went the full distance and absolutely lived up to the hype

Blizzards newest game, Overwatch, officially launched last month already had seven million players within a week of release. Whats more, this is a game that went the traditional sales route rather than the increasingly common free-to-play one, meaning that all those players plopped down a minimum of $40 to play Blizzards newest IP.Even before launch, there were a healthy number of professional Overwatch tournaments, populated by some of the biggest teams in esports. With Overwatchs audience growing and Blizzards focus on increasing the competitiveness of the game -- as seen by the games just-released Competitive Mode -- theres an opportunity for Overwatch to flourish as an esport.Any spectator sport, whether its hitting a ball with a large stick or dispensing an animated fighter with a Shoryuken, quickly develops its own internal strategies and trends as the players become more experienced and the sport becomes more refined. In gaming, we refer to this as the meta, an endlessly evolving state that forms the backbone of tactics employed in the game.With 21 heroes, theres a lot for a new viewer or player to grasp. To help potential Overwatch enthusiasts, last week we started our introduction to the heroes and their strategies. This is not a list of their various skills, but a basic overview of how each hero fits into the competitive framework based on where the game stands right now. We started off with the offensive heroes. Next up: the tanks.The concept of a tank in gaming goes far beyond the first-person shooter. From a team FPS to multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) to role-playing games (and so on), the essential job of a tank is to absorb damage in some way. Typically, the strong defensive skills of the tank are balanced by weakness in another area, whether that be reduced offensive power, reduced range and/or mobility, or some other drawback. Overwatch has five tanks that fulfill this role, but they all do it in very different ways.ReinhardtGigantic, clad in heavy armor and wielding a massive warhammer, one look at Reinhardt should dispel any notion that this character is a healer or a squishy sniper. Reinhardts game is the most straightforward of any tank in Overwatch: absorb a ridiculous amount of damage and smash anything that comes in range of the hammer.Reinhardts shield, the best single defensive tool in the game, does have a major drawback in that it only appears in a small arc thats directly in front of him. This makes Reinhardt a valuable character when it comes to protecting a particular hero -- when Bastion is played, youll tend to see a Reinhardt nearby -- or a particular space. It also makes Reinhardt vulnerable in more wide-open, dynamic situations.When a payload is involved -- a very linear mode where you escort an object to a destination -- or a specific point needs to be defended, Reinhardts a top tank. In a King of the Hill match, in which the action is more difficult to channel in a single direction, Reinhardt becomes a more challenging choice. In terms of matchups, while McCree finds it hard to deal with Reinhardt one-on-one, Pharahs rockets and Reapers ability to choose the angle of short-range engagement are problematic for Reinhardt. Both of those characters are very popular.Best Maps: Kings Row, DoradoWinstonLike Reinhardt, Winston is a tank with a short-range attack and a shield that can protect multiple team members. Thats where the similarities end. Winstons Jump Pack gives him a significant measure of mobility, giving Winston a great degree of flexibility in how you use him; to compensate, his shield cant absorb as much damage as Reinhardts. Both the Jump Pack and the Tesla Cannon give Winston more effective crowd-control abilities than the other tanks, expanding Winstons role significantly beyond turtling.Thats what makes Winston more popular than other tanks in those King of the Hill maps. Dynamic situations are where Winston fits best, as his bubble-shaped shield covers a full 360 degrees and his Tesla Cannon is effective against the quicker attackers (Tracer and Genji most notably). Need your tank to jump across the map and annoy the other teams back line? Looking to cause a bit of chaos? Winstons your choice. Sometimes, on Route 66, youll see multiple Winstons.Best Maps: Watchpoint: Gibraltar, Route 66RoadhogRoadhog describes himself in-game as a one-man apocalypse, and that about sums up his role.Sheltering weaker support characters isnt Roadhogs function, as he has no damage-mitigation abilities. The way a Roadhog defends a team is indirectly; its not by protecting his teammates from damage with some kind of shield, but by simply being a large target and keeping the other team at a distance. His ability to heal himself means that he can soak up a lot of damage, and the Chain Hook, which drags an opponent into close range, is devastating on a single target. In addition, the Chain Hook can interrupt a number of ultimates (Reaper, McCree, Pharah and other Roadhogs).The downside is that hes the least-mobile tank, as even Reinhardt technically can charge in a straight line fairly quickly. Characters like Soldier: 76 and Junkrat are able to damage Roadhog at will