Overwatch 2 came with a lot of new updates, including new changes to its ranking system. The foundation of the original Overwatch’s rank is still here, but it’s important to discuss everything in detail to know what changed and what remained.
For one, Overwatch 2 has two primary rank modes, Open Queue and Role Queue. The latter requires you to lock in a role, which can either be Support, Tank, or a DPS. Open Queue, on the other hand, is a more free-for-all mode.
Without further ado, here is everything players need to know on how to break through mountains of hardships and reach the top in Overwatch 2 Rank.
List of the ranks in Overwatch 2
Every ranking system in multiplayer games is a great venue for competitive play. Thus, it’s no surprise that Overwatch players strive to reach their best potential and hopefully become the number one player.
In Overwatch 2, there are over eight ranks players can qualify for. The game places players in these ranks according to their skill rating (SR). These ranks serve as tiers and a way to group players together regarding their skill, game sense, and performance.
SR is rewarded for every win and is deducted for every loss. Players must keep collecting SR points to reach a higher rank. Here is the full breakdown of Overwatch 2’s competitive rank/skill tier:
- Bronze 5 to 1
- Silver 5 to 1
- Gold 5 to 1
- Platinum 5 to 1
- Diamond 5 to 1
- Master 5 to 1
- Grandmaster 5 to 1
- Top 500 (players in the region)
It’s important to note that the rank ‘Top 500’ is unique compared to the rest. This is because players can qualify for it regardless of their rank in competitive play. For example, Diamond players can enter the top 500 as long they are in the top 500 in their region. Of course, this example is still rare, but it is not impossible. In most cases, pro players, Grandmasters, and Masters make up the Top 500.
Furthermore, the Top 500 leaderboard serves more as a title rather than a rank in Overwatch.
Most of Overwatch’s player base falls under Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Players shouldn’t feel bad if they struggle to reach Diamond and beyond. However, for players who are very competitive and want to challenge themselves, reaching Diamond, Master, and Grandmaster would be a solid achievement.
Skill Rating (SR) and Matchmaking Rating (MMR)
As mentioned earlier, Skill Rating is the primary way for Overwatch to determine your rank. When you start playing Overwatch’s competitive mode, you would have to go through placement matches. These would judge your performance and skill level. Players either have to win five games or lose 15 games before Overwatch would assign you a starting rank and SR.
Your rank would continue to grow as long as you keep winning five matches. It could also get demoted as soon as you lose 15 games. Moreover, if players encounter a draw then that match wouldn’t affect their current rank. Additionally, a player’s SR also differs per role.
Matchmaking Rating (MMR) is a different system from SR. It collects data regarding your skill and compares it to other players. This system allows you to play against people who have the same skill level as you so the matches would be even.
Unfortunately, the Overwatch 2 MMR annoys a lot of players. For one, there is no clear scoring system. We can confirm though that a player’s MMR will decrease if they haven’t played Overwatch in a while.
Ranked Rewards
Thankfully, winning in competitive rank gives more than just bragging rights. However, players must first complete a challenge called the “Competitive Role/Open Queue Player ” by winning 15 games or more every new season to receive these awards.
Completing the challenge gives players access to Competitive Points (CP), which they can slowly get by winning Overwatch ranked games. Here is a complete list of the amount of CP players can get:
- One win: 15 CP
- One Draw: 5 CP
- End-of-Season Rewards:
- Bronze: 65 CP
- Silver: 125 CP
- Gold: 250 CP
- Platinum: 500 CP
- Diamond: 750 CP
- Master: 1,200 CP
- Grandmaster: 1,750 CP
- Top 500: 1,750 CP
These CPs can be used to buy exclusive rewards such as a Golden Gun. These golden weapons are unique per hero and cost 3,000 CP each. It’ll be a while before players can get their hands on one, but it will be worth it to get their favorite hero’s weapons.
Additionally, players can also buy smaller prizes such as icons and sprays. The rewards can be used in any game mode as a way to show off achievement.
Other than cosmetics, players also earn titles when they reach specific achievements.
| Condition | Title |
| Gold | Gold Role/Open Challenger |
| Platinum | Platinum Role/Open Challenger |
| Reaching Diamond | Diamond Role/Open Challenger |
| Reaching Master | Master Role/Open Challenger |
| Reaching Grandmaster | Grandmaster Role/Open Challenger |
| Reaching Top 500 | Top 500 Role/Open Challenger |
| Completing 250 competitive games | Adept Competitor |
| Completing 750 competitive games | Seasoned Competitor |
| Completing 1,750 competitive games | Expert Competitor |
The rank rewards are given after each season. They are based on the player’s final rank and the highest rank between Role Queue and Open Queue. For example, if you’re Diamond in Role Queue, but Gold on Open Queue then you’ll receive Diamond rewards.
Tips on how to climb Rank in Overwatch 2
Overwatch 2 is a team-based game. Thus, even if you are the best player in the match, you can still lose since the enemy has better coordination.
1. Use Your Microphone
Everyone has a role in Overwatch 2. Victory can be achieved if players communicate their game plan. With that in mind, using your microphone and talking to one another is a good idea. You can tell your teammates about your cooldowns, supports can inform the team if someone is invading the backline, the tanks can warn everyone if their shield is about to die, and so on.
2. Play with Your Friends
If you aren’t comfortable talking to strangers, then playing with friends is the next best thing. Playing with the same people over and over again is beneficial because you can all get used to each other’s playstyle and work around that.
The trust and bond between friends are also crucial as you can criticize each other freely and it wouldn’t come off as offensive. You could also get competitive with your friends, such as proving which one of you is the best in the group. This competitive spirit would push everyone to become better players and make the group reach Diamond in no time.
3. Don’t be Afraid to Take a Break
Losing multiple games takes a big toll on a player’s mind. They can easily be annoyed or tilted. By then, they wouldn’t have the same calm and clear mind as they first started playing.
It’s important to know your limits and take breaks once in a while. Get up from your PC and take a walk or eat a snack. Look for videos or other games that calm you. Players won’t make the best in-game decisions if they are titled, so come back once you’re more calm.
Competitive Mode Will be Reworked in 2024
Blizzard Entertainment announced a lot of new things coming to Overwatch 2 in the following year during Blizzcon. One of them will be reworking the competitive scene of Overwatch.
The Overwatch community has been complaining about how vague the ranking system is. To fix this, the developers have announced that they’ll remove the required five wins or 15 losses in the future. In its place, the game would immediately give feedback regarding how the player’s performance affected their ranking. A progress bar will show how far they are from achieving the next rank.
Additionally, the developers also mentioned they’ll be adding a new tier above Grandmaster titled “Ultimate.” This gives competitive players a new goal to strive for. However, some players find the new title weird as a popular Reddit thread emerged just to discuss this very matter.
New cosmetic rewards will also be rewards for hardworking competitive players named Emerald weapons. These rewards were showcased in Blizzcon by the developers themselves.
The team also promised a better matchmaking system. There is also the possibility of friends queuing together regardless of their rank. However, the team said that the queuing time will take longer if there is a huge difference in terms of ranks within the team.
Once these changes are applied to the game, players will undergo a rank reset and a new set of placement matches.
These changes are still far from now. Thus, players can still hone their skills to reach their desired goals. For more Overwatch news, check out these articles:
