• Blizzard Entertainment has announced a new Overwatch game
• Overwatch Rush is a top-down hero shooter for mobile platforms
• It's currently in development and there's no word of a release date yet

Blizzard Entertainment has suddenly unveiled a new top-down hero shooter set in the Overwatch universe.

Titled Overwatch Rush, it's currently in the "early stages of development" and is being built exclusively for Android and iOS devices. It's intended to offer bite-size action with short competitive matches that see players duke it out as some of the series' most iconic characters.

Early gameplay footage suggests that existing heroes like Tracer, Soldier 76, Mercy, Reinhart, Reaper, Lucio, and more will all be featured with similar skills to their Overwatch counterparts.

The game is being developed by a group of developers that is entirely separate from the main Overwatch team within Blizzard, so it will not impact the development of the main game.

The game will be a free-to-play experience with optional in-game purchases. Blizzard has also confirmed that it currently does not support any mobile controllers, though this may be added later in development.

There is currently no official word on a release date, but you can expect updates in the game's official Discord server in the lead up to release.

The announcement of this project follows the recent rebranding of Overwatch 2 to Overwatch and a renewed focus on long-term live-service support.

• Overwatch 2 will be rebranded to just Overwatch
• A year long narrative titled "The Reign of Talon" will start next month and will be told throughout the year across six seasons
• 10 new heroes will be added during this time, alongside brand new skins, events, and game features

Blizzard Entertainment has announced that it's dropping the "2" in Overwatch 2, alongside major year-long plans for the hero shooter.

During the latest Overwatch Spotlight livestream, the studio revealed that less than four years after launching Overwatch 2, the title will be reverting back to simply "Overwatch" when its very first year-long narrative kicks off next month.

"Overwatch is more than just a digit: it's a living universe that keeps growing, keeps surprising, and keeps bringing players together from around the world," Blizzard explained in a press release. "This year marks a huge turning point in how the development team envisions the future of Overwatch, so we are officially dropping '2' and moving forward as 'Overwatch'."

The storyline, titled "The Reign of Talon", will begin on February 10 with Season 1 and will be told across "a multi-faceted, fully-connected story across the entire year" through to Season 6. The arc starts with a new cinematic and will unfold through motion comics, in-game events, new voice lines, animated hero trailers, and short stories.

After The Reign of Talon concludes, a new story and Season 1 will then launch in 2027.

To tell the upcoming story, Overwatch will receive 10 new heroes throughout the year, with the first five dropping when Season 1 begins next month.

They include three characters from the antagonist Talon faction, Domina (Tank), Emre (Damage), and Mizuki (Support), while the Overwatch team will get Anran (Damage) and Jetpack Cat (Support). New heroes are expected to be added between Season 2 and Season 6.

Alongside a UI/UX overhaul, a Competitive Rank Reset, Stadium Hero, Vendetta, and other system and match improvements, Blizzard will add new sub-roles divided between the three existing roles, each with their own specific skills.

Tanks will get Bruiser, Initiator, and Stalwart. Damage is divided into Sharpshooter, Flanker, Specialist, and Recon, and Support will be consist of Tactian, Medic, and Survivor.

A Conquest Meta event, which will offer new missions tied to lore and a plethora of rewards across five weeks, will also be added next season, as well as a new Japan Night map in Season 3, and new collaborations and hero skins to look forward to.

From February 10 to February 23, Overwatch will team up with Hello Kitty & Friends for a crossover that will introduce six themed hero skins for Juno, Kiriko, Mercy, D.Va, Widowmaker, and Lucio.

Reign of Talon will have faction-themed skins, alongside new bundles, regular shop updates, and a new Mythic Hero skin every season, starting with Mercy’s Celestial Guardian and Juno’s Star Shooter in Season 1. Mei will also receive her first Mythic mid-season.

Last but not least, Overwatch will also be coming to Nintendo Switch 2, with the existing Overwatch 2, which is already playable on both Switch platforms, getting a Switch 2 upgrade edition in Spring.

• Blizzard has announced four special showcases that will reveal future plans for its biggest franchises
• Plans for World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Diablo, and Hearthstone will be announced
• The first World of Warcraft showcase airs on January 29

To celebrate 35 years of Blizzard Entertainment, the studio has announced a series of special showcases that will reveal the plans for its four biggest franchises.

The Microsoft-owned studio shared its plans alongside a new video depicting the last 35 years of game development at Blizzard, which has seen the creation of some of the most influential games in the industry, World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Diablo, and Hearthstone.

It also teased "the next chapter" at Blizzard at the end of the video, which will be revealed at the four separate livestreams starting this week.

"For 35 years, Blizzard has been shaped by the worlds we build and the players who bring them to life. You’ve fought through World of Warcraft, battled in Diablo, played your cards in Hearthstone, and held the line in Overwatch. We’ve come a long way together. And now, the next chapter begins," Blizzard said.

"Over the next few weeks, each world will showcase what comes next. If these games mean something to you, we’d love to see you there. These aren’t updates in isolation. They’re part of where Blizzard is heading — together with the players who’ve been here all along."

The first livestream will be focused on World of Warcraft and is scheduled to air on January 29. The next Overwatch showcase will air on February 4, followed by the Hearthstone showcase on February 9. Finally, the Diablo broadcast will air on February 11.

You can check out the full dates and times below:

• World of Warcraft - January 29th at 9AM PT / 12PM ET / 5PM GMT
• Overwatch - February 4th at 10AM PT / 1PM ET / 6PM GMT
• Hearthstone - February 9th at 9:30AM PT / 12:30PM ET / 5:30PM GMT
• Diablo - February 11th at 2PM PT / 5PM ET / 10PM GMT

Blizzard hasn't dropped any hints yet, but we'll likely be hearing news about the next World of Warcraft expansion, Midnight, which is rumored to release early 2026, as well as the second Diablo 4 expansion, Lord of Hatred, which is arriving on April 28.

As for what's in store for Overwatch 2 and Hearthstone, new updates seem plausible, but we'll have to wait and see.

• New heroes are coming to Marvel Rivals
• Developer NetEase Games wants to release one roughly every six weeks
• This is in addition to other seasonal content like new maps

Developer NeatEase Games has stated that Marvel Rivals will receive a new hero “each half of the season” - or approximately every six weeks.

Game director Guangyun Chen revealed the plans in a recent interview with Metro. He said that “fresh seasonal stories, new maps, and new heroes” are on the way, with each new season broken into “two halves”. In “each half of the season, we will introduce a new hero,” he continued.

The overall goal is to “continue to enhance the experience” and “keep everyone excited in our community.” This means that there are an awful lot of new heroes on the way, indicating a very promising future for the live service hit.

Marvel Rivals launched as a free-to-play title on December 5, 2024. It had an impressive roster of 33 characters on day one, ranging all the way from comic book staples like Captain America and Iron Man in addition to more unusual picks such as Luna Snow and Jeff the Land Shark.

This number has already increased to 35, thanks to the recent additions of Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman to coincide with the launch of Season 1. They will soon be followed by Human Torch and The Thing in the latter half of the season, but social media is already abuzz with speculation as to who could be next.

The latest leaks and rumors suggest that Blade, Captain Marvel, Deadpool, and Doctor Doom are all on the cards, which would see us through most of the year on this six week schedule if the developer manages to keep up the pace. Beyond that, it's anyone's guess as the studio has shown that it's not afraid to dig deep into its Marvel source material for picks.

If you’re new to Marvel Rivals and want to give it a try, it’s currently available on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.

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Marvel Rivals has successfully landed, following a launch that’d make any live service game jealous. Positioning itself among the crowded free-to-play market, Marvel Rivals is a shockingly complete package, with a whopping 33 Heroes to choose from at launch. Narrowly avoiding the danger of spreading itself too thin, developer NetEase Games has somehow managed to offer up a mostly-balanced, quality experience that’s much more than a simple Overwatch clone.

To get this out of the way, I don’t play Overwatch. I’d wager that over the years, I’ve probably put five hours total into it, and most of that was in Overwatch 2. For me, the second people start telling me roles I should fill, tactics that I must focus on in an online game, my eyes glaze over. With limited time to sink into a live service game every night, I frankly couldn’t care less about what meta I need to be running in order to emerge victorious against an opposing team. Before loading up Marvel Rivals then, I was already fairly sure that it wouldn’t grab me completely.

The first night of play did nothing to dispel this feeling, with Marvel Rivals’ particular visual style being extremely difficult to read at times. But during night two, something clicked, and it’s largely down to the game’s wide range of playable Heroes. Split into three classes: Vanguard, Specialist, and Duelist, each of the 33 Heroes is entirely distinct from one another.

Any frustrations I was having with a particular Hero could quickly be remedied by trying someone else. New characters and play styles didn’t always click, but after a while, I had at least five go-tos that were all an absolute blast to play as.

From page to play

Visually, Marvel Rivals looks extremely high-budget and meticulously stylish. Somewhere between an anime and a comic book come to life, the game’s design language does a great job at distinguishing between each Hero in the roster. Broadly, everything from Most Valuable Player animations to pre-match loading screens pop with a confident flair. In motion, things are less successful, though characters do look great once the action kicks off.

The problem, for me at least, is how busy the screen can get once you have 10 characters, each with their own abilities and color schemes clashing together all at once. You do get used to it, but for a while I genuinely struggled to know exactly who I was being attacked by. Kill markers aren’t quite as punchy as they need to be, and the way abilities are labeled on screen can be difficult to parse during the heat of battle.

Likely, this is just a natural consequence of having the game play out largely in third-person, and in trying to do every single character justice, while balancing how all of the disparate elements come together. On PS5 Pro, performance has been flawless, and the high degree of visual sharpness certainly does help keep things clearer and more readable, at least.

There aren’t too many maps in rotation at present in Marvel Rivals’ main modes, though each does have enough character of their own to stand out and make matches feel distinct from one another. Destructible objects are littered throughout maps, with towering stone columns crumbling after being hit by a stray Iron-Man rocket, and walkways falling away under the weight of an incoming Venom air-slam attack.

These objects do regenerate over the course of a match, but their placements make them interesting tactical propositions, with plenty of possibilities to remove cover from your enemy team.

Hero shooter

Marvel Rivals starts off on much more advantageous footing than other games of its ilk thanks to the familiarity of its roster. Even the most casual gamer out there has some knowledge of Heroes like Spider-Man, Wolverine and Captain America, with some more out-there choices like Jeff the Land Shark being welcome surprises littered throughout the bunch.

It helps that, for the most part, each Hero plays exactly how you’d expect them to, though there are some neat subversions like Adam Warlock playing a healer focused on instant revivals of team members being the exception. Of the 33 Heroes I’ve now tried out, only a few have been complete non-starters, as I’ve been able to find the fun in the others almost instantly, even if their playstyles may not quite be my cup of tea.

Some Heroes specialize in managing character-specific gauges and effects, while others are much more straightforward, like The Punisher, whose move set revolves around a more standard third-person shooter design.

To spice things up, and I think, set its Heroes apart from being just clones of Overwatch characters, Marvel Rivals does feature a neat team-up system. Heroes like Rocket can ride on others like Groot, buffing shields and damage output. Other team ups are less direct, like how Adam Warlock will give Star-Lord and Mantis the option to revive themselves after dying via a rebirth mechanic.

So far, not all Heroes can team up with others, and not every Hero benefits from having others on the field. Venom is an example of this, though to compensate he does earn a massive max health boost thanks to an ongoing Seasonal Bonus. At their best, team-ups can sway the tide of battle. At their worst, they’re still fun passive effects to consider when picking a character.

So far, this has encouraged me to try out Heroes that I wouldn’t have done otherwise, and I’m interested to see how future Heroes will shake up Team Up abilities in the future. This isn’t to say that team-ups distract completely from the very obvious fact that characters like Black Widow are straight copies of Overwatch Heroes like Widowmaker, but it goes a long way to give Marvel Rivals a bit more of a USP.

Pick me

So why pick up Marvel Rivals, instead of a much more established series like Overwatch? Well, put simply, Marvel Rivals is newer, more engaging when in action, and takes itself much less seriously than its peers. Though some of the more niche corners of online gaming have already been crying out for balancing, nerfs to characters like Hela, and the addition of role queue, it’s hard to drown out what I believe to be the attitude of the main audience.

Many characters in Marvel Rivals could be considered overpowered, sometimes you join a team with no healers and get your butt handed to you, but ultimately, it simply doesn’t kill the fun. As the game continues to grow, I have no doubt that competitive modes will become more important, but for now, Marvel Rivals is a great thing to just pick up and play. Whether you choose a ‘broken’ character like Iron Fist, or someone less meta-focused like Wolverine, it’s possible to pull off some truly thrilling plays.

There’s an argument to be made that Marvel Rivals didn’t need to launch with so many Heroes, that 20 would have resulted in a better balanced product, but it’s difficult to say that the scrappy but exhilarating state of gameplay at the moment isn’t right where things should be. There are absolutely some issues with match balancing however, with some maps feeling unfairly weighted depending on which side your team starts at.

Similarly, some maps have choke points right from the first spawn point, leading to the feeling of throwing yourself into a meat grinder from the very moment a match begins. None of these issues are deal breakers, and this is Season 0 after all, so hopefully the first proper balancing patch will help smooth over some of the rougher edges present in the launch version.

Clearly, Marvel Rivals is striking the right chord with players, given the ever-growing player counts and social media dominance it is enjoying post-launch. For me, there’s plenty of room for Marvel Rivals to grow, hopefully with the addition of more modes, maps and Heroes, but for a free-to-play title launching during such a difficult time for live service games, it sure has come out of the gate swinging.

Should I play Marvel Rivals?

Play it if…

Don’t play it if…

Accessibility

Marvel Rivals has a fairly standard suite of accessibility options, though they are limited when compared to other online shooters.

There’s a color blind mode, as well as the option to assign custom colors to elements like allies, shield HP bars, and other parts of the in-game UI.

In terms of controls, there’s very few accessibility options, besides button mapping, and the ability to assign specific control schemes to selected Heroes.

How I reviewed Marvel Rivals

I played Marvel Rivals for 25 hours on the PS5 Pro.

During that time I spent at least three matches with every Hero, but focused on maining Captain America, Iron Fist, Mantis, Venom and Punisher. In terms of modes, there aren’t many, so I tried them all. I purchased Season 0’s Battle Pass, and have worked through it while completing Daily, Weekly and Seasonal challenges.

I played the game using a 4K LG TV. I used a standard DualSense Wireless Controller, with the Razer Blackshark V2 headphones connected via the controller port.

First reviewed December 2024.

A new character is coming to multiplayer hero shooter Overwatch 2, and she might just be the most adorable addition yet.

Revealed in a surprise gameplay trailer, Juno is an upcoming support hero who hails from Mars. She's armed with a Mediblaster, a projectile weapon that can heal teammates from afar. She also has powerful Pulsar Torpedoes at her disposal, high-tech projectiles that can lock-on to multiple targets and will heal teammates while dealing damage to enemies. This is on top of a swift Glide Boost, which allows her to fly through the air at high-speed thanks to thrusters on her futuristic backpack.

She can also activate a deployable Hyper Ring, which appears to provide a speed boost for the rest of your team, and call in a devastating Orbital Ray which buffs ally damage and health as her ultimate. Her abilities don't look too game-changing in the grand scheme of things but, considering that the game has been in dire need of more support heroes for years now, she still seems like a great addition to the roster.

You can watch the full trailer and see some of her abilities in action for yourself below.

Everything I've seen of Juno so far also looks pretty great some a design perspective. Her space suit does a great job of conveying her intergalactic origins and its bright color scheme should help her stand out among the rest of the roster. I'm also a big fan of her adorable space helmet, which is neon blue and looks a little bit like a bubble from a distance.

Juno is set to launch alongside Season 12 on August 12, but you can actually play as her right now. She is available to try in all modes except competitive from tomorrow, July 19, until July 21. 

If you're new to the series, you can pick up Overwatch 2 as a free-to-play title on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC, and even Nintendo Switch.

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Blizzard Entertainment has announced that it will be removing Overwatch 2's Hero Mastery Gauntlet PvE mode due to lack of player engagement.

The decision was shared in a recent forum post where the developer explained that it will be discontinuing the mode beginning Season 11 after finding that it "hasn't resonated with players". 

"As we prepare for Season 11, we’ve taken the time to evaluate a variety of game modes based on how much they are being played," the post reads. "Hero Mastery Gauntlet was intended to bring the high score-chasing excitement of Hero Mastery missions into a multiplayer format.

"Unfortunately, it hasn’t resonated with players in the ways that we hoped. With this in mind, we have decided to discontinue Hero Mastery Gauntlet as a permanent mode, and it will not be available to play starting in Season 11."

Blizzard adds that players have until the end of  Season 10 to complete the Lifetime Challenges for Hero Mastery Gauntlet and compete on the mode’s Top 500 leaderboards before it's gone for good.

However, Individual Hero Mastery Solo Courses will continue to be available in single-player. Blizzard has also promised that more Hero Mastery Solo Courses will arrive in upcoming seasons, but didn't offer any further details.

Hero Mastery Gauntlet launched in March 2024 and isn't the first PvE mode to be removed from the first-person shooter (FPS). Earlier this year, the developer announced it had canceled the game's long-awaited Hero mode - which was originally intended to be a single-player Overwatch experience.

Game director Aaron Keller later apologized, saying that the project grew too big. "We were trying to do too many things at once and we lost focus,” Keller said at the time. “We had an exciting but gargantuan vision and we were continuously pulling resources away from the live game in an attempt to realize it.”

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Blizzard Entertainment is "confident" Overwatch 2 can be "successful" without having heroes in the battle pass.

In a recent roundtable interview (via GamesRadar+), game director Aaron Keller discussed the decision to make every hero free for all players, saying that the Overwatch team was aware putting gameplay features behind a paywall would give players a competitive advantage and says its attempts at balancing this issue were not as "effective as we wanted them to be".

Keller said that he believes the chance is "what's best for players and it's what's best for the game." 

"When you're developing the way a game is going to fund itself, it can get really complex fast," Keller adds. "I think originally, we had some worries about whether Overwatch 2, as a purely cosmetic game, when you have the ability to get cosmetics for a whole roster of heroes, was going to be successful.

"But putting any type of gameplay behind a paywall can be a competitive advantage for players. I think we did a lot to try to mitigate that - we allowed players to unlock heroes in the Free Battle Pass, we had challenges for it, and we also had an idea that Overwatch 2 would have fewer counters in it, so this problem could be mitigated. Not all of those things we tried were as effective as we wanted them to be."

The announcement was made in a recent developer update where Blizzard revealed that starting in season 10, the first-person multiplayer shooter will make all new heroes immediately free when they launch, including the latest upcoming character Venture.

Keller believes that the game can be a success without having heroes in the battle pass, saying, "We're confident that [by] taking them out, we'll be able to continue to be successful. It's going to allow us to keep making all the cool things we have been making like new heroes, new maps, new game modes, and also we just think that this is the right thing to be doing for all of our players."

Overwatch 2 players have more to look forward to with season 10, as it will also introduce a brand-new limited-time mode called Clash, along with a new map. Unfortunately, we don't have an official release date for season 10 at this time, but we'll keep you updated.

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Blizzard Entertainment is making some significant changes to Overwatch 2, starting with unlocking every new hero in its roster.

A brand-new developer update details the many upcoming changes coming to the  5v5 first-person multiplayer shooter, and it all starts with Season 10.

