The Philadelphia Fusion was the most surprising team in the Overwatch League in season one. They weren’t as misjudged as Boston, but they also weren’t as good as London or New York. However, as the season went on, they proved people wrong in every sense. When they should’ve played well, they didn’t. When they should’ve played poorly, they got to the finals of the season playoffs. This team was known for plenty of things, proving to us that we never really knew what they were going to do. But how do they look going into season two?
Up until Feb. 14, I’m going to go over each team and what’s changed since the inaugural season. Each team will have its own article, going over which players and coaches left, and who has replaced them. After going over the changes and my opinions on them, I’m going to rate them much like I did in my weekly series last season. This rating will be a little more in-depth, considering I have more time than a week to look over the teams, especially the new ones.
This team didn’t make too many changes to their roster over this offseason. But will this team make the finals again this season, or are they going to play like they did against the Shanghai Dragons? Let’s look into the roster of the Philadelphia Fusion.
Roster
Damage players (DPS)
The DPS players for the Philadelphia Fusion are Jae-hyeok “Carpe” Lee, Josh “EQO” Corona, and Simon “snillo” Ekström.
Carpe was one of the main reasons Philadelphia was always competitive against any team. He was considered one of the best players in the game, along with Excelsior’s Bang “JJonak” Sung-hyeon. Carpe’s importance to his team was immense, and his partnership with EQO grew to be one of the best. Carpe was known for his Tracer, McCree, and Widowmaker, with the latter being most impressive. Staying on this team solidifies the Fusion as still a very competitive team.
His partner in crime is EQO, the only Israeli Overwatch player in the league right now. At the start of the league, he was a substitute to former Fusion player Shadowburn. But as he started to get playtime, he proved to work better with Carpe due to his immense flexibility. Genji, Pharah, Junkrat, and Hanzo were just some of the heroes he played at a top tier. Having this duo covers a massive hero pool while still remaining top-tier, and EQO was a big part of that.
Last but not least is Snillo, a midseason acquisition for the Fusion last season. He primarily came into play as a Tracer player, but he never played much due to the duo of Carpe and EQO. Snillo’s hero pool consists of Tracer, Soldier: 76, and McCree. In the offseason, Snillo was signed to a two-way contract between the Fusion and their academy team, Fusion University.
Tank players
The tank players for the Philadelphia Fusion are Joona “Fragi” Laine, Su-min “SADO” Kim, and Gael “Poko” Gouzerch.
The Finnish Fragi was one of the most aggressive main tanks in the league last season. His high-risk, high-reward play style was only comparable to that of Janus, but he was also seen as extremely inconsistent. Fragi mainly plays Reinhardt and Winston, as most main tanks do. Towards the end of the season, as soon as teammate Sado came off of a ban, he didn’t see much play.
Sado is the main tank player for the Fusion, not playing for most of the season due to boosting. As a Reinhardt, Orisa, and Winston player, his combination with Poko was great. He was inconsistent but a step over Fragi, helping them reach the finals.
Poko was arguably their best tank player last season. He is their French off-tank player, mainly playing D.Va and Zarya. Fragi and Sado were swapped to partner Poko, but the one thing Poko was was consistent. His D.Va plays, especially with her Ultimates, were always flashy and important to their wins. He most recently played for team France in the 2018 World Cup, impressing besides losing in the quarterfinals.
Support players
The support players for the Philadelphia Fusion are Isaac “Boombox” Charles, Alberto “neptuNo” González, and Elijah Hudson “Elk” Gallagher.
Boombox was the only British player to play consistently throughout the first season. He mainly plays Zenyatta but also flexes onto Ana and Moira when needed. His play was always consistent, sometimes peaking into top-tier. His consistent play helped lead them into the finals.
Neptuno is the best Mercy player in the league. This Spanish player impressed in the World Cup for his country, helping himself reach the Overwatch League. His aggressive play style and impossible resurrects led people to think of him as top-tier. He is also flexible, being able to play Lucio, Ana, and Zenyatta. I don’t see these two players being separated for season two.
Elk, however, makes the support line deeper. On a two-way contract with teammate Snillo, he plays main support. Primarily a Lucio, Ana, and Mercy player, he fills the role of the substitute very well, and hopefully he has a chance to make it into the roster this season.
Departures
The players who left the Philadelphia Fusion are Hong-joon “HOTBA” Choi, George “ShaDowBurn” Gushcha, Jeong-hwan “DayFly” Park, and Joe “Joemeister” Gramano.
Hotba was an off-tank player for the Fusion, seeing some playtime over Poko for parts of the season. He impressed but never outplayed Poko, being benched more at the end. The team released him at the end of the season, where he got signed by the Guangzhou Charge.
Shadowburn was the flex DPS for the Philadelphia Fusion. His play for Russia at the World Cups were always impressive, and he started off the season well. But with EQO’s rising form, his playtime went down and he wanted to leave. The Fusion released him, and he got picked up by the all-European team: the Paris Eternal.
DayFly was a Korean Ana specialist that never saw any playing time for the Fusion. He got released near the end of the season along with Hotba and the next player. He currently is not affiliated with any teams.
Joemeister was a Canadian Lucio specialist for the Fusion, also not seeing much playtime in the roster. He was known for his good relationships with teammates though, eventually being released and becoming a coach.
Starting team and prediction
The starting roster for the Philadelphia Fusion should be Carpe and EQO on DPS, Sado and Poko on tank, and Boombox and Neptuno on support.
These finalists got to the end of the first season with something people didn’t expect: a chance to be number one. The cohesion of the team, even among all the different nationalities, was outstanding. With all-star performances from Carpe and EQO, they upset the New York Excelsior and made it to the grand finals. They didn’t win, but they impressed so many along the way. But will they do the impossible and reach the finals in season two, maybe even win?
I’m giving them an 8.5/10. Their DPS line is still one of the best in the league. The team’s main tank is a bit iffy, but their off tank is very good. Their support line can be better, but to risk their synergy could be worse. I still don’t see them as powerful as New York or London, but they’d love to prove me wrong and I can’t wait to see them try.
For more insights, check my analysis on the London Spitfire.
Published: Feb 12, 2019 07:44 am