Shot accuracy, map awareness, counter picking, and effective ult use are all skills a player can bring to the table to help his team win or lose in any quick or competitive match. While individual skills are very important in any match, that does not change the fact that Overwatch is a team-based game and if one team is stronger than the other on an individual level, the weaker team can still win fights and matches if they communicate more effectively. In today's article, I’m going to give out 5 basic tips on using what I consider to be the most OP skill in Overwatch, and that is shot calling.

Ask for your team to join the audio channel

This little piece of advice applies to everyone except six stacks because a full team will most likely already have an established channel of communication before joining the match. While this is an easy step to take at the beginning of any game, it can be very powerful in showing a desire to communicate. Any team member that has a team mentality will know you’re like-minded. Other useful information you can gain by taking this initiative can be knowing who on your team has no desire to communicate, who might be coming from a negative match and could easily be tilted and also who on your team might be listening but not have a microphone. While all of these details might not be game-changers, they can give you a better idea of what to expect in terms of teamwork in the match to come.

As a final piece of advice on this specific point, if you’re grouped up but not a complete 6 stack, always make sure to join the team audio channel instead of sticking to your group channel. Even if you’re in a 5 man team don’t leave that solo player out of the communication. Who knows, you might have good synergy and add him up once this match is done.

Keep it simple

Making appropriate calls is all about relaying the necessary information as clearly and simply as possible. While calling out “The Soldier 76 is on the top right and he might have his ultimate” might be giving out appropriate and accurate information, saying “76 top right” will be a much faster and easier for anyone to understand. Keeping things simple isn’t only about timing, its also about language barriers. Overwatch is played all over the globe and using keywords will help a non-English speaker understand your calls.

Another important aspect of keeping it simple is not saturating the coms with too much information. If you limit yourself to giving specific important information, you can ensure that your team will actually listen in to what you say once they find value in it. This is just one of those cases where less is more.

Don’t take on more than you can handle

If you find yourself shot calling for your team, don’t feel responsible for keeping track of every aspect of the match. Keep tabs on any detail that won't overwhelm you because we don’t want your actual gameplay affected. Let's say your main is Zenyatta. If you can’t keep track of enemy ults or skill cooldowns, just focus on calling out your discord targets. This might seem like a very small piece of information but it’s a very strong tool because it lets your team know this enemy is vulnerable and could be an easy kill. The same goes for a Winston who calls out his dive target. This heads-up can help his team follow up on his initiation or warn him if they won’t be able to support him so that he won’t jump into a deadly situation.

If you can’t make calls, listen to who can!

Not everyone can make accurate team decision during his or her matches. There are also heroes and roles who because of their playstyle just don’t give you the appropriate vision for making calls at all. If you can't actually provide information during your match, make sure to listen, and show that you’re passively participating in the communication. Let's make one thing clear, not everyone who is making calls is going to be making the right calls, I’m not saying to listen to the guy with the Leroy Jenkins mentality, but if someone calls out a Reinhardt who just used got hacked don’t leave this useful piece of information go to waste. If someone feels that his team is reacting to his calls, he will feel motivated to keep them going and that will give your team an advantage.

Don’t let negativity put you down!

Here’s the dark truth about shot calling, it's always going to be easier to point to the person who made the call if something goes wrong. It won't happen all of the time, and on some occasions, it might actually be a bad call that caused the loss of a fight or match, but just like learning how to use a specific hero, shot calling is a skill that needs to be developed. Learn from your mistakes, identify what’s the most effective way to get your messages through and don’t let a negative reply affect your desire to unify your team. More often than not you will find that if someone is negative toward your calls the rest of your team will back you up because they value the fact that you’re actually trying.

With that said, I hope I have shed some light on the art of shot calling. Till the next time, happy gaming!

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