Although there's no release date just yet for Season 10, Blizzard announced it will be shaking things up next season by implementing a much-requested feature: making all new heroes immediately free when they launch. This also applies to all existing heroes in the roster and means players will no longer have to purchase Overwatch Tokens to buy heroes or progress through the battle pass to unlock them. 

This new change will go into effect with the game's 40th hero Venture, who will be released alongside season 10.

Keeping in line with hero changes, Overwatch 2 will soon allow players to earn, upgrade, and unlock Mythic skins through the new Mythic Shop, a new system that is aimed at speeding up the process for past and current seasonal skins as you progress through the Premium Battle Pass.

You can check out the developer update below.

"You get to decide how far into each Mythic skin you would like to build," Blizzard explains in the blog post. "So, for example, if you don't want to fully unlock all of a skin's color or model variations, you can spread your progression towards other Mythic hero skins."

Past Mythic's are also being added to the Mythic Shop and seasonal Mythic skins will be made available two seasons after their debut, meaning skins from seasons one through seven will be available in the Mythic Shop starting season 10.

Overwatch 2 will also be getting a brand new limited-time mode called Clash, which was first introduced during BlizzCon 2023. The trial mode kicks off at the start of season 10 and takes place on the new Hanaoka map. On the topic of new maps, Blizzard has also teased season 11, which will add a new Push map set in Peru, as well as bring a reworked Colosseo. 

The studio added that following feedback, it will also be making "significant updates" to Dorado, Circuit Royale, Havana, and Numbani, although the details haven't yet been shared.

In addition to new character customization, season 10 will also change up its reward system. Players will be able to earn coins as they progress through the free and premium battle passes, "making them easier and more consistent to earn", as well as increasing the number of coins you can earn for free from 540 to 600 coins per season. 

Blizzard didn't offer any details on the gameplay changes it will be making soon, but did say that its long-term vision is to "maintain a regular heartbeat in the game by consistently introducing new or updated systems, shaking up the meta, implementing rank resets, and introducing new rewards."

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Yesterday (March 7), Blizzard Entertainment dropped a trailer for the upcoming collaboration between competitive first-person shooter Overwatch 2 and beloved anime Cowboy Bebop. 

As you might expect, the trailer itself is a stylish homage to the anime's original opening. As Tank! by Seatbelts begins its iconic jazz riffs, we see a range of Overwatch 2 characters re-imagined in the Cowboy Bebop style, featuring in a shot-by-shot recreation of the anime's original opening. 

Cassidy takes center stage, dressed in a space cowboy garb reminiscent of the outfit worn by Spike Spiegel, Cowboy Bebop's irreverent protagonist. We also see Ashe dressed as the charming yet deadly Faye Valentine, Mauga as the stoic Jet Black, and Sombra as the eccentric Ed.   

The trailer was made in collaboration with Sunrise, the animation studio behind the original anime opening. You can see it for yourself, below.

The crossover is due to arrive on March 12, which means that there isn't long to wait before we'll be able to experience the event for ourselves.

Players can expect themed skins, emotes, and intros. There will be unlockable Legendary Skins for Cassidy, Ashe, Mauga, Sombra, and Wreckingball. What's more, the Wreckingball skin will be available to everyone as a free unlock, with more details to come on March 11 (via Crunchyroll).  

Overwatch 2 is currently in its ninth season of play, a season which brought significant changes to the game since its launch back in February. Amongst these were changes to competitive play which included a soft reset of player ranks as well as the addition of a brand new rank above Grand Master: Champion. 

As a fan of Cowboy Bebop's space-Western aesthetic, I can't help but feel like I might end up reinstalling Overwatch 2 for myself, at least to see what all the fuss is about.

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The mid-season patch for Overwatch 2 was announced yesterday (October 31), and unfortunately, players are in for more tricks than treats this Halloween. Known to some as the global support nerf, this update has brought significant ability changes to the game's various support heroes.

This particular mid-season patch includes more than just changes to support characters, but with Ana, Baptiste, Illari, Kiriko, Lifeweaver, and Zenyatta all impacted, it feels as if there was a theme. Each one of these heroes was also nerfed (made worse), except for Zenyatta, who was bosted by a couple of perks, such as the line-of-sight timing on his Harmony Orb increasing from three to five seconds. 

As a support main who primarily plays Ana and Baptiste, I was initially saddened to see these changes. Ana has already received a patch in the last couple of months in which her Biotic Grenade was changed to reduce the healing capacity, and with the cooldown of this ability increased from 10 to 12 seconds, I now have fewer ways to defend myself while playing as this character. However, after giving it some thought, I've come to realize that nerfing support heroes could be good for the future of Overwatch 2. 

Since the release of the competitive first-person shooter sequel, the support class has slowly been buffed (made better or boosted). Old heroes received new and improved abilities as well as a passive healing ability, which made some characters practically unkillable. The more recent support heroes like Kiriko and Illari have also made a name for themselves for being overpowered and more lethal than some DPS-focused (damage per second) characters. 

This newfound strength made some support mains hungry for power. Bloodthirsty Moria and Kiriko players seem to grow in numbers, as many are more concerned with getting kills than healing their team. It was for this reason that I thought the global support nerf could have been beneficial for a lot of players, regardless of their chosen class. But, that hope was quickly extinguished once I saw that Mercy had been left out of the patch notes.

Resurrecting an old grudge 

Every so often, a shred of hope creeps up on me. It’s always small, but nevertheless, before a mid-season balance change: I can’t help but cross my fingers in the hope that Mercy finally gets some much-needed reworking to her abilities. 

To the lucky few who have never seen or played against this particular support hero, let me spin you a short tale of woe. Mercy is one of the older characters in Overwatch 2, introduced in 2016 in the launch of the original first-person shooter. With the help of her Caduceus Staff, she can heal or grant damage boosts to allies. Unlike other supports who perhaps need to reload or recharge healing abilities, Mercy can dish out a constant stream of heals. Her mobility is also one of the best in the game for the support class. She can dash from one teammate to another with the Guardian Angel ability, which has a cooldown of 1.5 seconds and a movement speed of 17 meters a second, placing her up there with characters like Moira when it comes to movement. 

The lack of aim and abilities management, as well as mobility, means she is one of the heroes in Overwatch 2 with the lowest skill ceilings and an equally low barrier of entry. This isn’t to say that there aren’t some fantastic Mercy players out there who make the most of what this character has to offer, but by and large, Mercy is one of the simplest heroes to master. 

I have no problem with accessible heroes in Overwatch 2 that are simple to grasp for new players. Playing Mercy is a great way to get into the competitive shooter and learn the ropes; she can be great fun. However, my biggest issue with this character is that she can have such a massive impact in matches without the need for much skill. In particular, Mercy focusing on one hero and damage-boosting them can turn a mediocre player into an untouchable god. Below the absolute top tiers of this game, you usually need a Mercy to beat a Mercy.

Untouchable and unkillable 

This plea will likely fall on deaf and maybe even angry ears. Sometimes, it seems as if Mercy is one of the heroes least likely to get reworked in Overwatch 2, not least because of her dedicated and vocal fanbase, who don’t hesitate to speak their minds. 

While this character did receive some movement nerfs during the beginning of Overwatch 2 in late 2022/early 2023 and a damage boost decrease in Season 6, it’s not done much for balancing her out in the long run. By and large, this hero is still one of the worst to play against while easily standing as the most infuriating. If I have to see one of my hard-earned eliminations resurrected again, I may snap. 

For now, all we can do is hope and pray this character gets a proper rework sometime in the future, or maybe even accidentally deleted. Luckily, the rest of the support changes this season will hopefully improve matches and competitive play by forcing healers to be just a little bit more cautious.

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It’s been a bittersweet weekend for the Overwatch League. On October 1, the Florida Mayhem defeated the Houston Outlaws within Overwatch 2 in the Overwatch League Grand Finals, but although this is a reason to celebrate - the Overwatch League may be saying its final farewell. 

Caster Soe Gschwind reflected on the past six years of the league in a tearful farewell, which may seem so emotional due to being the end of the season, but has the ring of a final farewell. Within this sign-off Gschwind states: "Now that we close this chapter, I think we should all just look back at this and remember the moments that took our breath away.

"We have to remember the friendships we got to form and the lessons that we learned. So from all of us, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being part of this incredible journey. It's been an honor, a privilege, and a joy to share this experience with all of you." The full speech can be seen below:

However, even though it feels as if the Overwatch League is saying goodbye to more than just the season, there is still a reason to look forward to what’s to come. Shortly after the farewells for the season, the Overwatch League shared a post on Twitter stating “With the completion of the 2023 Overwatch League Season, we will be focusing on building on our vision of a revitalized esports program. We’re eager to share more with you as details are finalized.” 

So, while it feels as though a serious chapter in the Overwatch League is coming to an end, there is some hope on the horizon. The best place to keep up to date with what exactly is in store for the competition is by following the official Overwatch League Twitter page, where we are expecting more information on this vision of a revitalized esports program to come out as it happens.  

If you want another game to master, the best FPS games will offer more experiences outside of Overwatch. However, for more competitive action, the best fighting games may challenge your skills in new ways.  

I'm in the attacking team's waiting room at Esperança. I'm playing support, Kiriko to be precise, and I take position behind our tank Reinhardt. The pre-match countdown ends and we charge out the door, ready to push the payload. It's a chaotic start but we win the opening fracas and begin our procession to the checkpoint, until a Widowmaker kills me, dampening my vibe faster than heavy rain during British Summer. I respawn but notice something is wrong: I can't move. All of a sudden, Overwatch 2 on Steam Deck doesn't seem such a cool idea.

Overwatch 2's recent arrival on Steam has been mixed at best. In fact, the official game page would have you believe it's been 'overwhelmingly negative', with some of the most rampant review bombing since The Last of Us Part 2's Abby took her new golf club for a spin. 

However, we're not here to ruminate on the reasons behind this, although if we were then we'd likely focus on the cancellation of the PvE mode as it was initially pitched when Overwatch 2 was announced back in 2019. Instead, my task was to play the game on Steam Deck to find out how it runs. The short answer: it's not good. 

Losing control 

Now it would be remiss of me not to point out that Blizzard hasn't marked the game as 'verified' or even 'playable', with the former meaning it works as it should, while the latter suggests it’s likely to have mild drawbacks. In other words, I went into the game expecting a less than ideal setup, and that's what I got.

During every PvP game I played, the controls cut out. At first this was usually after dying, but before long I would lose control from the moment the character selection screen appeared at the very start of a match. I could still use the touchscreen, and I was able to return to the Steam menu using the specific home button, but everything else essentially disconnected. Sometimes, if I was lucky, the controls would reactivate for a minute or so, but most of the time, I would watch on powerlessly as the game's warning message displayed, telling me I was about to be kicked for inactivity.

Weirdly, training mode was unaffected by this glitch, if you can call it that. No matter how long I spent testing out characters this way, no control problems arose, but the moment I went back to online play, I was left with the guilt of letting my teammates down as my hero stood there like a broken NPC. This major issue is clearly the biggest, and potentially only, reason Overwatch 2 can't be verified on Steam Deck, because in every other way, the game is functional.

Where it does work 

Graphically it's fine on a tiny screen, running at 1280x800, 60 FPS. Of course it doesn't hold a candle to max PC settings or current-gen console versions of the game, but the handheld convenience will always make this element easy to overlook.

The controls are smooth enough, too, at least if you're used to playing with a gamepad. The joysticks feel a bit clunky compared to their sleeker, Xbox counterparts, but it won't take long to adjust. 

When playing without a headset, the Steam Deck's speakers are sufficiently adequate for relaying the sounds of enemy footsteps. Overwatch 2 is a game that benefits from voice chat, but you won't miss any in-game barks or prompts playing this way. 

As for battery life, on a full charge the Steam Deck claims to have just shy of two hours worth of energy with the game running. Naturally, I didn't finish many matches, so I can't say I properly tested this, but in training mode I found the battery level depleted commensurate with its estimation. 

The bottom line 

Ultimately, all else is irrelevant when the game runs so inconsistently due to its control issues. In an online PvP title, smooth continuity is vital to a positive experience. Until Blizzard finds a way to eliminate this huge flaw - not that we've any reason to believe they will - Overwatch 2 on Steam Deck is unplayable. 

We'd consider Overwatch 2 to be one of the best FPS games, despite its performance on Steam Deck. But if you're looking for an alternative multiplayer adventure, our list of the best co-op games is worth checking out. 

In just three days, Overwatch 2 has become Steam's worst-rated game of all time.

Overwatch 2: Invasion finally released on August 10, and its launch was accompanied with another big debut: Overwatch 2's arrival on Steam. By August 12, however, it had reached the top of a chart no developer ever wants to crown: Overwatch 2 now has the lowest user score on Steam. Ever.

According to Steam's Hall of Shame, over 100,000 players have left a review about the free-to-play shooter, a staggering 91 per cent of which was negative. Yikes.

"Big mistake coming to Steam. Now you have the whole community critiquing your game accurately for all Steam users to see," said one unhappy player.

"Overwatch 2 has no respect for you, it's an attempt to pry open your wallet while masquerading as the game it used to be," wrote another vexed reviewer.

It seems as though most players take issue with the free-to-play shooter's monetization model, but others are also unhappy with the game's content schedule and perceived lack of community moderation.

"This game has been review bombed, and I've seen backlash from others saying how it's unfair. Let me tell you firsthand, no it is not!" added another. "In my opinion, this is more than deserved for what Blizzard has done. As someone who has played hundreds of hours of both Overwatch 1 and 2, I have a good idea of what is going on.

"This is the result of an extremely passionate group of people who have time and time again been let down by Blizzard. People who have committed countless hours to playing, watching, and consuming Overwatch content over the years."

The aggregate user score has steadily declined since the game was released, and now sits at a miserly 0.96 out of 10, which is lower than games like Redfall, eFootball, and Battlefield 2042, all of which were met with similarly unfavorable player feedback.

Did you see that John Cena had been moonlighting as a "mysterious hacker" and interrupting high-profile Overwatch 2 content creators? If you'd been keeping an eye on all things Overwatch 2 lately, you may have noticed that a mysterious hooded figure has been infiltrating some of the community's biggest streamers, including Kyedae, Scump and Shroud. 

Known only as "The Enigma", this figure had been "hacking" streams and warning of the looming threat of Null Sector, described as "an antagonistic group of Omnics that will soon invade the world of Overwatch". 

Well, now The Enigma has pulled back his hood and revealed himself to be none other than John Cena, who's now urging all players to "prepare for the invasion". 

"Overwatch 2: Invasions is officially out and playable now, and while the three missions are clearly well-built and a lot of fun, I can't help but think that something's missing," Elie wrote in their feature, Overwatch 2: Invasions is great fun, but where's the rest of it?

"Overwatch 2 Season 6 doesn't only bring a new omnic-themed Battle Pass, but it's also brought three new story missions. Each three follows a group of the roster who fight for Overwatch, assembling the team to face the new omnic crisis facing the world."

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There’s nothing quite like whittling hours away with friends, setting the world to rights. Melting hours away having a chat with others is extremely cathartic, whether over a cozy coffee and cake, a cold glass of white wine and nibbles, or headshotting rivals in Overwatch. 

For a long time, my ‘glass of wine’ was Overwatch. When I was first adjusting to my new life in London, having moved from Ireland for university, I was often overwhelmingly homesick. The close friends and family I would have prattled away with were an ocean away, but we found solace in playing Overwatch together as often as we could throughout the week – Blizzard’s team shooter offered a sense of togetherness a Skype call simply couldn’t.

I was never a particularly good Overwatch player, but, as time went on, I became proficient enough to be able to enjoy my chits chats without our team’s performance being compromised. I could mind the payload as D.Va while discussing my weekend plans, and keep the team alive as Mercy while offering relationship advice. I never wanted to be a professional-standard player, I just wanted to win quick play matches and have fun doing it. I was happy being average.

That doesn’t mean, however, that I didn’t care about the game. My team and I grew frustrated at how stale Overwatch was becoming. The release of both new maps and heroes was few and far between, and when Blizzard did add new heroes, they seemed to be broken (looking at you, Brigitte). Eventually, we stopped playing altogether.

Overwatch 2, however, looked to offer the perfect opportunity to jump back in. It promised to breathe new life into the shooter that was once the backdrop to my Friday nights. But, I quickly found out, Overwatch isn’t for players like me anymore.

Lack of coordination

Overwatch 2 sits in a weird place that is becoming more and more commonplace with live service games: not quite a sequel nor a patch. Instead, it’s more of an overhaul, introducing many refinements, a new battle pass system, character redesigns, and new game modes. To be honest, having been away for as long as I have, I’ve been slightly disappointed to see how little genuinely new content there is. You’d think an overhaul, plus the two years we were away, would see a host of new maps and heroes rolled out. Instead, it feels like Blizzard hasn’t done the full step they needed to, taking a tentative half step with Overwatch 2 instead. 

What is noticeable, is the refinements and changes that have been rolled out seem to benefit a certain type of Overwatch player: the professional or highly competitive players. The Overwatch 2 players who have a tight-knit squad that plays to win every day or The Overwatch League.

The change to 5v5 matches means that coordination is more crucial than ever, and each player’s contribution has more impact. But, for out-of-practice players, there’s nowhere to hide: with 6v6, there was a bit of wiggle room, space for mistakes. You could take a breath and, as I used to, have a bit more of a relaxed approach to the game. If someone in your team simply wasn’t very good, you could (through gritted teeth) get on with the match and maybe even win. Even venturing into ranked games, I felt confident enough to play my part and knew that as long as my friends and I were coordinated and doing well, we had a shot at success – even if someone wasn’t pulling their weight.

Now, however, if you aren’t playing at the top of your game, it’s not just obvious but debilitating. A good Tank, for example, can make your game. Especially given you get one less in Overwatch 2, and currently, the majority are extremely overpowered. But the reverse is true, too: pitting a bad Zarya against a competent one will likely decide the outcome of the match. It’s particularly bad at the moment because the release of Overwatch 2 has attracted lapsed players, like myself, who are trying to make sense of the changes and refinements. In particular the increased focus on coordination – a difficult ask of solo queuers. 

Sure, this isn’t as important in quick play, but it sure does zap the fun out of the game to feel you are responsible for your team’s loss, or to find yourself blaming a single player on your team for a defeat. If you’ve got a full squad that you can coordinate with, then things are considerably easier, but that has its own problems. Blizzard tends to pair groups against other groups, so, if you get a squad of friends together, you can often find your less experienced Overwatch 2 team pitted against seasoned teams. You don’t stand a chance, especially when it comes to new modes like Push.

Coordination with strangers is possible, but in-game communication can often be toxic and offputting. If you’re trying to better yourself as a player, it’s unlikely someone will provide you with constructive criticism to do that. You’re expected to be good already. 

A new era

As a casual player, I used to find Overwatch fun and approachable. Ranked play was where the competition was, where coordination was essential and the pressure was high. Quick play, on the other hand, was for those who wanted to try out new characters and tactics without the demand of Ranked.

But, with Overwatch 2, the skill ceiling has been pushed upwards, and the pressure to perfom is even higher than before – even in quick play. I feel like I’m swimming against a tide of high-level, invested players and I’m not quite sure I’ve got the stamina to keep up. Nor do I want to anymore.

• Blizzard made me explain Overwatch 2 smurfing to my mum for nothing

Overwatch 2 will no longer require existing Overwatch players to cough up a phone number, as Blizzard rolls back the controversial anti-cheat system.

