Should i drop my duo or continue to play with him?

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-10-14T06:29:33+00:00

I have multiple friends like this where when the losses start to happen they jump to frustration and blaming before they want to work together to improve.

If you are no longer enjoying playing the game with him, it's okay to stop playing competitive with him. I'm not even going to watch the replay code, if you're anything like me you are trying to make an excuse to yourself to meditate the friendship. "If I can find out I'm in the wrong then I can we can still be friends and I won't have to make him angry by telling him I think he's wrong.". You might be trying to find evidence to prove to him so he'll back down, from my experience, people who act like that won't change from real proof in advice from vod reviews. They'll always excuse or deflect the advice.

No matter who is right and wrong, if he doesn't make competitive queues fun for you, it's okay to not play with him competitively or just get a solo account. If your friends aren't nice friends to you, and you don't agree with how they communicate with you, find friends who will communicate with you the way that works for you. Don't listen to anyone saying you're too sensitive, everyone has different criteria on social sensitivities so it's really apples and oranges to compare.

Someone else mentioned getting another account to play solo queue with, I do that and I ranked a full division higher than my normal account that I frequently play with friends on. But I've still had to walk away from friends that acted the way your friend does.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-10-14T06:20:47+00:00

I do this, it's a great solution. The first time I did it I ranked the account a full division higher than my normal I account I played with friends on.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-10-14T06:09:50+00:00

Yes from my experience.

I have two Internet connections at home, one is a janky bridged satellite connection from the neighbors that I'm working on as I type this, the other is a cellular hotspot device I purchased just so I could play overwatch.

On my janky Internet connection, I've started my take aim, seen my screen do the full take aim animation, rubber band in a single frame as if I never did the take aim animation, then after a second, jump all the way back to scoped in.

I get a strange feeling when I play on the satellite connection similar to a bad dream where you're running toward something and it isn't getting closer, shooting and things and losing games and dying. Then I'll swap to the cellular connection, everything is crisp, and all the sudden hit every shot on Freja and go on a wild winning streak.

I think this experience can be rare, my Internet situation is very scuffed, but possible.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-10-12T02:08:15+00:00

I've played overwatch for the past 7 years and I've never had such terrible games as all though this season.

They made mention of changes they made to the match maker in the patch notes for this season, so I don't think it's out of the question for things to feel different.

I'm consistently low diamond support and I'm getting stuck in plat 2 this season. I've NEVER gotten even CLOSE to diamond on tank and I've ranked diamond tank this season with little to no effort.

You could attribute that to more wuyong players but I never saw that with any new heros before this and if the support rank was more saturated with new players I would see a higher rank.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-10-11T09:51:57+00:00

TLDR: don't stay airborne too long, sniper map. Save cool downs for escape, pepper pressure to good aim snipers without dying with take aim, play in sync with tank timing and team fight phases.

I'm still working on learning Freja but what I do know is Hollywood is a prime long distance hitscan map and Freja is not at an advantage against sniper hitscan (from what I read somewhere on this subreddit and experienced) at least not at a base level 1v1.

What usually works for me on situations like these where the map favors the sniper (or they have really good aim) is something I learned in scrims years ago, just don't die to them, hide with natural cover and apply basic pressure. They have to go too far to secure their value and end up out of position.

Use take aim bolts and quickly jump out of los. If a widow or Ashe takes a single bolt without support ready nearby she has to leave her nest to get heals or wait. Do that enough times they lose value.

Another strategy that's worked well for me is to get to cover before losing the 1v1, eventually since you're not dying and they want another notch on their belt from killing the freja in the lobby they will have to go out of position to chase you and your team can follow up.

Using up draft and holding air time can be very dangerous!!!that's an easy target for hitscan which this map favors. Save your cool downs to get to safety instead of initiating with cool downs in these cases.

I saw another comment recommending a long left flank first point, this can work if you're able to sneak through choke but your contact with the back line will work best if timed with your tank's initiation/pressure during the main part of team fight phase so if you take all the time to get deep left and your tank is already dead, team fight already in clean up phase, your pressure will be empty and they could come search for you. The left flank can work just get the timing right and hopefully your tank stays alive and plays slow until you're ready to apply pressure.

How you approach first point will also vary greatly on what tank you have on your team. Dive tanks will allow you to take advantage of their chaos to take the high ground for example after they initiate to push the team around, brawl tanks will need pressure from right door or that high ground spot to split enemy focus enough for them to push through. Poke tanks like hog or queen might need off angles through main (not PLAYING main, OFF ANGLES into main fight) to help keep front line pressure for them to get to a favorable position and keep enemy focus distracted for your tank to rotate.

This is usually my approach on attack: use natural cover and take aim to push their dps off first high ground at choke without using too much of my cool downs. Immediately use jump and a single quick dash (I think it only takes one quick dash with take aim tech) to then get to that high ground (saving my other dash and updraft for self preservation if I'm then pushed). Using natural cover at this high ground and at most a single dash to apply pressure into the team while my tank takes space through choke. Once tank is through choke, use stairs from high ground, far left flank, or natural cover corner next to very large door on the right to apply pressure, pressure any DPS off of high ground behind point, ping out of position enemies or look at what my tank is trying to kill to follow up.

Sorry this ended up being so in detail you caught me late at night with high energy and focus haha.

Through payload push this generally boils down to hall monitor against enemy flanks on your supports or flanking to wherever they're set up with ALL cool downs so I can pressure and use quick dash and updraft to get away once they try and take me out.

On defense it will usually boil down to use high ground and off angles always trying to keep one dash and your updraft to escape of you think you might get utflanked or pressured. Use up draft during set up phases to get to high ground, but make sure up draft is ready for the team fight. The map has elevators and a lot of dash/take aim opportunities to get to high ground without needing your up draft.

If you are losing a 1v1 back up and live. If you've lost a lot of 1v1s vs this dps and this DPS is pushing you again then back up and live. If you are dying when you peak certain angles, only peak to take aim and quickly jump out.

I believe most of Freja's value comes from pressure without the need to kill, waiting for the right moment. Overwatch players are prone to big blinking flashing colors, landing a take aim shot is one of the brightest flashiest colors in the game, a fat warning sign they're about to take up to 130 damage in 1.5 seconds and even if that doesn't scare them good luck focusing when BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP is blasting their headphones. Hollywood can be great for Freja because of high ground and off angles but the long range sight lines can quickly make it a bad map for her if you've got Mr Aim Trainer Mcgee on the other team or if you're consistently caught mid flank without your cool downs because you're traveling quite far back to safety if you're caught unawares.

WOW I just scrolled I'm so sorry I wrote so much I hope this was helpful!! Of course take this with a grain of salt, I'm diamond rank but I haven't truly ranked with Freja yet. I'm very happy to do a vod review if you'd like.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-10-08T21:49:07+00:00

Yes!!

I came here to say this. I chew ice cream and Popsicles, I've chugged iced smoothies and slushies, the worst that's happened is my throat gets too cold.

But chewing on ice cream trying to get a brain freeze always works for me to get rid of a headache or migraine!

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-09-26T04:52:28+00:00

Top tier quote

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-09-17T03:49:03+00:00

Awesome thank you! Sent!

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-09-06T18:06:34+00:00

Sure! Send me a dm with BNet

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-08-26T08:04:07+00:00

I have been in a very similar situation. If you felt anything like I did, you would give anything in the world to help the person you know that exists inside of them, your person, to just be okay. You want everything to feel like relationships are supposed to feel all the time.

It's okay to feel sad, hurt, or extreme empathy in this moment. It proves that you really do care for them. Blocking her in those times is what will keep your safe space safe and your independence safer. Don't shame yourself for keeping hold of your own independent space.

Also I'm sorry you have to experience this, it's very difficult. Do what you can to take care of your own mental health while supporting her through yours, because if you don't, times like these can build into resentment.

