Wildest Overwatch C9 ever? OWL slip-up costs team $100,000

The Overwatch League’s Summer Showdown may have ended with the most expensive C9 in the game’s history — costing the Chengdu Hunters a shot at the $100,000 grand prize.

In Overwatch, a “C9” is when a team needlessly gets off the point or payload thereby leading to the other team winning the round. This was coined after esports org Cloud9, who were the first to fall victim to it many moons ago.

It’s become one of the biggest memes in the Overwatch community, so it’s only fitting that the OWL’s Summer Showdown finals between the Shanghai Dragons and the Chengdu Hunters would be decided by one team simply not touching point.

After battling their way through the bracket, it all came down to the Dragons and the Hunters in the Finals on Saturday, July 17. Chengdu started strong, winning Ilios right out of the gate, but that’s about as far as they got.

Shanghai, widely considered the top team in the league, would take the next three maps in the best-of-seven series, leaving Nepal as the final chance for the Hunters to get back into things.

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After cleaning up on Shrine, it all came down to Village, and Chengdu were able to take the point and even get to 99% first before the Dragons came calling.

Following some failed retakes by the Hunters, it all came down to one last push just as time was about to run out. Chengdu was in perfect position and time just… ran out.

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Either they forgot to touch, or each member of the Hunters assumed someone else would reset Overtime. Either way, a bunch of players were alive and this split-second mistake ended up costing them a shot at the Summer Showdown title — and, with it, a cool $100,000.

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Even if the Hunters had won the map though, they still would have had to get through Nepal’s Sanctuary, then take another two maps from the Dragons to win the series, a tall order for any team.

It might not have been the way Chengdu or their fans wanted things to end, but we can’t think of a more appropriate way to wrap up an Overwatch tournament.