All Overwatch 2 players were originally required to link an active phone number to their Battle.net account to play the hero shooter. Blizzard hoped the SMS Protect authentication system would help users verify their accounts, and prevent disruptive and abusive players from returning to the game after being banned.

“We have made the decision to remove phone number requirements for a majority of existing Overwatch players,” Blizzard said in a forum post announcing the end of the system.

“Any Overwatch player with a connected Battle.net account, which includes all players who have played since June 9, 2021, will not have to provide a phone number to play. We are working to make this change and expect it to go live on Friday, October 7.”

But the policy change won’t benefit everyone. Blizzard says: "Accounts that were not connected to Battle.net, as well as new accounts, will still have to meet SMS Protect requirements."

Wrong number

Overwatch's phone number authentication system has proven controversial among the game’s community. Several types of phone numbers, including those linked to pre-paid SIM cards and VOIP phones, can’t be used for authentication, locking many would-be players out of the sequel. 

Even those who’d purchased the original Overwatch – which was replaced by the free-to-play sequel and is no longer accessible – originally found themselves unable to play Overwatch 2 if they didn’t have a phone number of the right type. Similarly, many who’d bought the game’s Watchpoint Pack ahead of its launch found they couldn’t access the game to enjoy the $39.99 / £34.99 / AU$59.95 starter bundle.

Blizzard’s revamped SMS Protect policy will go some way to alleviate those problems. But new players still won’t have such luck. Those joining Overwatch for the first time will be unable to access the game if they have a pre-paid SIM card or no phone number at all.

That's particularly hampered low-income players. Pre-paid phones are typically more affordable than alternative options, leaving those who are unable to splash out on an expensive contract unable to play the game.

“I'm really upset and oddly ashamed for not meeting this ‘standard’,” one Overwatch fan said on Reddit. “Never thought I would be disqualified from playing Overwatch based on my ability to afford a phone contract, but here we are. Blizzard is the first company to make me feel too poor to play a game.”

Younger players, too, who may not own a phone of their own (but reach the ESRB Teen and PEGI 12 maturity rating) will continue to be locked out of the game, while households who share a single phone number will be unable to create multiple accounts.

Blizzard says the phone number authentication system will help combat disruptive behavior while discouraging smurfing – whereby veteran players create new accounts to deliberately play against inexperienced players. In the short term, however, it's continuing to roll out stability fixes for the long queues and crashes that have plagued Overwatch 2 since launch. 

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The launch of Overwatch 2 has been disrupted by a wave of DDoS attacks and server glitches, as players struggle to enter the game and access premium content.

Overwatch 2 players have found themselves facing exceedingly long queue times when trying to launch the game, with some waiting in four-hour-long queues containing over 50,000 people. Others have been unable to load the game at all, faced further wait times when trying to merge their Overwatch accounts, and discovered previously unlocked cosmetics missing from their collection.

Hours after the game launched, Blizzard president Mike Ybarra confirmed on Twitter that Overwatch 2’s servers had been hit by a DDoS attack – a deliberate attempt to disrupt and destabilize a server network by overwhelming it with a wave of traffic 

Game director Aaron Keller later announced on Twitter that a second DDoS attack had been recorded. He said Blizzard was “all hands on deck” and would “continue to work throughout the night” to fix the issues.

Omnic Crisis 2.0

Despite the DDoS attacks, some players were able to circumvent the long queue times. Logging into the game’s Asia servers on PC reduced wait times considerably, and would still match you with players from your region.

Excessively long queue times aren’t the only problems players have encountered. Many have been unable to enter Overwatch 2 even after the queue counter ticks down to zero, with some hanging on the loading screen for up to an hour before getting in. Others have been spontaneously disconnected while queuing or booted mid-game.

Players trying to merge their Overwatch accounts – allowing them to combine their PC and console profiles to carry over skins, items and other cosmetics into the sequel – are required to join a second, lengthy queue. Although accounts can be merged in the background, it's left players waiting for their cosmetics and rank to appear. Some have even been unable to connect at all, as they encounter an error message that reads “Unexpected Server Error”.

Additional premium content has also reportedly gone missing from user accounts. Some players who bought the Overwatch 2 Watchpoint Pack – a $39.99 / £34.99 / AU$59.95 starter pack collecting several cosmetics, premium goodies, and access to the Season One battle pass – have found it hasn't appeared in their account. Others have also discovered cosmetics, items and in-game currency are missing from their profiles.

Blizzard has published a forum post listing the known launch issues and bugs. They include merging errors, server disconnects, and missing cosmetics. It says it is working to solve the problems and will update players when fixes are ready. It’s already fixed an issue that removed player match histories and replays, and is refunding players who mistakenly bought the Happi Genji skin twice after the cosmetic failed to appear in some accounts.

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Are you ready to download Overwatch 2? Of course, you are. Now that Blizzard's overhaul of its popular team-based shooter is officially live, everyone and their cat wants to jump in to check out the changes.

Overwatch 2 was officially released on October 4 at 11am PST / 2pm EST / 7pm BST (or October 5 at 4am AEST), marking a new era for the shooter. It's hard to put your finger exactly on what Overwatch 2 is, it's not a sequel nor is it a patch. Instead, in our Overwatch 2 review, we likened it more to an overhaul, introducing new content and much-needed refinements but not doing quite enough to justify the '2' in its title.

And while some of these changes are somewhat controversial (cough, microtransactions) one of the more welcome changes is that, unlike its predecessor, Overwatch 2's PvP component is entirely free to play. That means that as long as you have a console or PC, you can check it out for yourself.

Want to jump in on the action? Read on for how to download Overwatch 2 on console and PC.

How to download Overwatch 2

How to download Overwatch 2 on PC

You can download Overwatch 2 on PC right now, via the Battle.net client. 

If you already have Overwatch 1 installed, and have automatic updates enabled, then it should update to Overwatch 2 automatically. If not, then navigate to Overwatch in the client, select the gear symbol beside the 'Play' button and then select 'Check for Updates'. This should update your game to Overwatch 2 and allow you to jump into the overhauled game as soon as it's downloaded.

If you're a brand new Overwatch player, you simply need to navigate to Overwatch 2 in the client and download it for free. Remember though, Overwatch 2 is free to play so you don't need to purchase the advertised Watchpoint Pack to download it – so avoid that unless you really want its contents.

How to download Overwatch 2 on PS5 and PS4

If you already have Overwatch 1 installed on your PS5 or PS4, and have automatic updates enabled, then it should update to Overwatch 2 automatically. If not, then navigate to Overwatch in your games library, select the 'Options' button on the game tile and select 'Check for Updates' to upgrade to Overwatch 2. This should update your game to Overwatch 2 and allow you to jump into the overhauled game as soon as it's downloaded.

If you're a brand new Overwatch player, then you can simply find Overwatch 2 in the PlayStation Store and download it from there. Remember though, Overwatch 2 is free to play so you don't need to purchase the advertised Watchpoint Pack to download it – so avoid that unless you really want its contents.

How to download Overwatch 2 on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

If you already have Overwatch 1 installed on your Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S or Xbox One, and have automatic updates enabled, then it should update to Overwatch 2 automatically. If not, then navigate to Overwatch in your games library and check for updates to upgrade to Overwatch 2. This should update your game to Overwatch 2 and allow you to jump into the overhauled game as soon as it's downloaded.

If you're a brand new Overwatch player, then you can simply find Overwatch 2 in the Microsoft Store and download it from there. Remember though, Overwatch 2 is free to play so you don't need to purchase the advertised Watchpoint Pack to download it – so avoid that unless you really want its contents.

How to download Overwatch 2 on Nintendo Switch

Overwatch 2 is available to download on the Nintendo Switch family of consoles, including the Nintendo Switch Lite and Nintendo Switch OLED.

If you already have Overwatch 1 installed on your Nintendo Switch, and have automatic updates enabled, then it should update to Overwatch 2 automatically. If not, then navigate to Overwatch in your games library and check for updates to upgrade to Overwatch 2. This should update your game to Overwatch 2 and allow you to jump into the overhauled game as soon as it's downloaded.

If you're a brand new Overwatch player, then you can simply find Overwatch 2 in the Nintendo eShop and download it for free from there. 

How to download Overwatch 2: FAQs

How much space do I need to download Overwatch 2?

Before you download Overwatch 2, you better make sure you have enough hard drive space on your PC or console.

Overwatch 2 on PC requires 50GB of space, while Overwatch 2 on consoles is a 30GB download.

What to do before downloading Overwatch 2

Enable Overwatch 1 and Overwatch 2 cross-progression
Overwatch players will be pleased to know that they can carry over all stats, ranks, and skins to Overwatch 2. To do so, you'll need to merge your accounts and get it all set up, so definitely do this well in advance of jumping into Overwatch 2 for the first time.

This one is for console players, who may only have an Overwatch account. For Overwatch 2, players across all platforms will be required to have a Battle.net account. If you don't have one set up yet, you should get on that. There are a few things to bear in mind when merging accounts, with the most important being that you only have one opportunity to merge console accounts. So give the official FAQ a thorough read before you launch into it.

Link your battle.net account with your phone number
Blizzard's new anti-cheat system means that all Overwatch 2 players will need to link their phone number to their battle.net account. Not everyone is happy about it, but it's there to ward off cheaters and stop repeat offenders. 

This also goes for players who own the box version of Overwatch. There's no escaping it. It comes into effect from October 4, so make sure you attach your number to your account before Overwatch 2 servers go live or you won't be able to play.     

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What is Overwatch 2? It changes the game from a 6v6 team shooter to 5v5, it brings new heroes and maps, and other changes you’d expect from a sequel but it also replaces the original Overwatch. That game isn’t made obsolete, it is actually inaccessible with developer Blizzard taking it offline. There's no Overwatch now, only Overwatch 2. It’s why it’s not best described as a ‘sequel’, despite the titular ‘2’. However, it also isn’t a ‘glorified patch’ either, as some have been keen to label it.

Instead, I’ve come to think of it as an ‘overhaul’. An overhaul in design philosophy and structure, Overwatch 2 is a refocusing of what makes this team shooter’s formula unique. This is a second swing at a brilliant premise – an objective-based competitive game with defined RPG roles – that previously began to show stagnation by languishing in stale metas and failing to add new heroes for over two years.

On the surface, Overwatch 2 looks like little more than a lick of paint to many new and returning players, with the only immediately noticeable difference to the gameplay being a switch from 6v6 to 5v5. So, why have I left feeling like this is one of the best competitive shooters of all time?

Overwatch 2 price and release date

• What is it? An overhaul to Blizzard's beloved competitive shooter
• Release date: October 4, 2022
• Price: Free-to-play
• What can I play it on? PC, PS5, PS4, XSX|S, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch

Tank you very much

That shift to 5v5 may not sound like much, but it’s a quietly brilliant choice. Tanks have always been one of the most important roles, but being the sponge for all the enemy damage and abilities was a thankless task, making it one of the least queued for roles. By removing a Tank, Blizzard has made battles more free-flowing and ferocious. It helps that characters in the role have been souped up to compensate for the loss of one beefcake on the battlefield. As a Tank, you can now command the combat space in a more proactive way, making for a much more fun time. 

The developers have also taken an uncompromising look at the role of ‘crowd control’ in the game. In Overwatch, there is a whole suite of abilities, such as Mei’s freeze, Cassidy and Brigitte’s stun, Sombra’s hack, and others that temporarily limit your ability to control your character. In Overwatch 2, all of these abilities have either been replaced or heavily nerfed, meaning that there’s less that disrupts your moment-to-moment experience.

Both the Tank and crowd control changes address problems later in Overwatch’s life. If you haven’t played in a couple of years, you may not realize how bogged down the game got in shields and abilities. Crowd control became a way of life in Overwatch. It felt like every other moment in a match, an enemy’s abilities were impeding you. They were powerful tools but it meant that much of your time felt like you were dealing with ability rotations rather than getting eliminations. It’s a negative space to sit in as a player.  Overwatch 2 is a night and day change for those familiar with stagnant metas that have plagued the first game over the last few years.

Making an impact

These changes knit together and solve a serious problem with the original: it was all too common to find you were on a team that refused to work together, making it impossible to win. Overwatch 2 changes that. 

With one fewer player on a team, a kill has more value, so you can have a greater impact on a match with your own individual play. There are no longer two tanks on the enemy frontline either, so there’s less in the way of you inflicting damage. It makes battle feel more open, with a bigger focus on confirming eliminations. A well-thought-out play, skilfully executed feels possible again.

There’s a feeling of individual empowerment underneath Overwatch 2 that makes for a much richer experience. While playing in a team, I can see how my play is helping the whole team get closer to a win. While these moments of solo brilliance were possible previously, in Overwatch 2, you now have the power to make them happen more frequently.

The world could always use more heroes

Not all of the changes to Overwatch 2 are under-the-hood shifts though. At launch, there are three new characters to contend with - one for each of the three roles. Sojourn, the DPS hero, is a highly mobile gunner that can fire off head-splitting railgun shots when she’s charged up. Junker Queen, the Tank addition, is a loud brawler all about getting into enemy faces to sustain her health. Newest hero Kiriko is a fascinating Support too. While she doesn't have immense instant healing, she has surprising lethality and skill shots that make her tough to master but exceptional in the right hands.

Each hero brings something new to the roster, but all are distinctly Overwatch. They are intricate creations that serve jobs on the battlefield. However, most importantly, they’re all a blast to play.

As Sojourn it’s not uncommon to slide around the corner at the start of a fight, build up her railgun shot, and then blast through a hero to open up a team fight. As Junker Queen, there've been times when I’ve fought through an enemy team to get behind them, only to turn around and use her Rampage Ultimate, pushing them back into my team for the clean-up. Kiriko has awesome clutch potential too. It's not uncommon to see a teammate getting dove on by the enemy, to then teleport through a wall, grant your ally invulnerability, and use her Kunai to slay the incoming attacker. Each of these three heroes feels very active and speak to that individual ‘pop-off’ factor that makes Overwatch 2’s battles feel so much better.

Push it real good

On top of the heroes, the game is releasing six new maps, and losing Assault (more commonly referred to as 2 check-point maps). These had previously been hard to balance and have issues with snowballing or very long holds. In its place comes the new mode Push, which has teams using a robot in an inverse Tug of War-type fashion.

Push is different from anything in the game’s history. It encourages very open play with maps designed around open sightlines and battles focused around an objective that is constantly on the move. But again, with the enhanced focus on individual impact, this mode really lets that core tenant of Overwatch 2 shine bright. 

All six of the new maps are beautiful too, with Midtown being a personal favorite. Set in New York, it has players fighting through the streets as they try to escort a fire engine into a massive Grand Central-esque train station. Other highlights include Circuit Royale which has players escorting an F1 car around Monaco at night with bright lights and lavish decor, whereas Esperança is a winding map with many levels set in a quaint coastal town in Portugal complete with quiet bakeries and open plazas. The new maps are easily the most detailed and striking looking in the game’s history with Blizzard’s art team doing some of their best work.

The price you pay

Where Overwatch 2 is in danger of losing certain players is a headlong sprint into the game-as-a-service model. 

Overwatch came out as service games were really taking off, and its lootbox system, which was controversial at the time, is almost quaint in the face of the microtransaction-laden landscape of 2022. Blizzard has embraced free-to-play with Overwatch 2. It now has a battle pass and a premium currency for skins. You won’t find anything here that isn’t also happening in Apex Legends, Fortnite, Warzone, Valorant, or Rainbow 6 Siege, but understandably some players may hate this new direction.

The positive of this model though, which will see a new season every nine weeks with a new hero or map, is it gives Overwatch 2 the sense of having a future – and more than that, something to stick to. For two years now, Overwatch hasn’t had a single major content update. No new heroes, modes, or maps, and the game stagnated without them. This free-to-play model is how Blizzard plans to continue support for Overwatch 2, a promise that it won’t let the game grow stale. It's now a case of whether that promise is kept.

Getting Over

Overwatch 2 is a strange beast, it’s not a sequel, it’s not a patch, it’s a reinvention. There’s a lot of change to core pillars here. You may not like the loss of a second tank. You may not love its new shooting focus. You may hate its new monetization.

However, while playing, I can’t help but remember why I fell in love with the original. Its sense of hope, driven by the art direction and character work, as well as a unique competitive experience. Overwatch 2 has captured everything I loved about the first game, without all the caveats that ended up weighing down the experience.

“What is Overwatch 2?” Well, it’s brilliant.

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Overwatch 2 players will need to cough up their phone numbers to play the hero shooter, as Blizzard rolls out a new SMS security system.

When the shooter launches next month, Overwatch 2 will require all players on all platforms to link an active phone number to their Battle.net account. In a blog post, Blizzard says the new SMS authentication system will form part of a wider initiative to clamp down on disruptive behavior.

“The security of your account is important, and SMS Protect helps verify ownership of your account in the unforeseen event of an account compromise,” said Blizzard. “Similarly, if a disruptive player has been suspended or banned, SMS Protect makes it more difficult for them to return to the game.”

Mobile throes

Every player will need access to a mobile phone to play Overwatch 2, even those who bought an original boxed version of Overwatch. Blizzard says SMS verification is “an industry-proven solution in combating both cheating and disruptive behavior” and hopes it will improve the game’s overall experience.

There are a few limitations though. A phone number cannot be linked to multiple accounts at once or used to create several different profiles. Certain types of numbers, including those tied to pre-paid SIM cards and VOIP phones, also don’t qualify. That should prevent disruptive players from cycling through lots of burner phones to create new accounts for the free-to-play game.

As well as better preventing abusive and disruptive players from returning, it will also combat smurfing – whereby an experienced player creates a fresh account so they can deliberately play against lower-tier players. It’s thought the cost of buying a new SIM card will deter players from deliberately picking on newbies.

SMS verification isn’t just limited to Overwatch. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on PC also asks you to hand over a phone number to access its multiplayer, and some features of World of Warcraft are locked off to those who haven’t tied a number to their account. In an FAQ, Blizzard says that limiting the number of free accounts a person can create makes players “accountable for their actions”, which “reduces toxicity and cheating and ensures a positive community experience for all players”.

Some players are already upset at the change. A Blizzard forum post has racked up a lot of attention, with players complaining about the need to divulge their personal information. Others have suggested they won’t be able to play the game because they use a prepaid phone. With Overwatch 2 rated suitable for teens in the US and PEGI 12 in Europe, it’s possible some would-be players might not have access to a phone with which to authenticate their account.

At least the majority of players can look forward to the game’s new season pass system, even if it does lock new heroes behind a progression system. 

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Overwatch 2’s new premium battle pass can be unlocked for free, but you'll need to sink 17 weeks into the game to do so.

Launching next month, Overwatch 2's new seasonal battle pass system will include a free progression track and a paid-for premium path. Access to that premium track can be bought for $10 – around £8.60 / AU$14.80 – or 1,000 Overwatch Coins (the game’s new premium currency). You'll be able to buy Coins directly using real-world cash or earn them in-game by completing Weekly Challenges.

Those Weekly Challenges will only reward the most dedicated players, though. Completing all 11 of them in a week will net you a total of 60 Coins. If you were to complete all challenges, it would take you 17 weeks to accumulate enough Coins to buy a premium battle pass without spending any cash. 

The game's milestone system further rewards consistent playtime. You’ll earn 30 Coins for completing four Weekly Challenges, an extra 20 for ticking off eight more, and a final 10 Coins if you complete all 11. You’ll get zilch if you only finish one or two of the tasks, encouraging you to complete bunches of them at a time.