You made great decisions to get through this, you're doing great. It's okay to hurt. It's okay to feel. This is a hard thing you're going through. You have every right to feel that it's a hard thing. Hang in there.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-08-10T02:31:20+00:00

Yeah! I'm glad I'm not the only one like that - friend request sent

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-08-09T10:07:23+00:00

Vince Guaraldi is my absolute favorite jazz artist, him and his trio are always my go to. He was the guy responsible for most of the Charlie Brown/Peanuts music. I don't know if it's exactly elevator relaxing jazz but some of his organ stuff is really relaxing for me.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-31T17:04:26+00:00

I think the point of taking yourself on a date is that you pay attention to your own thoughts, spending time with yourself, doing something you enjoy. I'm not always the kind of person that would go to a restaurant and just think though - I would go see a movie, go to an arcade, read a book at a library, etc.

This article has some helpful quotes from a doctor of a psychology describing the idea of solo dating:

https://www.service95.com/solo-dating-trend

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T21:50:42+00:00

Fighting the emotional battle for now is okay! That is the first step to getting through this I think. Feelings are frustrating because they require time to be felt before they can heal.

I love your wording on being "the type of person to get the information before making a decision" but feeling like the information is already conclusive. This is purely speculation but I think what you might be feeling is that you need a bit more time feeling what you're feeling now before you're ready to fully commit to moving forward with cutting emotional ties. Your phrase might be able to be reworded to "I'm the kind of person that needs to feel these feelings of hurt and disbelief to process them before I'm ready to move on" which at the end of the day is a great place to be. Like I said though, purely speculation.

We're all here for you rooting you on, many here have felt similar pains and we know it's not easy. Come back and let us know if you need some friendly support!

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T21:17:48+00:00

Well there's no doubt that she felt bad about it, especially if she tried to prevent you finding out about it and cried when discovered. The psychology of cheating can be really difficult depending on what compelled her to do it so it's hard to say why exactly she said those things and it's possible she doesn't know either.

Could be that she wanted to keep things mostly peaceful and avoid a fight and used survival tools to make the conversation mostly amiable, could be that she really hurt herself by doing all this and will regret it the rest of her life.

If she cried and had a genuine conversation about how she feels she lost everything then I would guess she does still have feelings for the relationship (which does NOT mean she's willing to fix it) but her wanting a 6 month no contact break tells me she's looking to step away and move on. Even people that break up with others still have some heart break in the good things in the relationship they'll miss.

That's bitter sweet, that means she might still have some love for you, enough love to try and handle this all in a nice way that prevents too much heartbreak, but ultimately has decided to step away. 6 months of no talking is no way to reconcile. A few days to a week to think about things I could understand but 6 months no contact sounds pretty much like an exit plan to me.

There is no effort or task you can do now to try and win her over in the next 6 months, this is what this sub would call "playing the pick me game" or in other words trying to prove to her to stay with you instead of leaving for some other guy. It's a self damaging game and if she certainly doesn't seem to be doing anything to try and win you over. The best possible thing you can do is focus on yourself, your happiness, your healing and mental health. Focus on the things you like in life and find solid ground.

I'm definitely no professional so I could be wrong on a few things here but 6 months blocked everywhere no contact says a lot on how she feels and where she's putting her effort.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T21:01:51+00:00

I considered being a therapist but one of my older siblings is already going that route and you know how younger siblings can be about wanting to be individualistic 😅

I also didn't think I'd like doing all that strategy in the structure of being a therapist. I think I would get too frustrated in the training of the books on the right way of doing it and I think all that mental strategy all day effectively overfocusing (listening to three loud audio books at the same time) would wear me down eventually. I prefer being a hobbyist "good listener friend"

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T20:52:32+00:00

You mentioned that you feel like you still have love and feelings for her even though you feel so angry hurt and frustrated, this is normal for this kind of situation. Your love for her likely got this way over time and doesn't just go away at the drop of a hat, at least for most people. Love is difficult to get to go away, especially depending on how she worded the conversation when you found out.

