NOTE: This thread may contain discussion of OWCS and it’s now-defunct predecessor OWL. It is therefore advised that those who may be sensitive to such content, or to constructive discussion about Overwatch as a whole, go try French opera instead.
Hello, forumgoers, I’m Arena25, resident Overwatch Esports fan and humble servant of the forums. OWCS’ inaugural regular season has come to a close, which means we now know who will be heading to Stockholm to try and crown themselves champions. As there are several weeks between now and the OWCS Finals at DreamHack Stockholm, and it’s a tad bit too early to post my OWCS Finals primer thread, I’ll instead opt to post a FAQ recap to keep y’all tided over while I take a much needed breather from these forums (which, frankly, we all could use right about now, especially with Season 13 launching meaning Sunday’s finest is about to get busy). So, let’s do this.
Who is qualified?
NA: Toronto Defiant, Nightmare, NRG Shock
EMEA: Spacestation, ENCE, Twisted Minds
APAC: Crazy Raccoon, Team Falcons
How did the NA teams qualify?
Toronto Defiant: The Defiant organization has always believed that Overwatch Esports could be an actual thing, if it’s done right. To prove this, not only did the Defiant host the first Overwatch Esports tournament on Canadian soil with the 2022 Overwatch League Summer Showdown, they also hosted the 2023 Overwatch League Grand Finals - and did both while also doing work behind the scenes on behalf of all 20 League franchises that ultimately kickstarted the chain of events which led to the fall of the Overwatch League and the rise of the Overwatch Championship Series. And while most of the former franchises - even the ones headed up by actual gaming organizations - scoffed and laughed at the idea of a revitalized Overwatch Esports scene (although you could certainly understand why), the Defiant lived up to their name and instead chose to embrace the revitalized scene with 100% enthusiasm. Needless to say, their efforts have paid off handsomely in 2024, as they have been about as meta proof as you could make them - winning all 4 stages of regional play in extremely convincing fashion, with their only “blemish” (which many viewers strongly suspect was less “blemish” and more opportunity to scout their opponents further) being a 3-2 loss to NRG Shock in the Stage 3 Upper Finals (whom the Defiant proceeded to absolutely rout the next day in the Stage 3 Grand Finals to the tune of 4-0). Horse meta, Juno, Venture, Winton - doesn’t matter, whatever other North American teams do, they can do it better. Toronto is expected to be North America’s best shot at challenging the APAC teams in Stockholm.
NTMR: Nightmare ended up acquiring FMCL, and while multiple players from the core roster wasn’t thrilled about the acquisition and ended up leaving, Nightmare found suitable replacements for the roster ahead of Stage 3. Nightmare’s roster proceeded to snag a 3rd place finish in Stage 3, losing in the Lower Finals to the eventual champion Toronto Defiant. Nightmare got even better in Stage 4, advancing to the Grand Finals, but despite having 2 chances at Toronto and even taking the Defiant to 7 maps, Nightmare was unable to complete the epic upset. Nightmare thus enters as the second best NA team, behind Toronto.
NRG Shock: Originally playing as Students Of The Game, the reincarnation of the San Francisco Shock lived up to their motto, Shock The World, in the only way they know how…at the OWCS Major, which conveniently was held around the same time many high schools around the United States was holding graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2024, the SOG starting lineup entered on to the DreamHack Dallas stage wearing black polyester robes and black graduation caps. What happened next remains one of the most iconic intros in OWCS’ short history - the roster took off their robes and caps, revealing Shock jerseys, as the screen behind them went from blue and black and the SOG logo - to orange, yellow and black (the colors of the Shock) and the NRG Shock logo. Graduation day is now here - students no more, they are now reborn as NRG Shock. Unfortunately, their freshman year at NRG has not gone smoothly - they were quickly shown the door at Dallas, going 2 and out. While they have made it back to DreamHack, that was only after they sweated out the final 2 days of matches which nearly saw their spot at Stockholm go to TSM. But now they are here, and hoping to do better than their 2 and out performance at Dallas.
How did the EU teams qualify?
Spacestation Gaming - Formed from the roster core of the 2022 and 2023 London Spitfire squads, Spacestation Gaming has proven that when it counts, they rise to the occasion - having won Stage 2 and Stage 4 over rival team ENCE. Hadi, Backbone, and the rest of the roster are fan favorites, and they know this - both can get the crowd going likely a finely tuned instrument, whether it’s through their play in-game or by doing real world stuff like Hadi doing pushups every time he whiffs a Firestrike. And while some unkind folk view the roster - Hadi in particular - as being one-trick wonders for certain heroes, most know better than to say that to their face, as underestimating or stereotyping them has almost always proven to be the last mistake a team will ever make prior to their defeat.