The long road to premium

Whether you'll be able to complete the Weekly Challenges looks to be a question of time, rather than skill. Most can be finished just by playing Overwatch 2 and successfully winning matches. The weekly challenges we were shown included:

• Win 10 games
• Win 10 games queued as All Roles
• Win 20 games in Unranked or Competitive Play
• Win 7 games in any Arcade mode
• Win 10 games each as 2 different roles in quick play or competitive play
• Deal or boost a total of 125,000 damage (Total Mayhem doesn’t count)
• Mitigate a total of 40,000 damage (Total Mayhem doesn’t count)

Speaking about the Weekly Challenges in a recent press briefing, Overwatch commercial lead and VP Jon Spector told TechRadar Gaming that the development team wanted to avoid overly granular tasks. Players shouldn't feel required to change their playstyle, or use tactics that would undermine their team, just to earn Overwatch Coins.

But Blizzard is confident that players will recognize the value of Overwatch 2's new premium battle pass. It expects fans will happily pay for access rather than grind for free entry.

“Our design goal and philosophy for the battle pass was [to provide] overwhelming, obvious value for players,” said Spector. 

“If you go through and look at all the stuff you can earn, both for free and on the premium track of the battle pass, there’s no reaction other than ‘Oh my god, this stuff’s all amazing and there’s so much of its – I can’t believe it’s all just $10’.”

Overwatch 2’s battle pass system is comparable to that of other live service games. Fortnite, Warzone, Destiny 2, and Fall Guys all include season passes that are sold for a similar price. Most of them also offer ways of unlocking a paid-for battle pass by gradually accumulating premium currency over several months.

Blizzard's approach to Overwatch 2's monetization system isn't anything new. But fans will likely be pleased it isn't as aggressive as Diablo Immortal's, which came under fire for punishing free-to-play fans.

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Overwatch is finally abandoning loot boxes sales and while we've known this'll happen for sometime, we've now got a confirmed end date.

As Blizzard prepares for Overwatch's transition into Overwatch 2, you may have seen it's kicked off one final event for the original game. Calling this 'Overwatch Anniversary Remix: Vol.3', that's running from August 9 until August 30 and while you can earn 'Anniversary Loot Boxes' for taking part, the official Overwatch website issued this disclaimer: 

"Loot Boxes will no longer be available for sale after the end of the Anniversary Remix Vol. 3 event on August 30."

However, loot boxes can still be earned via other means, like levelling up and playing the Arcade mode. Just be aware that when the sequel launches in early access on October 4, this system's being replaced by a new Overwatch 2 battle pass. As such, any previously obtained loot boxes will be automatically opened and added into your inventory.

The end is in sight

It's been three years since Overwatch 2's reveal at Blizzcon 2019, but Blizzard's only detailed what to expect these across the last few months. It's been clear Overwatch 1 has no future after Overwatch 2's launch this October and instead of releasing two separate game, this sequel essentially arrive as a major update, rewriting the original release entirely. 

So, we're in the middle of a long goodbye for Overwatch 1 and thanks to two public Overwatch 2 beta tests, we've seen what to expect. Maps like Temple of Anubis and Hanamura won't be in regular rotation — only available via custom games — matches are switching from 6v6 to 5v5, there's three new heroes at launch, including Sojourn and Junker Queen. Once the sequel fully launches, expect PvE, too. 

Still, if you're looking to celebrate Overwatch 1 before October rolls around, the Anniversary Remix Vol. 3 is your best chance. Overwatch Archives Missions and Challenge Missions are back, there's new legendary skin recolors, and all the old seasonal events are returning one last time. It's certainbthat's a fitting farewell for Blizzard's original hero shooter.

• Curious to try Overwatch 2's newest character? They won't be getting a public test before launch

Blizzard won’t be holding any more public playtests for Overwatch 2, leaving fans waiting until its October release to see the game’s final new Hero.

Two Overwatch 2 beta tests ran earlier this year, letting players test Overwatch 2’s new Push game mode, and 5v5 overhaul. But it’ll be a couple more months before fans can jump back in, with Overwatch vice president and commercial lead, Jon Spector, announcing an end to the beta schedule.

“Today marks just two months until Overwatch 2's launch,” Spector said in a tweet. “We know players are eager to dive in and have seen questions about the possibility of a third public beta. While we will continue testing OW2 daily internally, we're not planning any additional public beta tests. 

“With all the valuable feedback we received from our alpha and two public beta tests, we will be focusing our efforts on launching the best game possible on October 4.”

A colourful cast that's growing fast

Some in the Overwatch community speculated a third beta was on the way, expecting Blizzard to use the opportunity to reveal the sequel's final new Hero. Sojourn was introduced ahead of the first public playtest, while Junker Queen made her appearance shortly before the second. But we’re yet to see much of the third incoming addition to Overwatch 2’s roster.

A couple of teases have been made. The Overwatch 2 release date trailer briefly showed a ghostly blue fox jumping across a map, while Blizzard hinted the unnamed character is in some way linked to a fox during the final moments of the second beta. Blizzard has also confirmed they’ll be a support hero, and will be available to play from day one. Just what their name is, or what abilities they offer, is still a mystery.

Blizzard is likely to reveal the new hero sometime in the next few weeks, as it stirs up excitement ahead of launch. Even so, dedicated fans won't get the opportunity to play around with the character before the full game is in their hands.

That's not the only mystery character coming down the line. As part of Overwatch 2’s new battle pass system, fresh seasons of content will be rolled out every nine weeks. Each update will introduce new cosmetics and playable content, including maps and Heroes. So far, we know the first three seasons – extending all the way to February next year – will each introduce a new Hero.

For now, players might want to be more concerned about Overwatch 2’s monetization system. Although the game is set to ditch look boxes in favor of a rotating cosmetics shop, recent pricing suggestions have scared fans. It won’t be too long before all of Overwatch 2’s mysteries are revealed. 

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A recent Overwatch 2 survey has prompted dismay over the potential cost of cosmetic items in the upcoming hero shooter, although Blizzard maintains the sky-high prices are not set in stone.

Blizzard recently sent select members of the Overwatch 2 community a survey to gauge their expectations over the cost of cosmetic items. As captured by @Portergauge on Twitter, it included some notably high prices. Players were asked if they would be willing to pay $45 (about £36 / AU$65) for a Mythic Rare skin, $24.99 (about £20 / AU$36) for a slightly less rare Legendary Skin, or as much as $9.99 (about £10 / AU$14) for a visual weapon charm.

The Overwatch community’s response to the survey was largely negative, with many fans on Reddit expressing shock at the high prices. While Blizzard will be ditching loot boxes in Overwatch 2 in favor of a new battle pass system and rotating cosmetic shop, it’s not yet clear whether that change of system will accompany an overhaul to the game's in-game prices.

Diablo do-over?

Blizzard has since tried to alleviate players’ concerns, clarifying that the prices listed in the survey are not final. In fact, participants may well have seen different speculative prices in the questionnaire.

"This survey is entirely intended to better understand player preferences for different types of Overwatch 2 cosmetics,” Blizzard told IGN. 

“Prices displayed in the survey were randomized per user and are not indicative of final pricing. We plan to share details on our Shop and Battle Pass system closer to our October 4 launch."

Regardless of what pricing Blizzard settles on, the idea that it even considered selling a skin for $45 might still worry fans. The developer only recently faced a wave of backlash over its handling of Diablo Immortal’s microtransactions.

The action RPG was severely criticized for its aggressive monetization, which repeatedly asked players to spend money on gameplay buffs and cosmetics. Those microtransactions weren’t cheap, either, and hidden progression caps punished free-to-play players from advancing through the game as their paid peers could.

Overwatch fans will have to wait with bated breath to see whether the hero shooter sequel follows a similar course.

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Blizzard has announced a new Overwatch Medic Brigitte skin as part of its new ‘Support a Streamer’ program, which encourages Twitch viewers to buy subscriptions for their favorite content creators.

The promotion to get the skin will run roughly around the second Overwatch 2 beta, which will give viewers the chance to pick up the skin while watching some of the community’s biggest names play Overwatch 2. It also gives them an incentive to support their favorite personalities within the scene. 

As an added bonus, this skin is available right now in Overwatch 1, so you don't even have to wait for the sequel to launch. And don't worry, the skin will transfer to the sequel once it arrives. 

As an extra bit of fun, the Brigitte skin appears to be based on the StarCraft 2 medic units. It’s not pointed out in any of the marketing materials, but the resemblance is certainly uncanny. This makes it the fourth StarCraft-inspired skin in the game, alongside the Kerrigan and Nova Widowmaker Skins, Reinhardt’s Raynor skin that was part of Blizzard’s 30th-anniversary event, and a legendary Immortal Orisa skin. 

What do you need, and more crucially, how much money do you have to spend to get the new skin? Here’s everything you need to know about securing it.

Overwatch Medic Brigitte skin

Overwatch Medic Brigitte skin: how to get the skin

Getting your hands on the skin is relatively easy, it will just cost some money and a little support for a Twitch streamer of your choice. First off, the promotion runs from June 29 at 11:00 a.m. PDT until July 20 at 11:00 a.m. PDT. Any subs outside of this period won’t count towards getting the skin, so keep that in mind. 

To secure it, you need to gift three subscriptions to a participating Twitch streamer. In order to do that, head over to Twitch.tv and sign in (or create an account if you don’t have one yet.)

Once you are logged in, you can head to one of the participating Twitch streams (see below) while they are playing Overwatch. Once there, you have to buy three subscriptions to the Twitch streamer. One of these will be for you (unless you are subscribed already), and then any remaining ones will go to others in chat. 

Twitch Subscriptions cost $4.99 / £3.99 / AU$8.99, so times that by three to get the skin. Of course, remember that you get one free Twitch subscription if you're an Amazon Prime user.  

Once you have done this, you should get a notification from Twitch with a code. When you have your code, head over to Battle.net. Sign in to your account (or sign up for an account and link it to the email connected to your console profile), and head over to your Account Overview. In the first box, right underneath the words "Account Overview" is a "Redeem A Code" box. Paste your code in there and hit "Redeem Code".

After that, you should be good to go. The skin will be available to you in the in-game Hero Gallery. That’s all you have to do!   

Overwatch Medic Brigitte skin: participating streamers

Here is a full list of all the streamers taking part in the promotion. Make sure to only subscribe when they are playing in the Overwatch category.

Full list of streamers participating

• XQC
• kabaji
• august
• Arrge
• Mr. X
• Alanzoka
• Ellohime
• Merciful
• GetQuakedOn
• Jaws
• El Ded
• Supertf
• Somnus
• Vale
• Nekkra
• JackFrags
• It Me JP
• Anaee
• BroYouWack
• Achilios
• Asmongold
• Noko
• JoystickOW
• Metro
• VikkiKitty
• imaqtpie
• Gale Adelade
• Skiesti
• Beaver
• Kimjaewon
• Pow3r
• strippin
• Niandra
• leveluplifting
• Mirage
• Locklear
• Jay3 
• KristenRae
• Somjuu 
• Namunlbo
• Dyrus
• Yuuie
• echoflex
• Potxeca
• Enyung
• Fextralife
• Fitzyhere
• Dullachann
• cloakzy
• Cheomyeom
• LuLuLuvley
• chipsa
• Beyaca
• Crazy Slick
• Woogying
• A_Seagull 
• SaltyPhish
• RubenSargasm
• ConnorEatsPants
• Sisime
• FaZe Mongraal
• Jake
• AVRL
• DisguisedToast
• Kimtongsoo
• LORDENZO
• ta1yo
• Phyerx
• Guru
• YBT
• NateHill
• Yeatle
• Emiliath
• svb
• Themarinekr
• JSmooth
• Fareeha
• LegDay
• Sooshi
• Ryujehong
• nmplol
• ovileemay
• thexboxlucio
• AceofSpades
• Geguri
• OnScreen
• Aspen
• Deku
• Danteh
• Leetaejun
• T-Pain
• W_NTED 
• FindingKyKy
• ANS
• Hyotube
• AverageJonas
• One_Shot_Gurl
• Kragie
• Carpe
• Jjonak
• DaFran
• KarQ
• Oasis
• Poko
• Hoshizora
• mendo
• Flats
• Overpowered
• WhoRU
• Tyr0din
• Tuonto
• Eskay
• Bus
• Patiphan
• Frogger
• Emongg
• Taiga Kishi
• LemonKiwi
• Fleta
• Bazzagazza
• Nephtunie
• Big Cheese Kit
• OWGrandma
• FunnyAstro
• Crayator
• Alphacast
• Eviltoaster
• DominoJack
• Profit
• Davy Jones
• Kephrii
• Warn 
• PeterParkTV
• Architect
• Nitrao
• SPYGEA
• Violet
• cuppcaake
• Soe
• Toniki
• adepththebest
• Delrith
• Custa
• Danny
• TQQ
• P4wnyhof
• FDGod
• EeveeA 
• Reinforce
• Chihiro Yuki
• ml7
• Sunshinebread
• QueenE
• Uber
• Ratna Petit
• sleepy
• towelliee

• Want to know who is good in Overwatch 2? Check out our tier list!

Overwatch 2 will fully replace Overwatch when it releases this October, as the first entry in the hero shooter series will be made unplayable.

Developer Blizzard clarified its plans to sunset the game following the release of Overwatch 2 in a developer AMA on Reddit. When sked what the launch of the sequel would mean for Overwatch, game director Aaron Keller was clear: “when [Overwatch 2] launches on October 4th it will be a replacement for the current live service”.

The release of Overwatch 2 will overwrite the original game wholesale. The sequel – with its major balance tweaks, map changes, and switch from 6v6 to 5v5 matches – will be the only way to play the Overwatch series.

The game's final destination has been a point of confusion for some time. As PC Gamer highlights, a tweet sent by the official Overwatch account back in 2019 stated “Overwatch 1 players and Overwatch 2 players will play alongside on the same maps”, suggesting both games would be live simultaneously. It appears that was either wrongly suggested, or Blizzard altered the course of the series during Overwatch 2’s development.

More to come

The Reddit AMA also revealed what will happen to Overwatch 1 content that won't be included in Overwatch 2 at launch. Systems designer Gavin Winter said maps such as Temple of Anubis and Hanamura will be available to play in custom games, but won’t be included in other modes at launch.

“I have some ideas I'd love to try when it comes to repurposing them for new potential game modes, but these ideas could only see the light of day in the distant future given our current plans,” Winter said. “If we did find a way to give them a new mode we'd want to do extensive testing in the Arcade or in other formats where we can get community feedback.”

Elsewhere in the AMA, Keller clarified why Overwatch 2 will be launching with only three new heroes, two of which – Sojourn and Junker Queen – have already been revealed in the Overwatch 2 beta. Keller said development resources had initially been split between Overwatch 2’s PvE and PvP components, but as the development of co-op content dragged, the competitive multiplayer side was also hit.

“To be clear, there is no secret vault of completed heroes and other content that we’re holding for future seasons,” Keller said. “As we continued to iterate on the PvE side of the game it meant that the schedule for PvP content and features went longer.”

More heroes are on the way, though. As the recently released Overwatch 2 roadmap revealed, Blizzard plans to introduce a new hero in each seasonal update. They’ll roll out every nine weeks after the game launches on October 4

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Blizzard plans to introduce a guild system to Overwatch 2 sometime after the multiplayer shooter launches later this year.

Responding to fan questions in an Overwatch 2 AMA (ask me anything) Reddit thread, the game’s development team was asked what new social systems will be coming to the upcoming sequel. One player specifically wanted to know if clans or in-game tournaments are on the way.

“We are looking to add more social systems to Overwatch 2, and a guild system is near the top of the list for us”, game director Aaron Keller said. “A feature like this is a great opportunity and something we’re really excited about, but it’s a huge lift, not just for large sections of our team but several other departments at Blizzard. We have put significant work towards this feature, but it’s too early to talk about specifics or when it might come out.

Keller went on to say that in-game tournaments are “something that the team is starting to dig into more”. He didn’t provide any specifics as to what they might look like or when they’ll appear. 

Why are guilds coming to Overwatch 2?

Players have long been asking Blizzard to implement a guild system in Overwatch. A formal clan mechanic would allow players to more easily coordinate matches and organize cross-group games with rival parties. It would act as another social system, making it easier to find online players to buddy up with if you’re desperate for a game.

A guild system would also open the door to more competitive possibilities. It’s likely clans will tie in with the tournament system that Keller teased in this AMA, with guilds competing against one another for titles and prizes. Add to that regional and global guild rankings, as well as persistent guild leaderboards, and you’ve got yourself an entirely new competitive sector of the game.

With Blizzard pitching Overwatch 2 as a live-service title, the developer will likely be looking for as many ways as possible to keep players engaged between seasonal updates. Player-led guilds seem like a straightforward way of doing just that by upping community engagement.

There’s no details yet as to when the guild system will emerge, but we know it’ll be coming after Overwatch 2’s new PvP component launches in early access on October 4. The game’s PvE element will be released later next year.

Overwatch 2’s all-new PvE game mode will launch in 2023, and has been designed to tell a complete, linear story across the multiplayer shooter’s regular seasonal updates.

Speaking about Overwatch 2 in a press briefing, developer Blizzard said the story-focused co-op game mode will receive a staggered release to coincide with the sequel’s all-new nine-week seasonal model. Rather than telling discrete stories, however, each update will combine into an overarching campaign that reaches a defined conclusion.

“It tells a complete, linear story with a beginning and end to it,” said game director Aaron Keller about the PvE mode. “Rather than saving up all of the content that we make to put in one big box that you sell for $60 or more, we’ve shifted our model now to start releasing things seasonally.

“We want to be able to release it when they’re ready rather than holding onto it. It’s really important for us to continue to put content out for the game.”

It’ll be a while before you can get your hands on the PvE game mode, however. It’s scheduled to release in 2023, months after Overwatch 2’s new PvP mode launches as part of the game’s early access launch on October 4.

Although a specific date hasn’t been announced, the new game mode could release as early as February. Overwatch 2 will sport a new nine-week seasonal update model, with this year’s final season set to launch on December 6. It’s likely PvE will be rolled out to coincide with the launch of one of these new update periods, meaning it could come as soon as February 7 – the estimated release date of 2023’s first season.

PvE won’t only represent a new game mode for Overwatch, but a new channel through which its lore and characters can be explored. Blizzard says the co-op mode will progress Overwatch’s story, answering old questions that fans have been itching to resolve since the first game, as well as raising new plot points. In particular, it will focus on telling the story of how the in-game Overwatch group reformed.

A change of pace

Blizzard’s approach to Overwatch 2’s co-op campaign is surprising. The launch of additional story content that iterates upon ever-expanding lore is par for the course with live service games, but Overwatch 2 looks more restrained.  It sounds like the sequel’s story won’t simply spiral outward to justify the release of new content, but has been meticulously planned to drift towards a final conclusion. 

Of course, it will likely be many years before it reaches that ending, with plenty of segues along the way. But the idea its co-op story will ever, properly end is a change of pace.

Blizzard first announced that PvE wouldn’t be available at Overwatch 2’s October 4 launch during the Xbox and Bethesda Showcase. The developer is billing this initial release as an early access period that will center primarily around its 5v5 PvP mode.

However, there’s plenty of other new features to expect. Not only does Overwatch 2’s battle pass system represent a big change for the series as it commits to a live-service model, but Blizzard is making major changes to its monetization system, too. Overwatch 2 will have no loot boxes, in favor of an in-game cosmetics shop.

