What are the match rules for Overwatch 2?

OVERWATCH 2 RULES

1.1 Match Procedure

• Tournament Teams
  • A “team” will consist of 5 Players and up to 5 allowable substitutes for a total of 10 players per roster. Multiple teams from each eligible institution will be allowed to participate in the tournament.
  • If a team has less than 5 players, the match will be continued to be played (ex: 4v5). Otherwise, if the team with less than 5 players does not want to play with less than 5, they will take a forfeit.
    • Players can join late but the game has to be completed. They can't join in the middle of the game. For example, if it is the second game and they arrive mid-way through it, they have to wait until the second game is completed before joining. This player must be a player that is listed in the gamertags for the opponent. If someone joins that is not, then please report this to support@vanta.gg.
• Set Length
  • All tournament sets will be played best-of-5 games (Control, Escort, Hybrid, Push, and then Control if a 5th match is needed).
  • A “Game” is defined as: An instance of competition on the designated map that is played until a winner is determined by one of the following methods, whichever occurs first: (a) completion of the final objective or (b) a Team forfeiting

2.1 Game Rules

• Patch: All Games will be played on the current patch available on the Live Service. 
• Game Lobby Setup: The designated “Home Team” will be expected to set up the Lobby. Lobby should be set to “Invite Only” - teams will need to add at least one player of the opposing team to their custom match.
• Mode: Custom Match
• Competitive Rules: On
• Limit Roles: 1 Tank, 2 Offense, 2 Support
• Spectators: Coaches & Subs cannot sit in the spectator role for the lobby. If they wish to spectate a match, they can do so through a Discord call (or something similar) where an individual player can stream their screen. Being in the lobby gives them the potential to spectate the other team, which will be considered cheating if reported that it is being done.
• Team Size: 5
• Match Voice Chat: Disabled
• Side Selection: The “Home Team” will select either “Red” or “Blue” side for Game 1. Sides will swap after each match.
• Map Selection: The “Home Team” will select the first map in the series from the eligible list of “Control” maps. Teams will then alternate map selection for each game until the completion of the series selecting eligible (standard) maps from the following game modes: 
  • Game 1: Control
  • Game 2: Escort
  • Game 3: Hybrid
  • Game 4 (if needed): Push
  • Game 5 (if needed): Control
  • Game 6 (if needed): Control 
• Draws: If a map ends in a draw neither team will be awarded a “Win” for that map, another will played in it’s place (if needed for a team to get to 3 wins in the series)
• Stoppage of Play: 
  • Each team is permitted one “Pause” per match in the event of a disconnection or hardware/software malfunction. 
  • Pauses may last no longer than 5 minutes regardless of the status of the originally impacted player. 
  • Teams are required to ensure both sides are “Ready” in the chat prior to lifting the pause. 
  • Teams that use an unauthorized pause will be considered to be using an exploitable bug and will forfeit that game. 
• Remake Procedure: In the event of a server crash that impacts all ten players, the game may be remade. Picks and bans must stay consistent with the previous iteration of the game, and the rest of the game will be played out in full. 
• In the event that a team is down players but are continuing to play, a player may switch roles after a round (ie: when swapping to defense on a control point after completing the attack round).

3.1 Character Selection

• New Heroes/Heroes that have undergone Major Reworks: Heroes categorized as either “New” or “Major Reworks” will be restricted for two weeks from their release on live service. Restricted champions are not allowed to be played in league play. Once the two-week period has passed, restrictions will lift and those heroes will be eligible for play. 

4.1 Reporting

• Score Reporting Format: Scores will be reported in “Win/Loss” format. Teams will indicate the number of games won by each team, final scores should be one of the following: 3-0. 3-1, or 3-2
• Forfeits: Forfeits will be considered a 3-0 win for the team that showed up to play.