn’t. Don’t rage, check the killcam and see if you can identify what you did that prevented healing. Perhaps ask your healer in a nice, non-accusatory tone! Often they’ll tell you, “I couldn’t see you/I was reloading/You were purpled/etc”, and then you shrug, and try to not let it happen again. Adjust your play accordingly.
• 20% of the time, it’s because the healer was distracted by something. Perhaps a flanker is attacking them. Maybe they’re trying to save someone else. Again, ask them and find out what the problem is, then do your best to solve it. Adjust your positioning and play so you can peel, or get someone else to peel. Make callouts of people’s location so healers are ready to respond. (“Reaper going left, coming to you Ana” can help wonders)
• And finally, the other 20% of the time is due to sheer excess of enemy damage outdamaging your healing. Contrary to all the “this game has too much healing” memes, the amount of damage an enemy team can put out vastly exceeds what healers can reverse, even with double main healer comps. If you get McRightClicked, Hanzo headshotted, and beamed down by a Zarya all at the same time while discorded, even a Transcendence would struggle to save you. Instead of raging at your healers who were spamming healing into you literally as hard as the game would let them, adjust your aggression/play to avoid the massive spike of damage. Understand and think about “mini-combos” the enemy can do on you, and seek to avoid/mitigate those combos.

Their <Insert DPS/Tank here> is demolishing us

When this is an issue, people are really quick to either call them a smurf (and declare the game lost/start soft-throwing), or find somebody on your team who’s countered, and rage at them to switch (eg if a Reaper is hard carrying, they’ll yell at winston to switch, even if he’s handling him fine). Usually it’s because they can’t understand in the moment how that hero is being so effective.

• Most of the time (say 65% of the time) that <dps/tank> is being so effective because they’re being greatly enabled by their team. If you’re in plat, and so are your enemies, plat skill can look like a higher rank’s skill with a fresh coat of enablement. Their Zarya isn’t necessarily being so effective because she’s secretly a Masters Zarya smurfing in gold, it’s more that she’s being pumped full of heals, getting tons of charge from her bubbles, and just simply not outright throwing. Seriously. People can be really effective if enabled, and so long as they play at least semi-competently and don’t throw, they’ll look like gods. Maybe throw in a little mistake-punishing to seal the deal. Solution: If you have someone on the enemy team who’s being really effective, the trick to taking that apart is to find the auxiliary reason why they’re doing so well. It’s not just skill. If it was, everyone would always lose to T500 players, and all T500 games would end in double-full-hold draws. (KOTH maps would sit at 0/0 for hours until somebody’s life responsibilities causes them to leave) Jokes aside, if it is skill, then that’s only part of it. Maybe their skill is being amplified by a support? (A DPS being damage boosted is 30% more effective, even if they’re exactly as good without it) Maybe their tanks are making tons of space/serving as a distraction, leaving them free to shoot? (Even a player with ~meh~ aim can look like a god in the right scenario)
• 30% of the time, it’s because they’re countering most/all of your team. (Eg if it’s widow, you probably have no way to contest her, due to short range) Switch up your heroes or execution.
• And finally, 5% of the time it’s because they’re not in their correct SR. If they aren’t dramatically better, you can overcome it by running counters and focusing them. In my experience, the harder you focus a smurf, the less you’ll need to focus them, as they’ll start playing worse due to bruised ego. (“I’m way beneath my rank, how am I still losing!?”) If they’re dramatically better, do what you can to avoid dying to them, and accept it. Some games are gonna be unwinnable due to matchmaker failure, don’t tilt over it. Take a break so you don’t get them again, and keep going.

Hopefully this helps to shed some light on common problems. I’m sure others can contribute more in the comments. Thanks for reading.