Check out the Overwatch 2 launch roadmap to find out more about what we can expect.

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Blizzard is taking a fresh approach to microtransactions in Overwatch 2, ditching the loot boxes of the multiplayer shooter’s predecessor in favor of an in-game cosmetics shop.

During an Overwatch 2 press roundtable, TechRadar Gaming was told that loot boxes won't be appearing in the upcoming game. Instead of blindly opening packs to earn random cosmetic items, players can purchase their content directly.

“As we transition into Overwatch 2, we are going to be sunsetting our loot boxes in favor of a new system that’s an in-game shop,” Overwatch vice president and commercial lead Jon Spector said. “Players can go in and make direct purchases of the cosmetic items that they want.”

However, the game’s approach to microtransactions hasn’t been entirely nailed down. Speaking in the roundtable, Spector said additional details, such as how players can link their Overwatch accounts between platforms to roll forward into the sequel, will be announced down the line.

Game director Aaron Keller, meanwhile, said some specifics are still being worked out behind the scenes. Without a complete picture of how  Overwatch 2's free-to-play business model works, he said, it’s difficult to know exactly what the game’s monetization systems will offer. "More than anything,” Keller said, “we just want this to feel fair to players; for it to feel generous to players.”

Fun and fair

The removal of loot boxes represents a big change for the Overwatch series. The blind luck packages were once a staple of nearly all competitive multiplayer shooters, and the first Overwatch's in-game monetization system rested solely on them.

But loot boxes have fallen out of fashion among major video game publishers in recent years. Fortnite’s battle royale mode has never included them, nor has Call of Duty: Warzone. As players become increasingly wary of what are often seen as predatory money-making systems, and some countries outright ban them under gambling law, publishers have started to look for new ways to monetize their games.

Blizzard is doing just that, as Overwatch 2 pivots to a free-to-play model supported primarily by a battle pass. The nine-week rolling pass will offer character skins, weapon charms, and new voice lines through a free and premium progression track.

Players will be waiting with bated breath to see just how generous and fair Overwatch 2’s systems really are. Blizzard’s latest release, Diablo Immortal, has come under fire for its excessive monetization and hidden progression caps that punish free-to-play players.

Overwatch 2 is slated to release on October 4 for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. Check out the roadmap now, and what we know about the new PvE mode.

• While you wait, find another cracking FPS to obsess over

Overwatch 2's roadmap is chock-full of info about what's to come for the free-to-play shooter on day one and beyond. This includes the confirmation that a third, unannounced hero will be joining the ranks at launch.

Overwatch 2 is launching in an early access state on October 4 for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles. What's more, the roadmap reveals that three new heroes are joining the fight right from the get-go.

Two of these heroes have already been revealed. Junker Queen was officially confirmed just this week, while Sojourn rolled out in the Overwatch 2 beta. Thanks to the hands on time we've has with her, we already have an Overwatch 2 Sojourn guide ready for you to dip into ahead of release.

The third hero hasn't been fully unveiled as of yet, but Blizzard has confirmed they will be a support hero. And we have one big clue that may hint at how this hero will play in-game.

Who is this mysterious third hero?

By checking the linked timestamp in the Overwatch release date reveal trailer, it's possible to get a quick glimpse of a blue, ethereal fox that players are speculating belongs to this enigmatic third new hero.

We're not sure what gameplay purpose this fox will serve, or if it's even at all related to the third hero. However, if it is, it's possible that the fox can provide buffs to teammates, or debuffs to enemy heroes. 

Additionally, we see a group of heroes chase after the fox. Potentially, it could be guiding them to sneaky enemy players, or highlighting an optimal route to an objective. The hero's feet are glowing green, which may indicate that a speed buff is being applied, not unlike Lucio's Speed Boost. Whatever direction Blizzard is taking with this fox, and in turn the new hero, certainly has our interest piqued.

What else is in the Overwatch 2 roadmap?

As you can see in the above image, brand new Overwatch 2 heroes aren't the only feature coming on day one. The Overwatch 2 battle pass for Season 1 is arriving on the same day, making over 30 skins available to earn through progression, as well as one brand new Mythic skin.

Additionally, we'll be treated to six new maps and a brand new game mode from the get-go. Seasons will typically run for nine weeks, and the changeover will bring a fresh battle pass, alongside all-new heroes, skins, modes and more.

In 2023, Blizzard will also be adding a new PvE mode to Overwatch 2. This mode was planned for the original Overwatch initially, but has been pushed back to make the sequel a more fleshed-out experience for both hardcore and casual players.

There's a ton of other Overwatch 2 news for you to catch up on, including the removal of loot boxes, the Battle Pass roadmap, and more details on how the PvE will work alongside the PvP. 

• Overwatch 2 tier list: our list of the best heroes to play from our experience

Overwatch 2 battle pass details are finally here, as loot boxes are ditched in favor of a rotating strip of rewards players can earn through a much more streamlined progression system.

Overwatch 2 battle passes are being treated as seasonal content. After nine weeks, the current battle pass will be phased out for a new one. When it launches in early access on October 4 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S, the free-to-play game will enter Season 1 and have a battle pass ready to go on day one.

The Overwatch 2 battle pass isn't all that dissimilar to other popular free-to-play games' implementation of the reward structure. Like Fortnite and Call of Duty: Warzone, the battle pass has both free and premium tracks. The latter of which you'll need to pay real money to access.

At a glance, the battle pass features rewards that would otherwise have been a part of the first Overwatch's loot box system, with new cosmetic additions like gun charms too. Such rewards include character skins (with over 30 new ones coming with season 1), weapon charms, and voice lines.

Currently, though, there's no word as to whether previous seasons' battle passes will return at a later date. Loot boxes, however, have been scrapped for good. As such, there could be an element of FOMO at play if you didn't manage to fully complete a battle pass from any given season.

A bumper start for Overwatch 2?

By the looks of it, Overwatch 2 could have quite a feature-rich start when it launches in October. Three new heroes are joining the complete roster from the first game. These new Overwatch 2 characters are Sojourn, Junker Queen alongside a third mystery support hero.

Joining them are six new maps, an all-new mode and the aforementioned battle pass content. And while we've yet to receive pricing information for Overwatch 2's premium content, we like to imagine that the overall cost will be lower. 

That's due to the battle passes being a one-time purchase every nine weeks. As a result, players will need to play to progress and earn the rewards as they go, as opposed to potentially risking hard-earned cash on duplicates with the first game's loot box system.

And there's also been a revelation about how Overwatch 2 PvE will work and it may surprise you!

• Check out our list of the best free-to-play Steam games

Overwatch 2's PvP beta has ended, pushing players back into the void of Overwatch 1 for a while. However, developer Blizzard has teased a new event for June, meaning we shouldn't be waiting too long before we can hop back into the sequel. 

Now that it's over, the Overwatch 2 beta appears to have been a fairly big success, with the game reaching 1.5 million concurrent viewers on Twitch as part of a beta key giveaway. While numbers dropped off as time went on, it's clear there's interest in what Overwatch 2 is bringing to the table. 

However, with the beta closed, players are now wondering, what's next? Thankfully, the devs have given a date for when we will know more. 

In a post on Blizzard's website, the development team said: "We’ve been both humbled and inspired by the amount of interest and enthusiasm everyone has shown for Overwatch 2, and we can’t wait to share more with you about what comes next. Save the date for an Overwatch 2 Event on June 16!"

In an official Overwatch Tweet, it was elaborated that we'll learn what's coming in the "months ahead" during the event, suggesting we may get a longer-term view of how the beta periods will work.

What could be coming in Overwatch 2's second beta?

With the event announced, questions now turn to what's likely coming in the next beta phase. While nothing's been confirmed, there are a few things that we know about which weren't included in the first Overwatch 2 beta. 

It seems likely we'll get at least another map or two, and it seems like Rio De Janeiro is a prime candidate. The map was shown off in a 2021 PvP Livestream but was conspicuously absent from the first beta. The Escourt map seems likely to be included, too, and it's totally possible we'll see another, yet-to-be-announced map. 

I also hope we get a new hero to play with. While it's not obvious who'll be revealed next, there is speculation around supposed leaks that the long-awaited Junker Queen is on the way. Overwatch content creator Master Ian Gamer recently put out a video about the leaks, explaining that mounting evidence suggests we'll see the character soon. Junker Queen, as her name might suggest, is the Queen of Junkertown, and fans have speculated about her joining the playable roster since August 2017 when the Junkertown map came out. 

However, there are other potential characters like Mauga, Baptiste's ex-partner in Talon, who the development team has suggested will one day be a playable hero.

However, the feature many will be wishing for most, myself included, is some kind of competitive mode. While Overwatch 2 is fun, it's hard to get invested in it long term without a dedicated ranked experience, as Quick Play offers no incentives outside of the current match you're playing. 

In a developer blog for the beta, Blizzard spoke about ranked, explaining: "we’re planning some significant overhauls of our core ranked and competitive mode systems and those are not yet ready to test publicly at scale."

Will it be ready for the second phase? We hope so. Competitive gives players a great incentive to grind the game, and go beyond just messing around in quick play. 

Here's hoping the second Overwatch 2 beta is released not long after the presentation on June 16.  Overwatch 2 is building up some momentum after years of being dead, so here's hoping Blizzard can capitalize on it promptly. 

• Check out our take on the Overwatch 2 beta that has actually made the game fun again

If you're looking for tips, this Overwatch 2 tier list - compiled after many hours of play with all 33 heroes - is here to answer the call. Now available as a free-to-play experience, these tips are tried and very much tested.At first glance, it might seem that the biggest change from Overwatch is team sizes.

In Overwatch 2, teams have shrunk to 5v5 from 6v6. It may sound like a small difference, but this change has caused monumental knock-on effects. You'll have to field fewer Tanks than before - meaning you will have one less protector looking after you and your teammates. The change means that certain Overwatch 2 characters are excelling, whilst others see themselves struggling. 

To give you a headstart on how the meta has changed, we've played through hours of games with each of Overwatch 2's heroes to see how they fare in the new killing field. Of course, a skilled player could make any character shine - but if you need a bit of guidance on who's doing well right now, read on to find our current ranking of every character 

With the game now officially available, here are some top tips to get ahead as any character in Overwatch 2.

Overwatch 2 tier list

Overwatch 2 tier list: S-Tier

The S-Tier's reserved for the best of the best. These are the heroes that are hands down the best options in Overwatch 2 right now. If you want to win games, you'll probably have the most success with these heroes.

Best DPS (damage per second)

• Soldier 76

Best support:

• Lucio
• Moira

Lucio

Understandably, many of the best heroes in Overwatch 2 are the ones who are toughest to kill, especially if they can heal themselves and play well solo. That's where Lucio really stands apart: he can use his wallride and speed boost to get out of (and into) dangerous situations quickly, and using his passive heal, Speed Boost, and Sound Barrier ultimate he can lift and empower his team. 

Lucio's hard to kill, he has utility, can take on fights, and can heal his team. He can do it all right now. 

Soldier 76

Solider 76's hands down, the best damage per second hero in Overwatch 2 right now. His kit hasn’t changed since the original Overwatch, however, but with one fewer enemy tanks on the field most of the characters he'll face can be taken down in a few shots. He's even deadlier when you take into account the fact Blizzard has reduced the amount of damage every character's barrier can take. Now Soldier 76 can easily take out enemies from a safe distance. 

On top of that boost to Soldier 76's damage, he also has the ability to heal himself, meaning he can go on wide flanks and sustain some damage. He's a menace and an excellent choice if you want to get a lot of kills.

Moira

People will hate me for saying this, but not only is Moira top tier, “DPS Moira" is top tier.

A “DPS Moira” is a Moira who'll leave her team and, instead of healing, go and secure kills with her damaging orbs. With one less player on the field, kills are much more meaningful than in the original Overwatch, making kills more beneficial than babying your team. Her orbs make Moira one of the best duelists in the game, any player she encounters one on one is in for a tough fight. 

That doesn't mean you should forget your duties as a healer, Moira has massive potential as a healer. Just don't feel bad about leaning into a more aggressive style when the moment calls for it.

Overwatch 2 tier list: A-Tier

A-Tier heroes are great options. If you plan on using any of these heroes while playing Overwatch 2, you can have a great time. There's nothing wrong with an A-Tier hero, they're just not as powerful as the S-Tier characters in the current meta..

Best Tanks:

• D.VA
• Zarya

Best DPS (damage per second):

• Genji
• Tracer
• Sombra

Best support:

• Ana

D.VA

D.VA's a strong choice, her Defense Matrix, which blocks all incoming projectiles, now lasts for three seconds instead of two, so she can eat a lot of damage. She has the ability to both defend her supports or go aggressive and take space, both in front of her or vertically. Her versatility and ability to close distance are doing really well for her.

Genji

Genji could easily have found himself lower on this list, he's not been relevant to the meta in some time. In Overwatch 2 he received no changes, and with a global nerf to Ultimates, the key part of his kit, his Dragon Blade comes out less. It all spelled trouble for the ninja... 

How wrong we were. The shift to 5v5 means not just fewer characters in each game, but also fewer abilities being fired off by players, making a safe battlefield for Genji to navigate. Couple that with more vulnerable support characters and Genji's more deadly than ever.

Tracer

Tracer has seen a small nerf to her damage output but, as has often been the case in Overwatch history, she remains strong. She's particularly benefiting from supports having less cover from an off-tank and can run rings around most heroes. She doesn’t quite have the distanced damage of Solider 76 or Genji, but she's still lethal.

Ana

Ana's a powerful support. She can output a ton of healing and kill other players from range. Her Nano-Boost can save players about to die or set them up for devastating attacks. If you can hit your shots, she’s a strong option. 

That said, she's a little tricky. While she can heal from relative safety, with no second tank protecting her, she's very vulnerable to getting ambushed by mobile heroes like Winston, Genji, or Tracer. She has a get-out-of-jail card in her Sleep Dart, but that can be a tricky skill-shot to hit, especially when your life depends on it.

Sombra

Sombra's a little complicated to place on this tier list as her rework has changed her role on the battlefield. She's no longer a disabler and is now more of an opportunist. She's an absolute menace to supports, especially Zenyatta, and will have any isolated players constantly checking their back as she excels at killing lonely heroes. 

She's lost some use in coordinated teamplay, as her hack and EMP are worse in Overwatch 2 for coordinated assaults. That said, most teams aren’t coordinated, and this makes Sombra much more reasonable to play as a solo player.

For more info on how to play her, check out our in-depth Overwatch 2 Sombra guide. 

Zarya

Zarya's in great shape in Overwatch 2. With one less player, the more damage a team does, the quicker it will outpace the other team. Zarya’s pure damage output can be massive if she has a full charge on her weapon. She can also save herself or teammates who are about to die with her Bubbles. On top of that, she still boasts one of the best ultimates in the game in Graviton Surge.

If you can manage your cooldowns, you will overwhelm the enemy. That said, if you are caught out without a Bubble to protect yourself, Zarya won’t offer much protection for herself or her team.

Overwatch 2 tier list: B-Tier

B-Tier heroes are good picks. Especially if you are a specialist in these heroes, you can probably move many of them into the A-Tier, but they still have weaknesses that make them harder to recommend.

Best Tanks:

• Doomfist
• Reinhardt
• Winston

Best DPS (damage per second):

• Mei
• Cassidy
• Reaper
• Sojourn
• Widowmaker
• Ashe

Best support:

• Mercy
• Baptiste
• Brigitte

Doomfist

Doomfist's a fascinating tank character. His transition from DPS to this role is an interesting rework, and his mobility makes him an interesting pick, akin to both Winston and Wrecking Ball. If he gets going he can be a handful, and skilled players can dart him from one side of the battlefield to the other in the blink of an eye. 

He does suffer a little currently though as Doomfist's Power Block, which is key to his tanking and offensive utility is easily disrupted by Sombra hacks and Ana sleeps… or simply not shooting at him. He's great, but he feels very counterable right now. 

Reinhardt

Reinhardt's an awesome pick right now. Being able to throw two Fire Strikes is great, and his increased maneuverability makes him a formidable force on the battlefield. He's much like his current state in the original Overwatch but turned up an extra notch or so. If you play a rush style, he can run over opponents. 

However, he's hurting a little bit with the loss of an off-tank. Zarya and D.VA both enabled Reinhardt in different ways, all of which helped keep him alive. If Reinhardt finds himself out in the open with no shield, he's in trouble. 

Winston

This might be a bit speculative, but Winston seems like a hero with some untapped potential. Many think he's weak because, in the original Overwatch, he's hyper-dependent on an off-tank. However, his mobility and dive potential make him a real threat, especially to weaker supports. On top of that, he's also benefiting from a new ranged attack which gives him a way to do damage without committing to a leap.

It'll take some skill and good instincts to stay alive, but if you can get your head around him, there seems to be a lot of potential here.

Mei

Mei feels like somewhat of a sleeper pick right now, but she tends to be a real menace when she's picked in Versus. She no longer freezes enemies with her weapon, but her blast now slows and does more damage. If teams are playing close together, she can deal a lot of damage to multiple targets at once. Do not sleep on Mei. She can (frost)burn teams very quickly. 

Cassidy

Cassidy's a solid choice. Like Ashe and Solider, he benefits from the reduced shields and being able to hammer enemies at mid-range. He doesn’t have the self-heal of Solider 76 though and has seen a change that hurts his current loadout. 

A hit from Cassidy’s Flash Bang in the original Overwatch was essentially a death sentence, it was one of the few things you could use to halt a Reinhardt charge, too. Thanks to a nerf, if you get flashed in Overwatch 2 you now have a good chance of surviving. Cassidy really feels the pain of losing the stun.

Reaper

Reaper does a lot of damage and a lot of damage in Overwatch 2 is a lot more damage than in the original Overwatch. Reaper is exceptionally good at killing heroes quickly, particularly tanks. Played well, Reaper can make teams crumble.

The real challenge is closing the distance between yourself and your enemy. If Reaper comes up against a good mid or long range hero, you're in real trouble. 

Sojourn

Sojourn came in hot, and it’s clear that she has some massive potential. She can build her Railgun up from a distance and take down enemies in one shot. Her mobility also makes her a powerful pick.

However, with Solider 76 filling the same role, and filling it better, Sojourn feels a little lost in the pack. Perfectly viable if you’d like to use her, but you might just be better off with Soldier. 

For the best tips on how to master this new hero, check out our Overwatch 2 Sojourn guide.

Widowmaker

Widowmaker's always been a glass cannon, and that's true in Overwatch 2. Thanks to the reduced shields, if your aim's up to the task then no one on the enemy team is safe. It’s easier than ever to click heads and get kills as the sniper.

On the other side, with one fewer tanks on the field, she has less protection from flanking heroes. She's more vulnerable than ever, even with a 25hp buff. No other hero lives by the rule ‘get kills or be killed’ more than Widow. It’s a confidence pick, and if you are up to the task, you will be rewarded. If not, you will fall quickly. 

Baptiste

Baptiste benefits nicely from the reduced number of tanks, as he has to heal less and can shoot with fewer obstacles in the way, but he remains in a similar spot to the original Overwatch. 

However, the main issue is that his Immortality Field is much less useful. In the original game, Baptiste would place the generator and other players would shield it, the field would protect them and they would protect the field. With fewer tanks and fewer shields, there aren't as many characters protecting the Immortality Field generator and it's much easier for the enemy to destroy it before Baptiste's allies can feel the benefit.

