Best Tank Hero - April 2018 (Season 9) - Overwatch

Tank hero rankings - Season 9

Here's a quick look at the standings, with links to the relevant guides. Read further on down the page for a discussion of how we came to place each tank in our tier list.

6. Orisa

Orisa's a fantastic pick when it comes to increasing a team's defensive capabilities. Paired with a Reinhardt, it can make things very frustrating for enemy teams as they struggle to break through their Barrier combo. Unfortunately her lack of versatility means that she'll always struggle to break into the top tiers. She's a niche pick and one that fits into a very specific team composition with a particular plan of action. Strong in the right hands, but a risky pick if you're unclear what your team's got in mind.

5. Roadhog

Roadhog's received quite the overhaul in the most recent patch. Before, landing his Hook would almost certainly have resulted in an elimination - now it's a thing of the past. He's not quite as effective as he used to be when he straddled the line between tank and damage dealer. Now, he's firmly in the tank bracket, but this isn't to say that he's been rendered useless. His Scrap Gun still spews a great deal of damage in an extended firefight, and his Hook can wrench enemies away from their allies.

We've found that Roadhog's starting to regain the popularity he once held in the game as players come to realise his new-found role as a tank that simply won't go down.

4. Zarya

Zarya find herself in a great spot at the start of Season 9, and with good reason too. She pairs well with other frontline heroes like Reinhardt, giving them shields that raise their survivability while siphoning the damage they take to bolster her own. Admittedly, her Energy system can be a little tricky to master but once you've got the hand of balancing ability usage and cooldowns - you're onto a winner.

We're happy to see Zarya back in the competitive fold after a lengthy slump last season. A skilled Zarya player can single-handedly change the course of a match and while she requires more mechanical nouse than some of the other tanks in the roster, we highly recommend picking her up and getting stuck in.

3. Reinhardt

Reinhardt consistently occupied our top spot for a very, very long time. He offered the best of both worlds, able to protect his whole team and push into a choke point with everyone behind him, or charge in and decimate everyone with an Earth Shatter. We thought those days were over during the latter stages of Season 5 and the entirety of Season 6, but he's seeing a resurgence as Season 7 progresses. The big guy is back!

Like all of the best Overwatch characters, there's a simplicity to Reinhardt's character design that makes him extremely effective at his core role, and yet there's mastery to be had for those who want to invest in him more heavily. Trouble is, he’s simply not mobile enough to keep up with the current meta’s aggression. He’s still a great pick in certain situations, but you’re probably better off picking another tank hero - until his bugs are fixed at least.

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2. Winston

As well as being one of the downright coolest characters in Overwatch, Winston's exceptional mobility makes him a formidable presence on just about any map, and in any team composition. A savvy player who understands how to prioritise targets on the backline will be able to dominate a battle when playing with this particular tank.

Winston’s surged to the top of our tier list because he’s simply an unstoppable force. Mobile, aggressive and difficult to take down, he’s a nightmare to deal with. Sure his damage output might seem lackluster at first, but the slow cooker effect of his Tesla Cannon forces enemy's to make tough decisions - "do I get away but put myself out of position?" All in all, Winston's a must pick when it comes to tanks.

1. D.Va

D.Va's perhaps one of the most powerful heroes in the game, all on top of being a tanky menace. Able to zoom towards vulnerable targets and barrage them down in an instant, take huge amounts of punishment and soak up entire enemy Ultimate abilities with her Defense Matrix, there's nothing she can't really do at the moment. In the right hands she's clearly this Season's best Tank hero and it'll take some nerf before she's knocked off her lofty pedestal.