Climbing the competitive ranks in Overwatch 2 requires mastery of high-impact damage heroes that can reliably secure kills and enable teamfight victories. As an ambitious entrepreneur and former esports competitor with 300+ hours on dps heroes this season, I‘ve compiled this definitive guide to mastering the strongest damage dealers across every skill tier.
The Critical Role of DPS in Overwatch 2‘s 2-2-2 Team Composition Meta
In the standard 2 tank, 2 support, 2 dps team composition, the damage heroes serve a crucial offensive role – scoring kills to enable a numbers advantage and map control for their team. Within this framework, certain dps picks become clearly superior options:
Versatile Carries – Sojourn, Soldier 76
Shield Busters – Junkrat, Reaper
Snipers – Widowmaker, Ashe
Playmakers – Genji, Tracer
By mastering a diverse pool of these specialized damage heroes, you ensure your team has the offensive firepower to counter enemies and dictate the terms of engagement regardless of scenario.
Now let‘s break down the intricacies of each top-tier dps hero:
Sojourn – The Skill-Ceilinged Carry Queen
My Take: With insane mobility and lethal railgun bursts, a skilled Sojourn dominates lobbies through mechanical outplays and relentless aggression. But in the wrong hands, she falters quickly.
Ability Tips
- Lead railgun shots pre-emptively on moving targets
- Save slide to juke enemy cooldowns like flashbang
- Use disruptor shot to zone objectives and checkpoints
- Combo ult with Zarya grav or Orisa javelin spin for teamwipes
Strong With: Zarya, Symmetra, Lucio
Overwatch League 2022 Popularity/Win Rate: 84% Pick Rate, 55% Win Rate
Maps: Circuit Royal, Esperança, New Queen Street
My Ranked Highlight: Solo-carried Kings Row attack with a 27-3 elimination record using Sojourn‘s superior mobility to decimate an out-of-position Widowmaker repeatedly. Recognition of mistakes is critical.
The pinnacle of carry potential…
Soldier 76 – Reliable Hitscan Sustain
With a self-heal, sprint, and auto-aim ultimate, Soldier 76 thrives through consistent mid-long range damage and versatility. He‘s my go-to hitscan into double shield tanks.
Ability Tips
- Laser weaker targets quickly rather than going for helix rockets
- Biotic Field pre-fight if you get poke damage
- Flank visor when you have clear sightlines to supports
- Strong duelist 1v1 so don‘t be afraid to take aggressive angles
Strong With: Mercy, Zarya, Lucio
Maps: Circuit Royal, Gibraltar, Push Maps
A backbone hitscan for ranked…
Widowmaker – Longshot Sniper Dominance
Boasting one-shot kill potential and wallhacks, Widowmaker flourishes on long sightline maps by neutralizing exposed enemies. But up close she falters quickly, making positioning paramount.
Ability Tips
- Quick peek corners with scope to gather intel
- Hold sightlines near cover to grapple to when pressured
- Infra-sight to hunt down weakened dive targets
- Venom nearby flank routes to protect yourself
- Nearly useless against double shield – don‘t force Widow into brawl comps
Strong With: Mercy dmg boost, Orisa javelin spin
Maps: Junkertown, Circuit Royal, New Queen Street
Longshots win games. Respect the spider queen…
Genji – The Elusive Cyborg Ninja
With insane mobility and lethal blades, Genji excels at infiltrating the backline to secure early fight advantages through ruthless aggression. Highly difficult but game-defining carry potential.
Ability Tips
- Animation cancel melee after dash-shuriken combo
- Reset double jump after wall climbing
- Save deflect for flashbangs and sleep darts
- Play patiently waiting for dash resets until you have blade
- Nanoblade into their backline demolishes unorganized teams
Strong With: Ana, Zarya
Overwatch League 2022 Popularity/Win Rate: 42% Pick Rate, 51% Win Rate
Genji separates the good from the elite tier…
Reaper – Tank Busting Terror
With devastating close-range damage and heal-on-hit sustain, Reaper dominates maps where fights occur in tight spaces. His smoke abilities enable him to surgically exploit overextending and isolated enemies.
Ability Tips
- Flank using smoke abilities to ambush
- Punish tanks that push too aggressively alone
- Play corners and use cover to re-position
- Death Blossom when enemies are distracted
- Strong shield break potential
Strong With: Ana, Zarya
Maps: Colosseo, Midtown, Monte Carlo
Embrace your inner edge…
Junkrat – Explosive Chaos & Disruption
By spamming chokepoints and barriers with grenade saturation, Junkrat excels at dictating engagement zones. And his rip-tire forces enemies to scramble or get obliterated.
Ability Tips
- Bank nades off geo to explode behind barriers
- Tire flanks, mine jumps enable aggressive disruption
- Lock down flank routes with traps
- Weak up close so position near cover
- Capitalize on enemy mistakes
Strong With: Orisa, Mercy, Ana
Maps: Dorado, Kings Row, Midtown
Chaotic, disruptive, game-changing impact…
Ashe – The Calculated Gunslinger
With superior medium-longe range poke via hipfire Viper and lethal burst potential from her Coach Gun, Dynamite and BOB ultimate, Ashe shines at midrange skirmishes where she can pressure exposed enemies.
Ability Tips
- Hipfire viper for poke, ADS for longer range lethality
- Coach gun self-disengage is huge for survival
- Bob creates opportunities for flanks and distraction
- Abusable dynamite spots on most maps – exploit these
- Viable into double shields since she breaks both shields quickly from safer range
Strong With: Mercy, Ana
Maps: Junkertown, Circuit Royal, Colosseo
Steel-eyed impact at all ranges…
Ultimately, winning ranked games boils down to maximizing your dps heroes‘ opportunities find impact frags while mitigating deaths. As an ambitious entrepreneur, I approach each competitive match with a growth mindset – actively seeking every chance to exploit mistakes and enable my team through lethal, efficient damage.
This guide stems from over 300 hours of experience extracting every ounce of carry potential from these meta dps heroes this season. My goal is to accelerate your ranked climb by infusing your gameplay with the principles and techniques leveraged by top players.
Now get out there, internalize these dps secrets, and dominate your Overwatch 2 ranked grind. Let me know if this guide helps take your gameplay to new heights!