without being in any danger from the Chain Hook or either of his Scrap Guns firing modes. His lack of mobility and need for straight sightlines keep Roadhog, even as an offensive-minded tank, from having a role in many of the King of the Hill maps.Best Maps: Kings Row, NumbaniZaryaZarya is unusual in that, unlike the other tanks, you usually see her on offense at high levels of competitive play and not defense. While Zaryas personal shield and the one that she can project onto a teammate are powerful, they also only last for two seconds. To successfully use her damage mitigation, you need to be choosing when to engage rather than having the enemy come to you.The short shield window makes Zarya good for coordinated attacks on choke points or for a general assault on an opposing teams position. Damage absorbed by her barriers in these attacks also serves to increase her damage output significantly, which is another factor that makes her ideal for offense. The Graviton Surge ultimate also comes with team-wipe potential given a bit of coordination, something all top teams have in ample supply.Best Maps: Kings Row, HollywoodD.VaOf the five heroes classified as tanks, D.Va is the only one that has yet to find a real role in competitive play outside of tactical moments when her mechs vertical mobility comes in handy. If you play mostly pub games and havent watched much competitive Overwatch, this might come as a surprise.D.Vas ability to act as a shock trooper, charging in quickly where most heroes cant, can easily cause disarray in the enemy line in lower level play. Against a pro, however, this tactic is harder to pull off and youre not going to successfully cap points by sending a couple D.Vas to skip through the battle. Even the Self-Destruct ultimate is only really going to clear a room temporarily rather than actually kill anybody; while that move has a tempo value -- forcing opponents to move behind obstructions rather than doing something useful for several seconds -- thats really not enough.D.Va does a lot of things well, but theres no real set role in which shes amazing. Until she can fill a more specialized task, shes a pub hero and a comp zero.Best Maps: Dorado, Hanamura Cheap Jerseys USA Wholesale NFL Jerseys Authentic . After a first half in which he thought "the lid was on the basket," the Toronto Raptors coach watched his squad mount a second half surge to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91. http://www.cheapwholesalejerseyschina.com/ . PAUL, Minn. Authentic Jerseys Cheap . Pettersen, winner of last years Evian Championships, had nine birdies and three bogeys, holding off a series of challengers led by Marion Ricordeau of France. The second-ranked Norwegian made her season debut after missing the LPGA Tours opening event last month in the Bahamas because of a shoulder injury. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . The native of Mont-Tremblant, Que., captured a World Cup downhill event Saturday, his second this year and fifth career victory on the circuit. SK Telecom T1 took down the ROX Tigers 3-2 in one of the most anticipated matchups of the League of Legends World Championship.The pairing of the defending Worlds champion SKT against the No. 1-ranked team in the world, ROX Tigers, went the full distance and absolutely lived up to the hype. It was a strategic drafting masterclass and a beautiful display of adjustments from lane phase to mid game.SKT showed off its impressive champion selection depth and fundamentals to take down the ROX Tigers. Lee Faker Sang-hyeok was solid throughout the set on Orianna and Viktor. He never amazed, but his itemization and strong laning throughout the entirety of the set was the rock anchoring SKTs attack. The versatility came in the form of the best player at Worlds, Bae Bang Jun-sik. The AD carry was excellent on Jhin and Ashe but lackluster on his Caitlyn and Ezreal. Despite the up-and-down performances, Bang was still a matchup nightmare and outputted enough damage to really make a difference. Perhaps the best contribution from Bang was his fearless drive to initiate fights or dive for the important kill. The difference between Bang and his counterpart, Kim PraY Jong--in, was his aggression, and it paid off for SKTs overall teamfight.dddddddddddd The X factor for SKT was its revolving lineup at jungle. Both Bae benji Seong-ung and Kang Blank Sun-gu played differently enough to confuse the opposition. Whether it was stronger lane presence from bengi or team fight from Blank, the team benefited from the multiple approaches.The ROX Tigers suffered from the inconsistent performances of the teams core members -- Song Smeb Kyung-ho, Lee kur0 Seo-haeng and PraY. Despite the individual strengths of its members, the team could never put together strong stretches of League of Legends. Each of the members made individual outplays but could not break through the fundamentals of their fellow South Korean opposition. On paper, ROX Tigers were stronger in the lane matchups, with Smeb as a winning lane and a tie in the bottom, but it never really came to fruition.SKT will advance to the finals at Staples Center in Los Angeles on Oct. 29 against the winner of tomorrows match between Samsung Galaxy and H2k. ' ' '