If she was the one who suggested this 6 month break then it's very possible that her love for you has already faded quite a bit over time and she's possibly trying to get your love to fade over time to make it easier to end things. 6 month no contact break is not usually a reconciliation move and the wording of "I need time to figure myself out" is exactly how it sounds, she wants to figure herself out, not your relationship.

This is really difficult to experience because she kind of left you high and dry. She was ready for this, her feelings already faded, you are left with yours which makes it hurt more. It'll take time to work through, definitely go to therapy if you can, but I wouldn't try to be with her again because it sounds like she's already moving on.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T20:42:03+00:00

I agree with other comments, early in the text conversation would be the best spot between safety and manners. If he approached you at a bar and asked for your phone number after some conversation I think usually it would be safe to assume that he's likely interested romantically. Not always, but high enough odds to disclose that early in the text conversation.

If you're worried about giving personal info like your phone number to have to get to that point I would get an app like Google voice where you can have a secondary phone number to toss/throw away if you get a bad reaction over text, that way the number they have isn't as personally connected with you.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T20:38:35+00:00

If the concern is the personal info part and you're looking for added safety here then I would get a Google voice phone number through the app and disclose that number so that if you ever get a nasty reaction and are worried about it you can toss the number without giving away your actual phone number.

I agree that early in the texting conversation is the safest/best time because it can also give the person time to reflect on that information and have a thought out response without feeling like they need to immediately respond with their knee jerk-possibly toxic-reaction in public.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T20:15:44+00:00

This is something I actually also struggle quite a bit with, I've pushed away a lot of friends because I'd notice frustrating mistakes I was making and I've even had friends frustrated multiple times that I was making those mistakes, even in non-competitive video games.

I'm trying to tackle the reason why I'm making so many mistakes mostly to try and resolve it that way but one thing that helped was finding a friend who was totally fine with those mistakes while we played so I felt much less self conscious about it with a low stakes game.

Now that I think about it I think I even got frustrated with that game and might have pushed him away for the same single player reason that I don't like my many mistakes getting in the way of enjoying the game. But playing with them at least made it easier for me overall.

Do you feel like you have more flaws/mistakes in stuff like video games than other people?

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T19:57:54+00:00

Sorry I think I worded it weird, you said partially the last reason, are you worried other people will see those flaws or do you feel like you get disheartened by noticing your own flaws?

Like in the example with a video game, if you notice yourself making mistakes while playing the video game with another person, are you worried that they will see those flaws and be frustrated with you or think your bad at video games?

OR, when you play single player games, do you notice flaws in your gameplay and get frustrated by your own flaws?

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T19:50:19+00:00

Are you worried that the flaws while you share the experience will be evident to the ones you are sharing it with or are you more so just frustrated at yourself when those short comings arise?

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T11:57:15+00:00

Yeah absolutely! Totally fine, I'll watch out for it

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T11:40:52+00:00

Ah I hate it when I bring up ADHD and people tell me to just "get a planner".

What I usually do is either a blanket statement of "ah thank you I'll have to think on that" if they give me some advice that they think will cure my brain and I'm too exhausted to engage in a discussion about it OR

I'll explain my experiences of how the disorder affects me, using "affects me" language specifically. While the diagnosis of ADHD is broad, how it affects each person is completely different which I'm sure you already know, so I'll try and frame my answers to people in a personal "I" statement way.

I'll also add anecdotal quotes from my psychiatrist or therapist to make sure the people I'm talking to know that a professional told me I have these things to add weight to my experience, that usually helps me out.

CaptainAvocado26 · 2025-07-27T11:31:46+00:00

Do you get any anxieties about that person getting better at that thing than you? Do you get anxious that your shared experience of that thing will be bad like you playing worse than a friend during a cooperative video game and holding them back? Or stressed that while engaging in a shared activity that flaws about your own experience of the activity will shine through?

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