You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
Every Friday
GamesRadar+
Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.
Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
Knowledge
From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
Every Wednesday
Switch 2 Spotlight
Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.
Every Saturday
The Watchlist
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.
Once a month
SFX
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
If the appeal of Overwatch's competitive scene was in ever in doubt, viewing figures for the first week of the Overwatch League suggest it's in a pretty good place. More than ten million people tuned in over seven days, with its Dallas Fuel vs Seoul Dynasty matchup drawing 437,000 people—the tournament's peak concurrent online viewership so far.
As relayed by Blizzard in a press release, these numbers were split between Twitch—who was declared an "exclusive worldwide third-party provider" last week—Major League Gaming, and a number of Chinese streaming partners, such as NetEase CC, Panda TV and ZhanQi TV.
An average audience of 408,000 viewers per minute was recorded on day one, against the full week's 280,000 viewers per minute average. Blizzard notes that these figures don't account for multiple Overwatchers tuning in via the same browser and/or device, and that tickets for those watching from the L.A. Blizzard Arena in person sold out throughout the full seven days.
Which is pretty impressive. As someone who only ever plays Overwatch in bursts, winning two consecutive rounds makes feel like a pro. Watching the best plays from week one of the Overwatch League firmly reminds me that I'm not.
Season one of the Overwatch League runs now through June, with playoffs and finals scheduled for July.
