Major League Gaming revealed a controversial preset map pool for their upcoming Overwatch tournament in Las Vegas (Dec. 16-18), eliminating the traditional map drafting phase. This decision has drawn widespread criticism from professional players.

The preset pool includes:

• Ilios (Control) - 9 games
• Temple of Anubis (Assault) - 5 games
• Route 66 (Escort) - 5 games
• Eichenwalde (Hybrid) - 4 games
• King's Row (Hybrid) - 4 games
• All other live maps (except Ecopoint: Antarctica) - minimum 2 games

Professional players have raised several key concerns:

• Teams haven't practiced certain maps due to their usual ban status in tournaments
• Ilios, specifically, is rarely scrimmaged yet features prominently
• The format removes strategic depth from map drafting
• Teams have invested significant time preparing for draft-based tournaments

"It's arbitrarily punishing teams for not choosing to practice certain maps when there was no reason to in the past," says Rise Nation DPS player Nathan "xRetzi" Telen.

CompLexity Gaming's flex player Anthony "harbleu" Ballo emphasizes the strategic impact: "Our team spends hours doing mock drafts to prepare for different teams and bans differently depending on who we play."

Despite unanimous opposition from the professional community, the tournament format is unlikely to change given its proximity. As Fnatic tank Faraaz 'Stoop' Waris succinctly puts it: "Everyone hates it and it's a bad idea."

[Images removed as they appear unrelated to the article content]

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