Mickie explains how he stays so positive, why Brigitte is insanely OP and gives a heartfelt message to the fans.

After their last match of the season against London Spitfire, I caught up with Mickie backstage. Despite a rocky season fraught with complications both in and out of the game, he remains ever positive. Mickie laughed and smiled as we talked about how he keeps his energy up, the differences between playing main tank and off-tank, and how Brigitte is a ‘god-tier’ hero.

So in week 4, you weren’t doing so well, but this week against New York and London, you did really well! Even though you didn’t win either match…
[Laughs]

But with New York it went to map five and today with London it looked really close, the last two maps especially. What changed? How come you did really well of a sudden this week?
The biggest thing was that we changed the roles. I went to main tank, because right now, our team has a big problem with the main tank. Because we’re not really comfortable playing with anyone on the team as a main tank and we’re waiting on our new main tank. Well, he’s here already, but he’s not approved to play yet.

And do you enjoy playing main tank or do you prefer D.Va?
I used to talk about this. So, for me, I don’t care what I play. As long as it can help the team have a good performance, I can play whatever.

And what are the differences? If you’re playing Winston and you’re playing D.Va, what are the differences between the two?
I think it’s completely different. The mindset has to be changed. The off-tank is kind of like the middle of the fight, so when I make the decisions as Winston, I have to think, “I’m not D.Va! I’m not D.Va!” If I’m D.Va, I’m not going to fully commit. But I think Winston suits my style, because I used to play super aggressive with D.Va before. And when I play Winston, I almost go super aggressive. Another thing I have to think about is if I jump, without any support, I will die. But with D.Va, most of the time, I boost in and I can survive. But with Winston, I don’t know… [laughs] he dies so fast.

It’s more about the team.
Yeah, it’s about the team. And when I play main tank, I need to lead. It’s not like being the captain, but it’s about where we go and what to do in each fight. I have to think about that more.

How do you stay so happy, even when things aren’t looking their best? You always look so happy.
I just… don’t want the team to be depressed. I want to keep the energy up.

Is it hard though? To keep the energy up?
I mean… it is. Of course it is! There’s no way you can be happy all the time. Unless you’re crazy. I mean, I’m kind of… I don’t want to say I’m not crazy, but… not that much. So I try to stay upbeat.

[Laughs] OK. And when OGE comes in for Stage 3, will you also be playing main tank or will you go back to D.Va?
That’s a strategy, so… that’s a secret. [Laughs]

Ok, alright. What do you think of Blizzard World? Do you like the map?
I think the second point is bad. The defender spawn of the second point is super close! It’s too close. I think they’ll have to fix it.

They just changed it. Have you seen it?
Oh did they? I didn’t see it.

They moved the checkpoint back a little bit…
I’ll have to see it first, but overall I think Blizzard World is big and there’s so many ways you can hide, so… it’s going to be dive again. [chuckles]

[Author’s note: Unfortunately, the version of Blizzard World used in Stage 3 will not include the checkpoint changes, as the PTR patch was not moved over to the live client in time.]

What do you think of Brigitte? Do you like her?
Yeah!

Do you think she’ll be useful in the Overwatch League?
I think if she doesn’t get nerfed, she’ll need to be banned in the Overwatch League. I think she’s too overpowered right now.

How? In what way?
She’s almost unkillable, and can almost 1v1 every character in the game and stop them from diving. And she can one-shot Tracer. And with a discord orb and some help, she can one-shot any 200 HP character. Imagine if Genji dashed — with one stun and a discord, he can be one-shot. It’s kind of like a Mcree flashbang. If a Winston jumps and there’s three people all staying together, she can just stun him and then he can be one-shot. So, she’s like a support with a one-shot ability. She’s going to be like another DPS or something.

Do you think that she would be played by support players of off-tank players?
It could be DPS.

You reckon it could be DPS?
I don’t know. Maybe. She’s just super overpowered. Her stun cool down is four seconds! Four seconds for a stun! Every four seconds, they can’t dive. That’s what makes it hard to 1v1 her, with every character in the game.

Do you like dive compositions? Would you like to see more variety?
I want to see more options, more than just dive. But if you put Brigitte in, it’s going to be entirely Brigitte!

That’s still not variety.
Yeah. But I think Brigitte will be vulnerable against spam. The enemy could spam from long range, because Brigitte is bad at long range. But in close range, she’s like god tier.

[Laughs] OK. Do you have anything you want to say to the fans, now that Stage 2 is over?
So, I know you guys are kind of depressed a bit, because our performance is so bad compared to the preseason, or before the league started when we were doing really well. But right now, so many things have happened to the team and I’m sorry for you guys. But don’t worry, me and everyone in the team are trying to get better. We look forward to letting you guys enjoy our matches by winning more. Maybe we’ll do something funny for you guys. I hope you guys keep supporting us. I love you. I love you guys.

Photo by Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment. Some quotes were edited for flow and clarity, but their original intent remains the same.