Brigitte

Brigitte losing her stun could have ruined her, it was probably the most powerful aspect of her kit, but that loss is countered by the increased range on her Shield Bash, giving her a boost to maneuverability. Her healing can be immense too and her Ultimate remains strong. 

With the removal of a potential second shield tank, Brigitte's also the only way to get a second shield on the field of play. This really helps her protect herself, something most supports struggle with right now.

Mercy

Mercy has always been a tricky hero demanding a lot of skill to play her well, and that remains true in Overwatch 2. The key to Mercy is to remain out of danger and evasive, while giving healing and boosting the right players at the right time.

Also, Resurrections are now so much more important with one less player on the field. That said, they are equally hard to pull off with less protection and invisible Sombras waiting in the wings to interrupt you.

Ashe

Ashe really benefits from fewer shields on the field and her ability to deal damage at long distances.

However, while she's able to operate at a greater range than Soldier 76, she doesn't deal the damage of a sniper, like Widowmaker, so to get kills at that distance you'll need to have the aim to land multiple shots on a target. She can still excel if you're great with her, but there are easier characters to pick.

Overwatch 2 tier list: C-Tier

C-Tier heroes can still be good (even great) picks if you are especially skilled with them. That said, if you're just picking these heroes up at random, you might struggle.

Best Tanks:

• Orisa
• Sigma

Best DPS (damage per second):

• Bastion
• Echo
• Hanzo
• Pharah
• Symmetra
• Torbjorn

Best Support:

• Zenyatta

Orisa

Orisa’s rework is awesome and has made her one of the most fun tanks in Overwatch 2.

However, she's struggling to find a place in the game as, while she can easily get in the faces of enemy tanks and more stationary heroes, more mobile, ranged characters can tear her apart from a distance. Thanks to her Fortify ability she can mitigate a lot of damage, but it doesn't feel like an effective counter.

Sigma

Sigma has consistently been top-tier since his arrival in Overwatch 1. He is a tank that can do everything, with a mobile shield, he can eat incoming projectiles and has a great ultimate. That said, his lack of mobility and his preferred 'off-tank' role make him a weird fit as a solo tank in Overwatch 2. The game feels like it's currently too open and too fast for Sigma to truly keep up.

There is a lingering feeling that he has a lot of unrealized potential and that his optimal playstyle hasn't been worked out yet, but for now, he feels a little lost.

Bastion

Bastion's rework is interesting and does make him a more complex hero. He now has some mobility while in Turret Form, but it's on a timer meaning low-ranked games won't be terrorized by a Bastion just sitting in one place and mowing down uncoordinated teams.

That said, his new ultimate is not very good, and his primary fire feels a little weak. He certainly has some utility and can surprise opponents, but it feels like many other heroes do what he does, just better. 

Echo

Echo still has massive potential to do lots of damage, however, ranged heroes are strong right now, meaning it’s hard to survive in the air. She also got a nerf where she can only use her Ultimate to replicate a hero up to 300hp, which hurts her a lot. Even if she becomes a Tank now, she is severely capped in what she can do due to the smaller health pool.

Hanzo

Hanzo can certainly see traction and with less shields around, can get more of those random spam headshots he’s so good at. However, he really excels at busting shields, of which there are less of, and unless he can get a stray headshot, he is susceptible to being flanked. 

Pharah

Pharah is largely unchanged, but she’s a tricky pick right now. This boils down to her best partner, Mercy, being less favored and ranged heroes being good. That said, she’s still Pharah and lower-level players will always struggle to shoot her.

Symmetra

Symmetra has always been a bit of a sleeper pick, often with one of the highest win rates across all play. In Overwatch 2, the annoying oppressiveness of her turrets and Ultimate remain, however, the loss of a second tank and fewer shields mean it’s much harder to get her beam fully powered.

Torbjorn

Torbjorn is best when he can great a crossfire with his own turret, which he can still do. However, his turret is less likely to be protected now and easier to get at. He can still be a menace if he can keep his turret alive, but that coupled with the loss of 2 checkpoint maps where he could be more defense-minded, make him less viable.

Zenyatta

Zenyatta’s pluses could make him an S-tier hero. His discord orb can devastate enemies when paired with a DPS who can capitalize, like Sombra. 

However, he is also probably the least survivable hero in Overwatch right now. Equally, Sombra is a hard counter to him, and he has close to no options for protecting himself (besides his new kick which pushes enemies away) or getting out of trouble if a flanker comes for him. If protected, he can do great things, but that is a concerted team effort.

Overwatch 2 Tier List: D-Tier

D-Tier heroes are heroes that had a rough go of it in the beta. They're not unplayable and in the right hands, it's possible to get some production. If the beta was anything to go by, they just aren't favorable picks and could use a little buff to get them in a better spot. 

Best Tanks:

• Wrecking Ball
• Roadhog

Best DPS (damage per second):

• Junkrat

Wrecking Ball

Wrecking Ball is not in a great spot. He really struggles without an anchor Tank partner like Sigma, and with his only way of protecting his team being disrupting the enemy's positioning, his teammates will often find themselves out in the open.

Junkrat

Junkrat is just… he’s kind of bad. His ultimate is good, though you have to be more sneaky with it with less protection around. Junkrat always excelled on maps that had tough chokes like the kind in Assualt maps, which are no longer in the game. He can do damage if you can get close to vulnerable characters, but good luck doing that with the amount of ranged damage flying around.

Roadhog

Roadhog is lost in the current tank line-up. He was always best as a flanking tank who could secure one-off kills with his hook. In Overwatch 2, if your only tank is flanking, you're not going to be getting a lot of protection. 

He can take some punishment, but besides getting some frontline kills, it’s hard to see where he fits in in Overwatch 2. He feels primed for a rework.

• Having fun with Overwatch 2? Check out our list of the best FPS games.

In a developer blog, the Overwatch 2 developers have offered up some stats that suggest that their recent tweaks to support have helped even out the game’s queue problems.

In the post, which took a deep dive into Supports and the team’s consideration for the role, stats were produced to show that queue times are getting better. That's good too because playing Damage and Tank heroes in Overwatch 2 has seen queues of up to 10 minutes.

The post reads: “Queue times across the board have improved significantly since last week’s patch. While correlation might not always equal causation, we're optimistic that support improvements had a lot to do with it.”

“Following Thursday’s update, players on average experienced 48% less time spent waiting for a match, gradually leveling off at around 22% improvement over the weekend.”

The post also added that Overwatch 2 is now experiencing faster queue times than Overwatch. 

The last update for the game helped beef up supports, most notably Zenyatta who got a Leonidas kick, meaning he can push enemies away from him.

Support is on the way

However, despite the changes, and the increased popularity, Supports are still having a tough time in the 5v5 environment, especially in higher ranked games. The blog added: “Support heroes starting at high Diamond and above saw the highest jump in return visits to the spawn room. At these ranks, the increased pressure of a more skilled tank or damage player on the backlines has seemingly become too much for even high SR support players to handle effectively as compared with the live game."

To this, the development team has committed to adding more “power and tools” to the role, and said, “the role remains our highest adjustment priority.” A couple notes were shared on what they are thinking including increasing Moira’s utility at the cost of her raw healing, and Mercy is getting a way to do her “super jump” more consistently. 

However, the most encouraging thing about this update is seeing sustained communication from the Overwatch team. After years of being left in the dark, getting weekly updates about the team’s thinking and its current considerations is a breath of fresh air. Hopefully, it continues, because even if new content or patches for the game aren’t happening every week, it reminds the community that the game is still being actively worked on and that their discussions and comments are being heard.

• Waiting for a new shooter to play? Check out our list of the best FPS games you can play.

Overwatch 2's PvP beta is more like an update than a sequel, and the name is setting up fans for a disappointment. 

The reception to the Overwatch 2 beta has been fascinating to track over the last week. The game exploded on Twitch, peaking at a staggering 1.5 million concurrent viewers, boosted by a promotion that gave players access to the beta for watching four hours of streams. Content creators were excited, there were a ton of players, and Overwatch was back after two years without content. 

A week later, the dust has settled, and sentiment has started to cement into a more considered position after the initial burst of hype. Interestingly though, the reception seems wildly divided. And even more interestingly, that divide seems to exist between two different groups of players: the engaged audience, and the returning and casual audience.

In my report on the Overwatch 2 beta titled, 'Overwatch 2 makes Overwatch fun again', I argued that despite Overwatch 2 looking a lot like its predecessor, it was a massively needed reset due to how cluttered, and stun-heavy the battlefield had gotten in the original game. 

This is a sentiment that's been echoed by other Overwatch content creators too. In a Your Overwatch video titled 'Overwatch 2 Isn't Overwatch Anymore', a returning host – who had been put off Overwatch in its last few years due to its direction – says that Overwatch 2 has pulled him back in due to its refocus on being a shooter. 

But on the flipside, Overwatch 2 hasn't been working for a lot of people too. For returning or casual players, there seems to be a general bemusement as to what the fuss is about. 

This is perhaps best exemplified in a video by popular YouTuber videogamedunkey titled ‘Overwatch 2 a Pathetic Preview’, which has been viewed 3.6 million times. In it, he argues the game uses the same skins, a lot of the same maps, and only has one new hero. He says, “you can never escape the feeling that you are still just playing Overwatch 1.” He also jokes that the game isn’t even Overwatch 1.5, but rather Overwatch 1.1. 

And the reality is he’s not wrong, but neither are the enthusiastic audience and creators. Both sentiments remain true.

2 Confusing

The ‘2’ in Overwatch 2 has always felt like a weird fit. Live service games are often iterated upon over time, slowly refreshing themselves with constant seasons. That content allows them to survive for years – potentially even decades – past their initial release.

Instead, Overwatch opted to go down the sequel route. As a result, there's been no fresh content for two years. Players have had only having skins and patches to keep them satisfied. This saw complaints spring up as the nature of the game stagnated to one full of bloat, shields, stuns, and more. 

The Overwatch 2 beta is a commitment to answering those complaints. For those who have continued to play, and saw that stagnation up close, this is a refreshing hit and a promise from the developers that it's righting the Overwatch ship. The series feels like it has a clear, positive vision for the future.

However, slapping the 2 on the title also sets expectations. It says 'this is a sequel' – so you should expect everything sequels are. Mainly, all new content, using the trapping of what came before and making it newer, shinier, and fundamentally different. Overwatch 2 – at least where PvP is concerned – is not that. 

In terms of first impressions, if you’ve not been following what this beta is and its goals, the ‘new’ content in Overwatch 2 is lacking. There are barely any ‘back of the box’ features included here. It’s fair for players to expect to see Overwatch 2 farther along than it is.

The Path to Overwatch 2

Overwatch 2 looks to be following a similar path to the Overwatch 1 beta, which ran for extended periods – the first from October 27, 2015, to January 21, 2016, before a second ran from February 9, and finally closed on May 9. 

Blizzard has expressed that there will be multiple betas for Overwatch 2, meaning that when the current build ends on May 17, a second should be close behind with more heroes, maps, and improvements. In marketing terms, Overwatch 2 is functioning almost like an early access model.

At least where the PvP is concerned, the title is aiming to be iterative, rather than something entirely new. Some have complained that the Overwatch 2 beta feels like an ‘update for Overwatch 1’ – which it is. Overwatch 1 owners will get Overwatch 2 PvP free, as it will replace the old game.

The real sequel content will come when the supposedly extensive PvE mode, and the new heroes and maps are added. 

That said, this confusion is a mistake on Blizzard's part. It’s perfectly understandable that players not familiar with Overwatch 1's beta – or the impact of changes like the move from 6v6 to 5v5 – would find this underwhelming. Again, this is Overwatch 2. This is supposed to be all new. 

Videogamedunkey’s point about Overwatch 2 feeling like Overwatch 1.1,  while intended as a joke, is actually a good way of looking at it. Overwatch 2 is the end goal of this beta period. The game is at the start of its journey and it will likely change drastically, as new maps, heroes, and radical balance changes are implemented. 

It’s going to be changing fast, and will likely be pretty volatile in terms of stability. However, the future path is being established, and Blizzard, despite the confusion around what Overwatch 2 is, has been both communicating and acting upon community feedback very quickly thus far. 

However, a feeling lingers that this confusion could be avoided if this was championed as a huge PvP update, rather than having the expectation of a sequel swinging over the game's neck.  

• Waiting for a new shooter to play? Check out our list of the best FPS games you can play.

Blizzard has released a new patch for the Overwatch 2 beta, nerfing strong characters and buffing weaker ones. On top of that, Zenyatta has gotten a new, experimental ability. 

In the patch, which is now live, a multitude of changes and fixes have been made to try and shake up the current Overwatch 2 beta. The most drastic change is almost certainly coming to Zenyatta, who is getting a whole new ability. 

He now has a new passive, which should make him a little harder to get close to, giving him much-needed survivability. His new passive, ‘Snap Kick’, increases his melee damage by 50% and significantly increases its knockback. This allows him to get enemies out of his face, and a more powerful melee makes him particularly dangerous to dive characters like Tracer who will now fear getting too close. 

In the patch notes, the developers explained: “Zenyatta has trouble fighting at close range, so he was at a disadvantage if an enemy flanked or jumped on top of him. His new passive, Snap Kick, will help him create space and put enemies at his fighting range.”

“We think this new passive will be a fun adjustment to his kit, but we also want this change to acknowledge community concerns. We understand 5v5 has made support heroes feel more vulnerable, and we wanted to give Zenyatta tools to help create space between him and enemies.”

On top of this, Zenyatta’s base shields are increased from 150 to 175 to give him more health. 

Balance changes and bug fixes

Elsewhere, Wrecking Ball is returning from a short stint out of Overwatch 2 due to his ability to kick out every other player in the game. On top of that, he returns with a buff, increasing his knockback by 36% which should allow him to displace the enemy team more. 

Soldier 76, arguably the best Damage hero in the game, is seeing pretty big nerfs, too, in an effort to bring him back in line with the rest of the roster. His bullets now do 18 damage rather than 20 and his Sprint has seen a 10% speed decrease. 

He has gotten a little help in the form of buffs to his Ultimate, however. Tactical Visor now allows for critical hits and no longer removes damage falloff from his Heavy Pulse Rifle.

There are also quality of life changes, such as fixes to the kill feed not showing the correct information or health packs missing timers.

While this is just a balancing patch for the beta, it's exciting to see a patch just a week after the beta’s launch. Blizzard’s cadence of communications and action thus far is encouraging, especially with two years of near radio silence just past us. If this level of engagement continues, players will certainly feel their concerns are being heard.

2.0.8.2 Tech Beta 1 Patch Notes

Here's a full list of the patch notes:

BUG FIXES

General

Fixed a bug where the "Thank you for reporting" message would not clear

Fixed a bug where names in the friends list would appear alphabetically regardless of game status

Fixed a bug where heroes that killed themselves would show incorrectly in the kill feed

Fixed a bug where health packs would sometimes be missing timers

Fixed a bug where Reaper would sometimes be auto selected on hero select

Fixed a bug where the control progress bar would sometimes be the wrong color

Made several adjustments to sound volume and mix

Fixed several crashes

Heroes

Wrecking Ball 

Fixed a bug where Wrecking Ball could crash other players

Doomfist 

Fixed a bug where Melee attacks would not deal damage to Doomfist during Power Block

Roadhog 

Fixed a bug where Roadhog's hook cooldown would start on return instead of cast

Soldier 76 

Fixed a bug where Soldier's Heavy Pulse Rifle might snap awkwardly during Tactical Visor

Fixed a bug when Soldier 76 would have a slanted UI when wearing his Ugly Sweater skin

Symmetra

Fixed a bug where shooting Symmetra's turrets into the horizon would cause turrets to be unusable

Hanzo

Fixed a bug where Hanzo's White Wolf skin would appear invisible

Brigitte

Fixed a bug where Brigitte's shield did not block damage from above

Ana

Fixed a bug where using Nano Boost on Doomfist would overwrite his damage reduction

Lucio

Fixed a bug where Sonic Amplifier could jam and not reload

Maps

Midtown

Adjusted some geometry on top of the train to prevent players from staying there indefinitely

Colosseo

Adjusted some geometry that could be abused by players

HEROES

DAMAGE

Sojourn

Railgun Alt Fire

Projectile width increased from 0.05m to 0.1m

Power Slide

Cooldown reduced from 7 to 6 seconds

Dev Comment:

We saw a lot of players at varying skill levels struggling to land shots with her Alt Fire, so we are making the projectile width wider.

Sojourn is all about mobility, and we wanted her to move around the maps more freely. We think this will help increase her effectiveness and make her even more fun to play.

Soldier: 76

Heavy Pulse Rifle

Damage reduced from 20 to 18

Sprint

Movement speed reduced from 50 to 40%

Tactical Visor

Now allows for critical hits, if a shot would have been a critical hit without it running

No longer removes damage falloff from his Heavy Pulse Rifle

Dev Comment:

We believe Soldier 76 was over tuned during the first week of the PvP beta. He was extremely mobile with the new damage passive that increases movement speed by 10%. We brought his Sprint ability down a bit with the new passive in mind.

Soldier 76 has always been a high damage output hero, but we are seeing fewer counters to him with one less tank per team. We lowered the damage of his Heavy Pulse Rifle to fit with 5v5.

We wanted to make Tactical Visor a more interesting ultimate for players who want to push their aim skills through the ability. The point of this change isn’t purely to buff him or counterbalance the nerfs. We wanted to make Soldier 76 more fun to play while rewarding mechanical skill.

Sombra

Stealth

Movement speed reduced from 65 to 50%

Dev Comment:

After a week of testing the new damage passive, we decided to balance Sombra’s Stealth speed with the 10% movement speed increase in mind.

TANK

Roadhog

Whole Hog

This ability has changed from a ‘Channeled’ ultimate (e.g. Pharah, Reaper, Cassidy), into a ‘Transform’ ultimate (e.g. Soldier: 76, Genji, Winston). This is what that means:

The weapon no longer automatically fires, and you must press Primary Fire to use the ultimate

You can use normal abilities during Whole Hog without canceling the ultimate

Stuns will no longer cancel the ultimate

Dev Comment:

We saw Roadhog underperforming, so we are making his ultimate more interesting, effective, and fun. Roadhog was dying frequently while using Whole Hog, so we are trying to give him more options and flexibility in his ult.

Winston

Tesla Cannon

Secondary fire ammo cost reduced from 20 to 12

Dev Comment:

This change to Winston's secondary fire enables him to use it more often without sacrificing as much of his primary fire. We want his secondary fire to feel less restrictive to use and more fluid like his kit.

Wrecking Ball

Roll

Knockback increased by 36%

Dev Comment:

We are reverting Roll’s knockback to the original value from when Wrecking Ball was launched. We wanted to give Wrecking Ball a more unique role as a dive tank that can split up enemy teams. We made this change with the Tank passive of 30% knockback resistance in mind.

Zarya

Graviton Surge

Duration reduced from 4 to 3.5 seconds

Dev Comment:

There are less counters to Graviton Surge with one less tank per team and phase effects no longer escaping Zarya’s ultimate. We observed the ultimate over-performing, so this change brings it in line with 5v5 gameplay.

SUPPORT

Lucio

Crossfade

Self-healing penalty increased from 30% to 60%

Dev Comment:

Lucio had incredible survivability with Crossfade stacked with the new support role passive, so we reduced the amount it heals himself.

