Crimzo on Overwatch 2 and Boston Uprising

The arrival of Overwatch 2 is the dawn of a new era, in the midst of a turbulent time for the esport. With so many teams and so many players looking to the game to provide a plethora of new opportunities, Overwatch 2 is like a packed plane looking to land safely on the tarmac in the middle of a hurricane.  

It seems the only thing that’s a constant in this OWL 2022 pre-season, is the uncertainty. The uncertainty surrounding the state of the league, how the game itself will play, and whether teams and players can successfully make the transition into the new game.

One of those players is William "Crimzo" Hernandez, the Canadian all-star flex-support who is now entering his third year in the Overwatch League, and who will enter this season as part of the Boston Uprising roster. Crimzo spoke with GGRecon this past weekend following the first scrim with his new team. Here is just the first part of that conversation, which will cover his initial impressions of Overwatch 2, his new team, and what happened to him during the off-season.

Crimzo On Overwatch 2

According to Crimzo, the Boston Uprising are, compared to other teams, a bit late to the party when it comes to Overwatch 2. They actually hadn’t scrimmed together on OW2 until right before this interview took place, and that meant that the team’s first practice was a bit of a hot mess.

"It didn’t go amazing but that’s to be expected. We were completely outclassed in the sense that we don’t know the maps, we have little experience," said Crimzo. "Right now, we’re just not ready."

While he couldn’t reveal the team Boston were scrimming against that day, Crimzo lamented the clear disparity in in-game knowledge between the two squads. The other team simply had better knowledge of the maps, places to hold, and what to play. It sounded pretty rough from an outsider’s perspective, but Crimzo relayed confidence when he revealed that it wasn't about results at this stage.

"Honestly today was all about learning, not winning or losing. That’s pretty much what we’re taking from that. Next week when we start our full week we’ll do better."

Because of NDAs, Crimzo couldn’t reveal specifics about the changes in Overwatch 2, but stated that everything felt "pretty new." And the changes look set to inspire a new meta as "people are still figuring out there’s no set way to do things."

He also added that, from his point of view, every team in the league will have to swot the new game and scrim as much as possible before release.

"A lot of teams are going to be picking up three scrim blocks instead of two," said Crimzo. "In the past, most teams would schedule two scrim blocks, that was just the norm. I think now if since were going into a brand-new game, upping the scrim amount feels necessary to keep up and learn together."

Typically, scheduling more than two blocks could lead to fatigue and exhaustion, but that can’t be the case anymore when it comes to Overwatch 2. It’s either full steam ahead, or you’re going to get left behind.  

"The truth is at the highest level it’s the smallest of mistakes that kill you… Now that we're going into a new game, everyone’s excited to learn all this stuff, and I think it feels necessary to do this because everything is so brand new."

While the scrim itself may have been only a teaching moment, the enthusiasm and excitement Crimzo had for the future was apparent. Despite a rough start, the mood is optimistic around Boston even if there are question marks over Boston Uprising's atypical roster composition.

Which begs the question, how did Crimzo end up at Boston Uprising?

Crimzo On His Move To Boston Uprising

The Uprising are a bit of a peculiar roster, a slew of talented Korean players and two westerners, Crimzo and tank Leyton "Punk" Gilchrist. It’s a historically odd collection of players. Additionally, as a franchise, Boston has basically been down in the dumps since the conclusion of the Inaugural season. After a standout 2021 on the Houston Outlaws, many would’ve expected Crimzo to either stay with his former team or find greener prospects. Boston seemed like an odd place to land, and it turns out it wasn't necessarily his first choice.

"During the offseason, Houston had talked to me and said they would not be pursuing me for Season 5," revealed Crimzo. "That made me sad because I really did enjoy my time with the team, I think they have really good players, and I would’ve loved to play for them given the opportunity… I was expecting to come back, I wanted to come back, but it just didn’t work out."

After going back onto the open market, Crimzo said that it took Boston less than 24 hours for them to start talks with him. He revealed that the Uprising had been trying to sign him for years, but it never appealed to him. This time, however, things were different, as Boston laid out a plan that excited him.

"When I talked to Huk and Mineral, we had a lengthy talk for like an hour about the team, the environment, and who they’re getting rid of. Everything they were saying lined up perfectly with what I wanted in terms of who they were keeping. Faith, Valentine, and punk, I thought they were really good players, and I was definitely excited to get the chance to work with them."

"They were a team that was resetting, and I know Boston has a bad history obviously but that didn’t really deter me too much from valuing them as a serious prospect as a team. I’ve always wanted to go to a team and make something special happen."

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For Crimzo, one of his goals and dreams as a player is to feel proud of the team he’s helped build. It’s been one of his goals as far back as his debut season with Dallas Fuel.

"I wanted to go to Dallas my first year and stay there for two or three years and make that team something worth being proud of. Moving to Houston was the same deal, I wanted to stay, I wanted to build something, and I wanted the fans to be proud of something… Now, it feels like going to a team that’s been actively pursuing you for a while, it’s just really nice."

Of course, you can’t go wrong with a little added job security. With Overwatch 2 on the horizon, that trademark uncertainty permeated everything in preparation for the next season, a fact Crimzo was keenly aware of.

"So, truthfully Boston came to me, and I agreed almost immediately. Everything they were offering was lining up with my vision and with the uncertainty with what was going on, in my opinion, it was better to lock down the offer and immediately secure a job basically."

In addition to joining the team, Boston provided Crimzo with his own apartment, something he’s grateful for because it allows him to live with his girlfriend.

"Boston they were really offering everything I could’ve asked for, everything I could’ve wanted. It just made sense. I could have waited a little bit longer and looked at other teams, but I really feel like I made the correct choice and I want to build something that people can be proud of."

With the deal signed, Crimzo joined the Boston Uprising as one of three support players, and if his time in Houston was anything to go by, he will be a solid backbone for the team. Crimzo has nothing but good things to say about Boston. And while there is a language barrier between him and his teammates, Crimzo says that the experience has been pleasant so far and that his teammates are good company. He also says he’s been impressed by one thing in particular.

"The professionalism of the staff and org in general. I feel like in the past it was kind of more like, it didn’t feel as serious or maybe like past teams didn’t really put enough care into the team?... I do feel like since I’ve joined Boston the professionalism is very high; they really do care about their players and they want the best for everybody and they’re working hard to make that possible. Obviously, there are behind the scenes things that I don’t see as a player, but everything’s amazing so far."

You could tell just how earnest Crimzo was in his praise for Boston. Frankly speaking, a lot of people could criticise the move as jumping to such a tumultuous team, but Crimzo has landed somewhere that gives him security, an organisation dedicated to upholding a certain standard, one that can go a long way to providing a good foundation for such an eclectic new team.

While Crimson wasn't able to divulge much about the new Overwatch 2 meta, others have.