Overwatch: Seagull survives certain death with incredible quick thinking

Overwatch streamer Brandon ‘Seagull’ Larned came up with an ingenious way of surviving McCree’s Deadeye after seemingly being caught out in the open.

The enemy McCree appeared to have Seagull dead to rights, but a brilliant use of unconventional cover kept the former pro alive.

As a professional player, Seagull was always known more for his game sense and understanding than as a sheer force of mechanical skill, and he showed off that incredible talent for split-second decision making once again in an incredible escape from what looked like certain death.

McCree’s ultimate can be one of the most devastating in the game, capable of one-shot kills on any opponents caught by it, but at higher levels of play it’s usually fairly easy to avoid due to the sound cue and the time it takes for McCree to channel it long enough to be fatal.

• Read more: Shroud reacts to hitting Diamond in Overwatch after two weeks

During a match on Dorado, however, Seagull found himself caught out in the open near the end of Stage 1, with too far to travel even with Pharah’s Concussive Blast to reach cover in time.

The only thing between Seagull and the enemy McCree was a Minefield laid down by an ally Wrecking Ball, and somehow he was able to use one of the mines to block the shot that otherwise would have ended him.

McCree’s Deadeye shoots for the head, so although Wrecking Ball’s mines might not offer full cover, in this instance they were enough to keep Seagull alive with careful positioning.

Seagull later went back and reviewed the moment from the opponent’s point of view using the new Replays system, revealing just how little stood between himself and death.

Obviously, it’s likely to be incredibly difficult to replicate a play like this due to how situational it is, but it’s perhaps worth keeping in mind that Wrecking Ball’s mines can block incoming shots and projectiles, so putting them between yourself and an enemy could help prevent a few points of damage that might be the difference between survival and elimination.