ENCE - One team that has known from Day 1 not to underestimate Spacestation Gaming is their regional rivals, ENCE. Originally formed from a core of former Overwatch League veterans, ENCE retooled their support roster following their exit from Dallas - Crimzo leaving and being replaced by Skai (one time support hero for the 2023 London Spitfire who will forever be immortalized thanks to the Spitfire’s “We Spit Fire” video), Kellex joining and starting over Masaa (former Atlanta Reign player). The retooled support line has proven super effective, as they won Stage 3 and then defeated Spacestation in the Upper Finals of Stage 4, before falling in the Grand Finals rematch the next day. Despite officially entering as EU’s second best team, ENCE and SSG are both expected to provide EU’s biggest threat to the APAC teams. Will it be enough? We’ll find out.
Twisted Minds - Saudi Arabia has always been embroiled in controversy, whether warranted or not, and sports and esports are no exception. First there was the LIV Golf tour which led to a massive legal fight with the PGA Tour - and then there was the Esports World Cup and the Esports Awards, with many choosing not to attend or play in, citing Saudi Arabia’s strict stance against LGBT, women, and the civil rights many of us here in the States take for granted. So anyone who is paying attention has zero right to be surprised that Saudi Arabian-owned gaming organization Twisted Minds found itself embroiled in controversy during the OWCS season. Specifically, some off the stage events involving Youbi - one of the Damage players for Twisted Minds - would ultimately cause Admiral, Slay, and fellow Saudi KSAA to leave the team shortly after the Major concluded, forcing TM to sign TVNT in KSAA’s place. Youbi not starting in maps/matches during the latter part of Stage 4 - whether by personal choice or not - almost cost Twisted Minds their spot in Stockholm. Ultimately, though, Youbi returned in their final match and played in enough maps to the point where Twisted Minds secured their spot in Stockholm over Virtuspro. With their spot secured despite the outside noise and controversy, Twisted Minds are hoping to silence the critics by advancing to the second or even final day of the OWCS Finals in Stockholm.
How did the APAC teams qualify?
Crazy Raccoon: 2024 OWCS Major champions, this team has made it back to DreamHack and is now ready to prove that APAC truly is the best and prove that the Major was not a fluke. Their fiercest competition will be, arguably, their APAC rivals Team Falcons. Previous matches featuring the 2 teams - whether in regional play or at LANs - have been absolute barnburners, almost always requiring 5, 6, or even 7 maps to resolve. While their 4-2 victory over Team Falcons meant Crazy Raccoon left Dallas as the inaugural OWCS Major champions, Stockholm will be a very, VERY different beast.
Team Falcons: Runners-up in Dallas, Team Falcons made it back to DreamHack after winning a 5-map barnburner against fellow Korean team Zeta Division. The fact that Zeta Division did not qualify for DreamHack Stockholm did not sit well with many OWCS fans, as some have argued that Zeta Division - and even the 4th place finisher out of APAC - would make for a much better LAN competition than Twisted Minds or NRG Shock. While we will never know if Zeta Division would easily outclass all of NA or EMEA, one thing is for certain - NA and EMEA will have their work cut out for them against Crazy Raccoon and Team Falcons. A word of advice - if the two teams are ever facing each other on the same stage, you may want to keep a supply of aspirin close at hand.
What’s the format of the OWCS Finals?
An 8-team double elimination tournament that takes place over 3 days at DreamHack Stockholm. More specifics to come with the OWCS Finals primer that I will publish closer to the event.
Will attendee-exclusive incentives be available if I purchase a ticket?
Yes, event attendees will gain access to exclusive in-game viewership incentives not available to at-home viewers. To do so, YOU MUST purchase a ticket to DreamHack Stockholm AND that ticket needs to have an OWCS-specific add-on. Without both, you are not guaranteed a seat at the event, and you may not receive the code you’ll need to gain access to the viewership incentives for both at-home viewers as well as the event-exclusive in-person attendance incentives.
Anything else I should know?
There’s plenty, but with Season 13 having launched mere days ago and with DreamHack Stockholm still over a month out, I feel it would be best to reconvene closer to the start of the OWCS Finals - i.e. after everyone has had a chance to put Dr. Junkenstein and his creations in their place - and make sure that the discussions about Season 13 that need to be had are front and center. Here’s to the spooky season!
That is all. We wish everyone a safe, happy, and spooktacular Halloween and hope that your world is filled with all treats and no tricks. I’ll check back in once we’ve had our fill of sugary goodness, for now, 
“to the pyres bright n’ red, we’ve reached the end o’ days, bring out your dead!” 