Blizzard’s Overwatch League seems to be imitating Michael Jackson as the hits simply don’t stop coming this season. From COVID-19 dashing the entire league plan into the rocks with unabashed reserve to teams imploding on social media, sex scandals, reigning MVP’s quitting the season halfway through to change games, and Counter-Strike analysts apparently infatuated with sending barbed tweets at the league, it’s been a rough ride for Blizzard, although arguably the most entertaining season thus far. Many are theorizing that the game is teetering on the edge of viability, although it is highly unlikely that the league suddenly folds up and heads home after a singular rough season.
The latest issue is dealing with the Vancouver Titans that have a match this Saturday on May 9th against the Washington Justice, yet allegedly they still don’t have a team.
After the implosion that appeared to begin somewhere around April 20 on social media, and came to a head recently on May 1st that saw many members of the roster publically tweeting ‘I’m free’ and the like across a modicum of social media platforms, the public opinion is that the Vancouver Titans no longer have a team. The roster that once was led by the South Korean darlings of Team RunAway which had a boisterous saga of upending critics and analysts alike with their hard-fought win, is now apparently to be replaced by a North America team.
A team that has not been announced as of yet, four days before their next match.
The social media for the Vancouver Titans has fallen eerily silent since April 30, with neither updates nor hype in regards to anything; their last post was regarding the main coach parting ways with the Canucks. This is all leading to an immense amount of speculation, as one of the strongest teams in the Overwatch League has suddenly dissipated, creating a larger gap between the top teams of the league and the rest, half-way through a critical season for Blizzard.
Granted, the Vancouver Titans could easily simply withdraw from the Overwatch League for the time being, as the beloved New York Excelsior has done during the COVID-19 lockdown due to the difficulty of setting up wired internet connections in New York City. Although the Washington Justice aren’t necessaRily a top-tier team; if Vancouver TItans can figure out some semblance of order to put together an allegedly new team before Saturday, it doesn’t look like there is anything stopping them.
Regardless of how you feel about Overwatch League, this is a very interesting time in sports due to the various pressures that COVID-19 can place on the shoulders of esport teams. From transfers and training to tournaments and fan-service, it’s throwing a multitude of unprecedented obstacles in the way of managers and organizers that need to think outside of the box to keep the leagues afloat. It’s presumed that the Vancouver Titans will make a public statement before the match this weekend.