Baptiste

Biotic Launcher

Healing ammo increased from 10 to 13

Dev Comment:

Baptist is under-performing because teams aren’t playing as grouped up right now. Increasing his healing ammo will let him heal more targets who aren’t necessarily grouped up.

Ana

Biotic Rifle

Ammo increased from 12 to 15

Biotic Grenade

Duration reduced from 4 to 3 seconds

Dev Comment:

Ana’s Biotic Grenade was too effective with one less tank and more infrequent barriers, so we are reducing the duration of the ability. We also saw Ana using her grenade less frequently on herself because of the new support passive ability. To help compensate for her grenade, we wanted to give her power back through increasing her Biotic Rifle’s ammo.

Zenyatta

Base shields increased from 150 to 175

New Passive Added: Snap Kick

This passive increases Quick melee damage by 50% and significantly increases its knockback

Dev Comment:

Zenyatta has trouble fighting at close range, so he was at a disadvantage if an enemy flanked or jumped on top of him. His new passive, Snap Kick, will help him create space and put enemies at his fighting range.

We think this new passive will be a fun adjustment to his kit, but we also want this change to acknowledge community concerns. We understand 5v5 has made support heroes feel more vulnerable, and we wanted to give Zenyatta tools to help create space between him and enemies.

Brigitte

Shield Bash

Knockback doubled

Dev Comment:

It’s difficult to tell when Brigitte lands a Shield Bash because the impact of that ability was not easily noticeable. This is a subtle change that will make the ability feel more satisfying.

• Overwatch 2 makes Overwatch fun again: here's our early impressions of the game!

The Overwatch 2 beta has given us a look at the long-awaited shooter and… at first, it doesn’t seem like much has changed. It includes a lot of the same maps, there’s one new character and a new mode. It almost appears like a small update except for the move from 6v6 teams to 5v5.

Now, this is only a beta and it doesn’t include everything coming in the full game. There will be more new maps, characters, and graphical upgrades, as well as an extensive PvE mode – something completely absent from the original game. But, it can still be a letdown at first glance. 

That is until you play it for yourself.

I’ve played Overwatch for over 1500 hours and there's nothing else quite like it. It’s an unusual marriage of MOBA and first-person shooter; if you imagine a line with Call of Duty on one side and Dota 2 on the other, Overwatch exists somewhere in the middle. While the player perspective is in the first person, with guns and melee weapons, many of the abilities and ultimates are ripped from popular hero arena games. Overwatch has always walked a complicated tight rope between the two.

Decluttering the battlefield

Overwatch 2 is a hard reset of the core game, putting the focus back on brawling alongside your team. In the Overwatch 2 beta, it's about getting into the thick of the action, having fun, and trying to kill the other team. 

Blizzard didn’t achieve this with big new features, but with a set of clever tweaks. It’s slowed Ultimate recharge rates, which has the knock-on effect of players not using them against each other in complex rock, paper, scissor duels. Before it would be common to coordinate with your team to build a stack of Ultimates to combo, but now, it takes so long to build them up, a team would be wasting time by doing that. Characters like Brigitte and Mei have also lost their slows and stuns, Orisa’s shield is gone, and the smaller teams mean there are fewer tanks in each game. All of these factors make Overwatch 2 a cleaner game, stripping it of elements that had become annoying chores in the original. 

To see how chaotic Overwatch had become, check out this 2019 clip (though, be wary if you suffer from epilepsy): 

Overwatch 2 has lost some of the team synergies, where you would see a cascade of Ultimates and abilities on show but the payoff is that it's resurfaced the more Call of Duty shooter side of Overwatch, where you can excel as an individual. Overwatch 2 is still a team game with set roles but there’s no longer a sense a match is unwinnable because you're saddled with a bad team. And, now that teams are smaller, kills are more impactful and you can personally affect fights more.  If you go on a flank as Soldier 76 and get two kills, for instance, your team has a significant advantage in the fight.

While some players will lament the loss of the unique teamwork Overwatch boasted, I feel empowered to go out and win games on my own. 

Strangely, even with fewer players on the field, matches are more frantic. Getting charged down by a speed-boosted Orisa spinning her new spear in your face is like facing down a speeding bull, especially as you know there are fewer teammates available to support you. There’s an energy to games that's been missing for years. I’m no longer shooting ineffectually at shields or spending idle seconds stunned, I’m swinging hammers, shooting players, and getting into my enemies’ faces. That is all backed up by impressive audio and visual overhauls that add tremendous depth to the experience.

Overwatch is going the right way

By 2022, Overwatch felt like it had been ‘figured out’: there were agreed rules on when you should use something, or when to wait. It was hard to make plays on your own, and games felt stagnant and predictable.

Overwatch 2 is more direct and less frustrating. Blizzard’s dragging the game away from the Dota 2 side of things and closer to modern shooters. It’s about trying to find kills, rather than two teams posturing at each other until a sufficient amount of abilities have been used up before actually starting the fight. 

While I’ll miss aspects of the focus on team synergy, Overwatch 2 is more accessible and more fun. The move to 5v5 is absolutely the right direction for the series, and Overwatch hasn’t felt this good in years. 

• Looking for more shooters? Here is out list of the best FPS games

The Overwatch 2 beta continues to flex its muscles on Twitch, hitting a staggering new peak for the game. 

Overwatch 2's beta crushed its previous record (set yesterday around 500k viewers) with the new high this afternoon shattering 1M for the first time. Leaving its own records in the dust isn't a huge surprise. While Overwatch has maintained a dedicated playerbase despite two years without much content, it's not exactly setting the gaming world alight. Even more important to the breakneck pace is the fact that you can earn access to the Overwatch 2 beta by watching enough of certain streamers.

Other big fish in the pond, like Valorant, have come to fill the hole left by Overwatch, and so Blizzard is putting it in front of as many peoples faces as possible. By creating an opportunity to access the Overwatch 2 beta by viewing streams, it's got a shot at creating a temporarily captive audience to give a second (or first) look.

The list of Twitch streamers involved in the promotion includes former Overwatch pros A_Seagull and xQc who are currently pulling in over 100k viewers each. As it snowballs, other big variety streamers will jump in, and pull their own audiences along for the ride.

The beta will be around for a while yet, only ending on May 17, so Overwatch 2 will have a chance to break its own records again. The main question is: how much will the viewership fall off after the beta access program ends?

It's difficult to imagine that these huge numbers will continue, but they won't disappear either. With the surge in interest, streamers will continue to play, and viewers will pick up on that. 

Of course, Warzone also has a shot to steal a fair amount of Overwatch 2's thunder. Warzone season 3 was unleashed today – just a day after the Overwatch 2 beta, and it's viewercount is on the rise. 

My bets are on Overwatch 2 to win the dust-up between the two, but time will tell. 

• If Blizzard still has your fancy, check out what's coming with the new World of Warcraft: Dragonflight expansion.

The Overwatch 2 beta is finally here and players can, at last, get a taste of how the hero shooter plays. With such a long gap between announcement and release, as well as a two-year pause on updates to the original Overwatch, there's been an understandable drop in player numbers and viewers on Twitch. It's fallen behind competitors, such as Valorant. The question is, will the sequel bring that audience back?

If the first day of the Overwatch 2 beta is anything to go by, the answer is a resounding "Yes". At one point last night, Overwatch was the most viewed category on Twitch. It peaked at a staggering 510,000 concurrent viewers, the most it's ever had. It’s looking likely it'll peak even higher today. Can we believe the numbers, though?

In order to reach eyes, Blizzard is making use of a Twitch Drop program to get players watching. Invites to the Overwatch 2 beta were limited on launch day, and if you didn’t get picked then, the only guaranteed way to access the beta is to watch four hours of Twitch streamers between 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/6 PM BST and 6:00PM PT/9 PM PT/2 AM BST today. (For more information on how this works, check out our Overwatch 2 beta sign-up guide.) Naturally, this means there'll be a huge boost to the number of viewers on Twitch, as players look to get into the beta log on to watch streams and get themselves an invite. 

On top of that, some of the biggest streamers on Twitch are taking part in the Drop promotion, including Pokimane and XQC (who famously was part of the Overwatch League). This'll mean that their already massive audiences, who are accustomed to more variety, will be tuned in to watch the Overwatch 2 beta. 

Inflated hype has worked in the past

Of course, this will result in entirely inflated numbers for Overwatch 2’s launch, which is why you will see it flying up the most viewed leaderboards. If you only want access to the beta, all you need to do is join a stream, put it on in the background, and wait until you get beta access. Blizzard is essentially cheating the system to get Overwatch 2 to the top of Twitch, whether people are watching streams or not. 

Blizzard didn’t invent this strategy. It's been used by several of its competitors; perhaps most successfully by Riot Games when it launched the Valorant beta, which reached a staggering 1.7 million concurrent viewers (according to SulleyGnome). Players would watch streamers play Valorant and, eventually, they’d be given access to the beta; almost exactly in the same way Overwatch is operating.   

It’s easy to look on Twitch Drops as some kind of trick, but it’s just a marketing tool and doesn’t indicate a game will be a flash in the pan. While Valorant’s viewer numbers aren’t at the same high as its launch, it’s still the third most-viewed video game on Twitch and achieved a healthy 157k peak concurrent viewers last month. Blizzard is gunning for the same success with Overwatch 2.

For the Twitch Drop strategy to work, Overwatch 2 still has to be good. For the game to remain a superpower in the streaming space, it’ll need to retain streamers and more importantly, everyday gamers. 

While Blizzard is cheating the system here, having that many eyes on Overwatch 2 should make the audience stick. Sure, it’s inflated hype, but that’s better than none. Speaking as a devoted Overwatch player, it’s wonderful to see the game so alive again after all these years.

• If you're enjoying Overwatch, why not check out our best FPS games list?

Halo Infinite’s multiplayer was originally prototyped as a hero shooter that included PvP and PvE features, before the idea was scrapped in favor of the game’s current online build.

That’s according to Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier, who confirmed on Reddit that developer 343 Industries was at one point working on multiple prototype builds for Halo Infinite that included hero shooter features.

His comments were made in response to YouTuber Chris Ray Gun, who suggested on Twitter that the studio had originally developed Halo Infinite’s multiplayer to be similar to Overwatch, before pivoting to the build that made its way to the final game.

“This was actually cut from my article late last year - yes, 343 spent a while prototyping a hero-based system,” Schreier said.

“I don't remember exactly when they switched to the current version… but I can confirm that they were working on various hero-based prototypes. In fact, I think there were both PvP and PvE prototypes built.”

Schreier said Chris Ray Gun’s original tweet, which claims 343 Industries spent half the game’s development time prototyping the hero shooter build before eventually scrapping it, is “exaggerated to the point where it's mostly false”. 

That’s corroborated by Twitter user Robeytech (Justin Robey) – who is credited as senior insights project manager on Halo Infinite, and said the hero shooter prototypes were among several design ideas that never made it into full release.

“We prototyped a bunch of stuff as we worked on the game which is never wasted time,” they said. “But the way it’s being spun [by Chris Ray Gun] is super inaccurate. It was in the time allotted for the game to go through those design cycles.

“It’s how you innovate and try new ideas. You can’t know it’s good until you try it,” they continued.

Change of plans

The idea that 343 Industries had tested the waters of a Halo hero shooter gives us an interesting look behind the curtain. Halo Infinite’s multiplayer could have been a very different beast if it followed in the footsteps of Overwatch and Valorant, setting itself up as an Overwatch 2 competitor rather than carving out a space among traditional shooters and Halo fans.

As Robey highlights, it's par for the course for development studios to test lots of design ideas that never end up in the final game. Prototyping several builds allows developers to try out a range of gameplay concepts, iterate upon them, and fine-tune them without sinking so many resources into a single one that the wider development schedule suffers from lost resources.

Halo Infinite’s development cycle hasn’t been smooth, though. The game was delayed for a year after its first gameplay reveal was poorly received by audiences, large gameplay features like campaign co-op and Forge mode are yet to be rolled out, and players have voiced their disappointment that staple Halo game modes – including King of the Hill – weren't included in the game’s multiplayer at launch.

Some of those concerns will likely be alleviated later next month when Halo Infinite’s second season – Lone Wolves – releases. It will introduce a batch of new maps, a new battle pass system, and the Last Spartan Standing mode, which looks similar to a battle royale.

• Catch up on Halo Infinite Season 1 – here's everything you need to know

Images of early concept Overwatch 2 menus have been posted by a UI artist, giving some hints towards possible new features coming to the game. 

Jayson Kirby, who worked on Overwatch between 2017 and 2020, has posted early concepts of the user experience for the sequel on his Artstation page. It shows off the minimalized UI that has been seen in previous Overwatch 2 gameplay reveals, making for a very cohesive look.

However, Kirby’s work also shows some insight into the possible additions coming to Overwatch 2. Most notable is the inclusion of a battle pass in the menus, which is not currently a feature of the Overwatch experience. 

In the current version, the only real reward for continued play, past your character border and climbing the competitive ladder, are loot boxes that you receive when you level up.

A battle pass would offer a new way for players to upgrade and get rewards from continued play. Things like the Fortnite Battle Pass have become staples for each new season of content of Epic's battle royale, and have proven immensely popular.

Interestingly, battle passes are generally used in games that have a free-to-play element. It’s speculative, but this could suggest that Overwatch 2 may have some kind of broken-off section, like PvP, that is free. 

In another UI example on the artist's page, there's an animation that shows a card for a guild that supports up to 520 players. This seems like it would be used as a way for like-minded players to find and play with each other. 

Of course, all of these were worked on years ago, and Kirby hasn’t been on the project since 2020. It’s very likely the final design of the menus and the features have changed drastically since then. None of this should be considered a lock for the final product. 

At the very least though, it shows that these concepts were at some point considered by Blizzard. Whether they make it into the final release is impossible to say. It seems unlikely a battle pass will come with the Overwatch 2 beta, which lands later this month, but with how the game is getting segmented from its PvP and its PvE, how all this works together, in the end, is anyone's guess. 

• Overwatch 2's beta is on the way. Here's how to signup!

Activision Blizzard is allowing you to change your Battle.net username for free up until November 5, 2021.

Blizzard’s announcement comes after changing the name of its fan-favorite Overwatch character ‘Logan McCree’ to ‘Cole Cassidy’ recently, which was previously named after lead level designer Jesse McCree who has recently departed the company after a lawsuit by the state of California.

The Overwatch developer is allowing users one free Battle.net name change,  applicable to anyone who doesn’t currently have a free moniker switch available.

(Users are allowed one free username alteration when the account is created, although it's unclear if this adds another 'credit' before the deadline).

After players use their free battle tag name change, all future changes will cost $10.

Microsoft has been allowing Xbox users to change their usernames for years, but, like this announcement from Activision Blizzard, you can only change it once without incurring a fee.

Battle.net users can request a new handle by applying through this form after you’ll receive a notification once your request has been processed. However, Blizzard has said it may take up to four weeks for your request to process.

Analysis: free name changes are warmly welcomed

This will be a welcome surprise for Battle.net users who haven’t changed their username in years. Overwatch 2 is on the horizon and rather than keeping the username you made for World of Warcraft in 2009, maybe it’s time for a change, and it’ll probably save you from some embarrassment.

When Sony finally let users change their usernames in 2019, it allowed many users (ourselves included) to finally change embarrassing usernames made years ago.

Being J-KIDD97 for ten-plus years was an absolute nightmare, having random strangers call out an embarrassing username in multiplayer games sent shudders down the spine. 

It’s been a pleasure to leave that username in the past where it belongs, and countless others will now be able to gain that fuzzy feeling.

• Black Friday PC gaming deals 2021: what to expect

Overwatch 2 -- the sequel to Blizzard's enormously popular team-based shooter -- was first announced back at BlizzCon 2019, and updates on what to expect from the title were thin on the ground for a long while. Since then, Blizzard's been dropping some big details on the game. 

Some players were lucky enough to be getting some hands-on time with it, thanks to the (now finished) Overwatch 2 bet. This provided fans with a first look at the PvP content, including the new hero, maps, and 5v5 gameplay. But that's just the tip of the iceberg, as the full game will be stuffed with new content that should make it feel like a proper sequel, rather than glorified DLC. 

One of the biggest changes will be the introduction of story-based PvE co-op missions to the series; a feature that was never introduced in Overwatch, and has been a long time coming.  Crucially, Overwatch 2 is also going free-to-play, a huge shift from Blizzard's previous strategy.

Want to know more? Read on for everything we know about Overwatch 2 so far.

Overwatch 2: cut to the chase

• What is it? The sequel to Blizzard's team-based shooter
• When is it out? October 4, 2022 (in "early access")
• What can I play it on? PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PS5, Xbox Series X|S

Overwatch 2 release date and platforms

Overwatch 2 will release on October 4, 2022 for PC, PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Nintendo Switch.

However, in an unusual move, this isn't the full release we're getting in October, even on consoles. Announced during the June 2022 Xbox and Bethesda Showcase, Blizzard revealed Overwatch 2 will launch "in early access," meaning it's just the PvP elements and no PvE just yet. Right now, we don't know when to expect the full launch.

What's more, Blizzard also revealed it'll be shifting towards a free-to-play model, a major change from the original game's release. 

Overwatch 2 trailers

Below, we've included some of our favorite Overwatch 2 trailers, but it is worth noting that the Overwatch YouTube channel has been dropping video tidbits including Overwatch 2 playtests with Overwatch League Pros, short videos on Hero reworks for the sequel and developer updates. 

Release date trailer

During the Xbox and Bethesda Showcase in June 2022, Blizzard announced an "early access" release for Overwatch 2. Launching on October 4, 2022 for all major platforms, we also got our first look at the Junker Queen, and you can see this in full below:

Sojourn Gameplay Trailer
In April 2022, the official Overwatch YouTube channel posted a gameplay trailer for new hero Sojourn. This is the best look yet we've got at Sojourn and her powerful Railgun and it's certainly got us excited to try her out in the beta. Check out the trailer below:

Behind the scenes
BlizzConline 2021 may not have brought us a release date for Overwatch 2, but a 40-minute behind the scenes video certainly gave an insight into the improvements and additions the game’s development team is looking to make. It also offered an insight into why we might have to wait a little bit longer for the game’s release date. 

Former Game Director Jeff Kaplan and other members of the development team said that while “right now, we can sit down and have a night of Overwatch 2 and have it be a really fun experience” they “need some more time till we can say it’s perfectly polished in the way that we want it.” Kaplan himself said that “in order to make a game great it takes time, energy, collaboration…Our goal is for Overwatch 2 to be the worthy successor to the first game, to be the next evolution and to be a true sequel.”

Over the course of the 40-minute video, the development team touched on the things that they’re developing and improving in the game, from its PvP, Hero Missions and Hero Progression to the Campaign and the appearance of existing characters. 

Two new maps were revealed during the video: New York and Rome. Both maps have completely different looks, with Rome leaning into Romance and ancient architecture while New York puts a sci-fi spin on Art Deco. Check it out below:

As far as PvP is concerned, it seems that the development team isn’t afraid to experiment with it for Overwatch 2 with the intention of making something that feels like a “big departure” from what’s currently there. Tank characters, for example, are being re-evaluated in a way that will make them “toe-to-toe brawlers” rather than protectors. And it seems that no mode is safe, as Kaplan suggested that some modes could be replaced for new ones. 

When it comes to the new Hero Missions, every existing map will apparently be usable, with mentions of brand new areas in some specifically for the Hero Missions. We should expect dynamic weather and different times of day as well as different objective types. 

