Do you think if you reach Grandmaster you are safe? You can take a break? Not really! Rank decay is a thing.
New to the world of Overwatch 2 and trying to figure out its somewhat obtuse Ranked Mode ranks? You aren't alone. There's been a number of changes to how Overwatch 2 rank works since the game's launch in October.
Just like any competitive game, a player’s skill level is determined by their in-game rank in Overwatch 2. There is an option for Overwatch players to play the game casually in the unranked mode. Unranked includes multiple game modes and is an excellent way for players to experience Overwatch 2 with their friends as long as they are in the same region. However, if you want to play competitive Overwatch, you have to play ranked. Here’s a quick overview of the ranking system in Overwatch.
Overwatch 2 ranks explained
Overwatch 2 has removed skill rating from the game. Skill Rating (SR) was a crucial component of Overwatch 1 and players could see their progression at the end of each match. Instead players can climb from Bronze to Grandmaster. Bronze 5 is the lowest rank in Overwatch while Grandmaster 1 (and later Top 500) are the highest ranks.
- Bronze
- Bronze 5
- Bronze 4
- Bronze 3
- Bronze 2
- Bronze 1
- Silver
- Silver 5
- Silver 4
- Silver 3
- Silver 2
- Silver 1
- Diamond
- Diamond 5
- Diamond 4
- Diamond 3
- Diamond 2
- Diamond 1
- Master
- Master 5
- Master 4
- Master 3
- Master 2
- Master 1
- Grandmaster
- Grandmaster 5
- Grandmaster 4
- Grandmaster 3
- Grandmaster 2
- Grandmaster 1
- Top 500
Grandmaster is the highest rank in Overwatch 2 and features the best players in the game. The Top 500, as the name suggests, features the best players in the game and quite often, these players are professional players from the region.
Is there rank decay in Overwatch 2?
Starting with Season 4 of Overwatch 2 it's been changed that rank decay no longer occurs. In a statement on the matter from the Blizzard developers, they said "“The previous seasonal rank decay was causing considerable confusion for players, who would see players in their Competitive games who did not appear to be of a similar rank.”
“Often these players were actually of similar skill, but they had not played enough games during the season to compensate for the initial decay.”
So don't worry: Your rank is safe if you don't make it back to the realm of Competitive Mode as frequently as you'd like. Which, for your own mental health may be for the best.
Stay tuned to esports.gg for the latest Overwatch 2 news and updates.