Overwatch Match Settings

This article covers the Match Settings for Overwatch. For the full rules please refer to the Overwatch Rules Page.

Series Lengths

Matches are played as a best of 5 in the Regular Season and a best of 7 in the Playoffs and Finals.

Game Lobby

The higher seed will create the lobby, lower seed will determine which team starts as red/blue in the first game. The match settings to be used are the most recent competitive rules preset with the following settings adjusted:

• Lobby

  • Team

    • Swap Teams After Match: No

  • Match

    • Pause Game on Player Disconnect: Yes

• Modes

  • All

    • General

      • Kill Cam: Disabled

      • Skins: Off

    • Hero Limit

      • Limit Rolls: On

In the event that an incorrect ruleset is loaded on the server, the match should be stopped and reset. Previously played maps with incorrect format will not count towards the series.

Map Veto

The lower seed will have the ability to decide which team will act as Team 1 and which will act as Team 2. The map pool is listed in rule 8.2.4.

Best of Five

In a Best of Five, Team 2 will ban one map from the list of three maps for the current game mode (order listed in 8.2.4.1 Rotation) Team 1 will then choose a map from the remaining maps for the game mode. The winner of the game mode will choose which map is banned from the next game mode, then the loser of the game mode will choose the next map. If the rotation goes to round 5 the Control map that was not previous chosen or banned in round 1 will be the final map to be played for the match.

Best of Seven

In a Best of Seven, Team 2 will ban one map from the list of three maps for the current game mode (order listed in 8.2.4.1 Rotation) Team 1 will then choose a map from the remaining maps for the game mode. The winner of the game mode will choose which map is banned from the next game mode, then the loser of the game mode will choose the next map. If the game mode returns to the start of the list (Control), the remaining map that was not banned or chosen previously will be played.

Map Pool

The following maps are permitted for play in official matches. Please note that any reskinned/seasonal versions of these maps are prohibited from play in official matches.

• Control Maps

  • Ilios

  • Busan

  • Lijiang Tower

• Assault Maps

  • Hanamura

  • Volskaya Industries

  • Temple of Anubis

• Hybrid Maps

  • Hollywood

  • Blizzard World

  • King’s Row

• Escort Maps

  • Havana

  • Junkertown

  • Route 66

Rotation

Each match will have the following game modes in this order: Control / Hybrid / Assault / Escort / Control

Map Ties

In the event that a map ends in a tie, a control map not currently in the rotation will be used as a tiebreaker. The lobby owner will need to select the map and set the mode as listed below.

• Mode

  • Score to Win

    • Control: 1

The tiebreaker does not count towards the series length, it is only used to determine the winner of the previous map.