Since 2019, the team has been making efforts to make PvE combat more interesting, so Null Sector enemies are now more engaging to fight. Hero Progression has also developed and deepened since 2019 and every hero now has their own talent tree. 

For Overwatch 2’s campaign, the story will focus on Overwatch heroes coming together to find out the who and why of a second Omnic Uprising. The aim is to have the story be “a little more integrated” into the game’s missions than before, with seamless cuts between gameplay and cinematic cutscenes, as well as developing character relationships and branching dialogue. Each story mission is going to have its own “gigantic” custom map, and some of those shown include India, Gothenburg and Toronto. 

We also got a look at the new hero Sojourn, initially revealed alongside the game. Sojourn is going to carry a railgun and is apparently a play-tester favorite, though good aim is required to make the most of her. In the spirit of leaving no stone unturned, even existing characters will have updates to their appearance. The video revealed four of those: Widowmaker, Phara, Reaper and McCree. 

Reveal trailer
The BlizzCon 2019 reveal gave up a glorious eight-minute cinematic trailer titled "Zero Hour", and we suggest you have some tissues at the ready before you give it a watch:

There was also a three-minute gameplay trailer that showcased the sequel's new look:

Overwatch 2 beta

The Overwatch 2 beta has been and gone for PC players. Having run during May 2022, those who jumped in could check out the game's PvP content ahead of its full release. 

There's a chance we could see future beta tests before it launches, so if that happens, check out our handy guide on how to sign up for the Overwatch 2 beta for your chance to take part. You'll need a battle.net account and a copy of the original Overwatch game for this. 

The closed beta gave players the chance to play as new Hero, Sojourn, and to try out Overwatch 2's Push mode, Ping system, and four new maps: 

• Circuit Royal – New Escort map
• Midtown – New Hybrid map
• New Queen Street – New Push map
• Colosseo – New Push map

Rather than the 6v6 format of Overwatch, the beta introduced 5v5, which should make for an interesting shake-up, especially when it comes to strategizing. 

Overwatch 2 characters and abilities

Blizzard has already confirmed several of the characters that will appear in Overwatch 2, with the beta alone set to feature 32 heroes. That list includes the return of some familiar (and often overhauled) faces such as Tracer, Bastion, and Cassidy, but it also includes new heroes like Junker Queen, alongside Sojourn – Overwatch's first playable black female hero. 

Sombra Guide

The Overwatch 2 Sombra rework is one of the most powerful in the beta, and you'll do well learning how to best utilize it. Her overhaul changes her from a utility character to one with more individual offensive capabilities.

Sojurn Guide

Sojourn is the first new character added to the Overwatch roster in over two years, with the last hero, Echo, releasing all the way back in April 2020. She’s also the first new character to be released for Overwatch 2, making her a special milestone in the franchise's history.

Tier list: The best Overwatch heroes to play right now

Our Overwatch 2 tier list is complete, after many hours of play with all 33 heroes available in the beta. If you're looking for the best character to play in each role, our ranking of all the champions will give you a guide on who to pick.

Overwatch 2 character guide: every hero confirmed so far

A complete list of all the Overwatch 2 characters announced so far, a breakdown of who they are, their abilities, and how they'll fit into your squad.

Overwatch 2 patch notes

Shortly after the beta went live, Blizzard released the Overwatch 2 patch notes. There's a lot to sift through, with a ton of hero changes, new features, sound tweaks, and new maps.

One surprise feature which wasn't present in the alpha is the addition of the Scoreboard. Overwatch's Fire and Medal systems have been swapped out for the Scoreboard, which gives real time stats for all players, including eliminations and deaths. 

The absence of the feature from Overwatch has been mistakenly attributed to a slew of reasons, like catering to casuals, or an attempt to avoid toxicity. In reality, the issue was how to relay performance metrics in a game that's not just about kill counts or objectives. 

The Scoreboard layout is similar to that of other competitive games, so players will be able to pore over their stats at last. 

The new sound adjustments should make for a better experience all around, but especially for competitive players. The new Convolution Reverb system gives a 3D quality to the sound that relays much more auditory information. 

Of course, there's the new Ping system and HUD updates, and new maps. But a lot of the heroes have had overhaul, making for some aggressive reworks to characters like Orisa and Doomfist.

The latter has been moved from Damage to Tank role, while others have had abilities removed, or added. You can get a more granular breakdown in our patch notes coverage, linked above. 

Overwatch 2 news and confirmed features

June 12: Blizzard has announced that Overwatch 2 will launch as a free-to-play experience in "early access" on October 4, 2022. That'll arrive on all major platforms, with PvE elements coming later on.

May 29: For many players and professionals, the closure of the last beta has created a bizarre limbo - a purgatory of uncertainty about what to do now. Overwatch 2’s beta ending has left the community with a demoralizing hangover.

May 19: Overwatch 2's PvP beta has ended, pushing players back into the void of Overwatch 1 for a while. But Blizzard has teased a new event for June, meaning we shouldn't be waiting too long: A second beta is likely on the way. 

May 14: In a developer blog, the Overwatch 2 team has offered up some stats that suggest that their recent tweaks to support have helped even out the game’s queue problems. That's good too because some heroes had queues of up to 10 minutes.

May 8: The reception to the Overwatch 2 beta has been fascinating to track over the last week. The game exploded on Twitch, peaking at a staggering 1.5 million concurrent viewers, boosted by a promotion that gave players access to the beta for watching four hours of streams. But is the name setting up fans for disappointment?

May 5: Blizzard has released a new patch for the Overwatch 2 beta, nerfing strong characters and buffing weaker ones. On top of that, Zenyatta has gotten a new, experimental ability. 

May 3: Wrecking Ball has been disabled in the Overwatch 2 beta due to a bug that allowed him to kick every other player from the game. For the time being, anyway.

April 27: Overwatch 2's beta crushed its previous record (set yesterday around 500k viewers) with the new high this afternoon, shattering 1M for the first time. The game isn't even out yet and it's one of the most popular titles on Twitch!

April 26: With the beta live, the devs have dropped the complete patch notes, revealing a new Scoreboard feature that's live right now. The game has ditched the Fire and Medal systems, which have been redundant thanks to new feature.

Responding to feedback and more to come

With the Overwatch 2 beta underway, Blizzard is releasing weekly developer blogs and has said that it’s “carefully listening” to player feedback during the testing period. 

“As we committed to more regular communication with our players,” the post reads, “we plan to share a weekly update with you about what we’re learning and how that impacts our development plans.”

The team is keen to emphasize that the beta is primarily focused on testing “gameplay and balance as well as stability”. As a result, other elements of the game like menu screens, player profiles, time-of-day conditions for classic maps and full hero looks “are still a work in progress” and though “the team has been working hard on that we are not yet testing publicly.”

As far as responding to player concerns is concerned, the team has already acknowledged “ the need to make playing Support more attractive to players”, saying, “We have heard clearly that Support players feel both Tanks and Damage players have more new content to enjoy and explore in this Beta. Longer term, we believe the most effective way to tackle this issue is to add exciting new Support heroes to the game, and that is part of our plans”.

The post also states that this is “just our first public test leading up to the future Overwatch 2 PvP release. Between now and then, we plan to add more content including heroes, maps, and features. There will be a significant amount of overall polish and refinement added in the form of enhanced UI, bug fixes, and more!”

Battle Pass and F2P possibilities?

Images of early concept Overwatch 2 menus have been posted by a UI artist, Jayson Kirby, who worked on Overwatch between 2017 and 2020. Kirby posted early concepts of the user experience for the sequel on his Artstation page. It shows off the minimalized UI that has been seen in previous Overwatch 2 gameplay reveals, making for a very cohesive look.

However, Kirby’s work also shows some insight into the possible additions coming to Overwatch 2. Most notable is the inclusion of a battle pass in the menus, which is not currently a feature of the Overwatch experience. 

Adding to this, data miners combing through the game’s beta files claim to have uncovered files linked to a Battle Pass, a screenshot of which can be seen below:

Interestingly, battle passes are generally used in games that have a free-to-play element. It’s speculative, but this could suggest that Overwatch 2 may have some kind of broken-off section, like PvP, that is free. 

In another UI example on the artist's page, there's an animation that shows a card for a guild that supports up to 520 players. This seems like it would be used as a way for like-minded players to find and play with each other. 

Of course, all of these were worked on years ago, and Kirby hasn’t been on the project since 2020. It’s very likely the final design of the menus and the features have changed drastically since then. None of this should be considered a lock for the final product but the files found by the data mines certainly do add some credence to the idea of Battle Pass plans.

Nintendo Switch compromises
Overwatch 2 is definitely still coming to Nintendo Switch consoles but Blizzard has revealed that the game will need to make “some compromises" on the system. 

This was revealed in an AMA for the game on Reddit, in which fans were able to ask the developers questions. One fan who described themselves “as a solely Switch player” noted the graphical improvements that are being made in Overwatch 2 and asked what compromises might have to be made for Nintendo’s console version and Technical Director John Lafleur responded.

According to Lafleur, the team is “working hard to make sure all of our platforms get the best experience, even in PvE” but added that the Nintendo Switch “is a little more challenging than some, and we'll have to make some compromises there.”

As a result, players should expect that  “some of the higher-end visual enhancements might not be visible, there. We'll focus on making sure all of the gameplay-related features get in, first, and then accentuate with additional features as much as possible.” Lafleur wasn’t forthcoming with specifics so it’s likely we’ll find out more about these closer to the game’s release. 

Though there is no release date yet, Blizzard also revealed in the AMA that the plan is to release the game on all platforms at the same time if possible, with Lead Software Engineer, Bill Warnecke, saying, "As a live ops engineer I loved shipping Overwatch on all platforms and in all regions at the same time, it was a huge challenge and was very exciting. It's definitely our goal to do the same for Overwatch 2, but of course, I can't promise that we won't' hit any blockers that prevent us from doing that."

Sombra and Baptiste get new looks
Blizzard Entertainment showed up briefly during the Summer Game Fest 2021 kickoff event to share a new look at two of the iconic characters from the first Overwatch and how their appearance is changing in Overwatch 2.

Specifically, Sombra and Baptiste have new and improved looks that stay true to their prior designs, which you can check out in the gallery below. 

Environment States
Overwatch 2 is to include a new feature known as Environment States. Writing in a technical blog post on the Overwatch site, software engineer Marco Alamia and developers Bruce Wilkie and Fabien Christin went over the feature. It will, in essence, make it possible for the team to make all of the environmental properties of a particular game map (its weather, its lighting, its time of day) a single thing that can be applied easily to other levels. 

“Let’s take the fast-paced deathmatch map of Necropolis,” writes Christin. “You’ve probably played it in its night scenario, which marries the contrast of the cold blue colors of the night-time with the bright orange of the torches lit around the buildings.”

“But let’s say we want to experiment with a different scenario, and we decide to try the hot desert colors of Temple of Anubis. With the new Environment States system, all we need to do is take the Environment State from the Temple of Anubis and apply it to Necropolis.”

Crossplay, Ping and beta possibilities?
Members of the Overwatch 2 development team took to Reddit last year to answer questions about the game, touching on everything from cross-play, to the possibility of a ping system and the beta. 

The latter two have since been confirmed but when it comes to introducing cross-play and cross-progression in Overwatch 2, Blizzard technical director, John Lafleur said that the team is “pretty excited about the possibilities of cross-play and cross-progression”. He added that if these features are on the cards, the team would tackle cross-play first, “given the additional complexities of cross-progression”. 

Jeff Kaplan quits
Jeff Kaplan, director of Overwatch 2 and Vice President at Blizzard Entertainment, left the company after 19 years in April 2021. Leadership on Overwatch 2 has passed over to Aaron Keller, another long-standing member of the team at Blizzard working on the game.

Larger more complex maps 
Blizzard is looking to do more with co-op missions in Overwatch 2 by increasing the size of the game’s maps and populating them with a wider variety of enemies. 

In a July 2020 blog post that touches on development tools and engine being used for the game, Blizzard said that “Overwatch 2’s PvE maps are larger and more complex than Overwatch maps like Retribution and Storm Rising. That doesn’t just mean more distance to cover, but also longer missions involving more kinds of foes and more elaborate encounters. Adding enemy types leads to complex ability interactions between enemies and heroes–but also between the enemies themselves, 

Echo comes to Overwatch 
Blizzard announced a new Overwatch hero called Echo back in 2020, saying that it's "very likely" going to be the last hero added to the base game before Overwatch 2. 

Talking to Polygon, former Game Director Jeff Kaplan said that the development team has “a number of new heroes in development. We have multiple tanks, and we have multiple supports in development. But after Echo, the team is going to be heavily focused on Overwatch 2 development.”

At the moment, though Kaplan doesn't have any release date details to give, adding that “development is going great. The team’s having tons of fun making the game, I feel like we’re starting to understand it even more.” It seems that Overwatch 2 is still a way off yet. 

Michael Chu leaves Blizzard
Overwatch's lead writer Michael Chu announced his departure from Blizzard after 20 years of working there in 2020. Chu, responsible for much of the game's lore and character backstories, posted the news to his blog and on Twitter. Chu hasn't revealed what his next steps are but has said he hopes "to continue to tell these stories and build worlds that unite people through games."

Overwatch fans, naturally, will want to know how this departure might impact the development of Overwatch 2, especially since it seems to be putting an emphasis on Story and Hero missions. According to Blizzard in a statement (via PCGamer), the game shouldn't be affected. 

"We’re incredibly grateful to Michael for his contributions, and his presence at Blizzard will be missed. We’re not anticipating an impact to our plans for Overwatch 2. The game’s development is a massive collaborative effort involving talented people across multiple teams, all with a shared commitment to the values of Overwatch and the vision for Overwatch 2. We’re working hard to create an epic, story-driven experience for players, and we can’t wait to share more."

Larger maps and more heroes
Overwatch 2's assistant director, Aaron Keller, and lead writer, Michael Chu expanded a little on the team's ambitions for PvE play, back in 2019. According to Keller, there are "lots of heroes" in the work for the game and its PvE maps are "2x larger than regular Overwatch maps." 

This increased scale is all in the service of telling more stories in the Overwatch world and the new co-op story missions will allow for “a more traditional way to tell a story in the Overwatch universe.”. A story that, Chu said, will have a "beginning, middle, and end".

Naturally, as stated before, PvP is still a focus for the team and progression in PvP will be "entirely separate" from PvE.

According to Keller,  “we don’t want gameplay-changing talents and abilities to give an unfair advantage in PvP. We’re still exploring what players can earn in PvE and building out the progression system for that. Our goal is to make a robust meaningful progression system that feeds into our Hero Missions where players can play and replay for many hours or as their main mode of play after they complete the Overwatch 2 story.”

Narrative focus
“With Overwatch 2, we’re building the cooperative, narrative-driven game experience that players have been asking for since the original—and that we’ve wanted to make for a long time,” said J. Allen Brack, president of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’re looking forward to telling the next chapter of this epic story in-game, and we’re excited to give players a whole new kind of co-op experience built around progressing and customizing their favorite heroes – all while providing even more of everything they love about Overwatch today.”

PvP is still a focus
Despite a heavy emphasis on the new co-operative modes, Kaplan took time to dispel the myth that Overwatch 2 would lose out on the multiplayer modes that made 50 million people play the game in the first place. 

In fact, according to Kaplan, a huge focus for the Overwatch 2 team is making PvP as good as it possibly can be – which includes new maps, new modes and new characters further down the line. 

Cosmetic items will cross over
According to Jeff Kaplan, all the cosmetic items earned in the original Overwatch will be ported over to Overwatch 2 – a move that will help expedite the transition to the new game.

Hero missions
Hero Missions see the Overwatch team traveling the globe, defending cities against robot invasions, taking on elite Talon agents, and battling the villainous forces laying siege to the world. This "highly-replayable mode" will allow players to level up their favorite heroes and earn powerful customization options that supercharge their abilities in co-op play – such as altering Reinhardt’s Fire Strike to ignite nearby enemies or modifying Tracer’s Pulse Bomb to cause a devastating chain reaction – granting the extra edge they need against the overwhelming odds.

Overwatch and Overwatch 2 are compatible
Current Overwatch players can play alongside Overwatch 2 players in PvP multiplayer. In addition, current Overwatch players will be able to play Overwatch 2 heroes and maps.

Co-op missions
Co-operative missions see players teaming up to "stand together against an overwhelming outbreak of threats around the globe". 

Overwatch 2 Play
Similar to what we seen with its predecessor, Overwatch Play carries forward existing players’ accomplishments and loot collections and features the current complete Overwatch roster, a new generation of heroes, new maps that "widen the scope of the world" and a new Push map type – plus more to be revealed.

Story missions
Story missions sees Winston, Tracer, and other members of the original Overwatch, join forces with a new generation of heroes. Players will take an active role in the Overwatch saga as a new global crisis unfolds through a series of intense, high-stakes four-player missions. As the story progresses, players will team up as different sets of heroes and fight to defend the world from the omnic forces of Null Sector, uncover the motives behind the robotic armies’ attacks, and come face-to-face with rising new threats around the globe.

New engine upgrades
Overwatch 2 introduces significant engine upgrades that support larger maps for co-op (PvE) play, as well as the wide variety of new enemies and factions that players will encounter on their missions. The game also introduces visual enhancements.

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Blizzard Entertainment has joined forces with IBM to develop a new data-driven system for ranking the best Overwatch players in the world.

The new technique will be used to analyze the performance of competitors in esports championship Overwatch League and create an objective ranking of the most skilled players.

According to an IBM blog post, the Overwatch Power Rankings will be based on upwards of 360 performance metrics (damage per second, healing, weapon accuracy etc.), with roughly 1.8 million data points collected in any given match.

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All this data will be aggregated, organized and then analyzed to determine the correlation between particular in-game actions and the eventual match outcome.

IBM has also applied machine learning techniques to an existing dataset to determine which statistics best reflect the quality of players. Although all available metrics will contribute to the final rankings, a pool of roughly 30 will have a larger impact on positioning.

Overwatch Power Rankings

For the uninitiated, Overwatch is a first-person shooter that pits two teams against one other across a handful of game modes, such as capture the point and protect the payload. The teams are made up of six different characters (or heroes), each of which has a unique loadout, moveset and play style.

Until now, the fast-paced and chaotic nature of the game, as well as the various disparities between heroes, has made ranking players by performance a challenging task.

According to Jon Spector, VP of Overwatch Esports at Blizzard, while esports pundits are able to draw on a wealth of knowledge to provide context for viewers, the new system contributes additional color to analysis that would otherwise be impossible.

“We’ve got really talented analysts that follow our players and teams, but there is so much happening in these matches, no human being could possibly observe and evaluate it all,” he said.

“We needed a way to capture and analyze every move from every player and feed all that insight into a ranking system that was totally objective and reliable.”

Beyond giving fans something to pick apart, the Power Rankings is also expected to act as a useful resource for players and coaches, who will be able to use the insights to hone their gameplay and tactics.

The first edition of the Overwatch Power Rankings was published on April 16, the first day of the new season, and will be updated weekly after each new round of fixtures.

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Nvidia Reflex is adding support for competitive team-based shooter Overwatch. When activated, Nvidia Reflex could reduce latency in the game by around 50%, an enticing prospect if you have an Nvidia GPU and Nvidia Reflex-compatible monitor, and you want to reduce lag.

Players with older GPUs will benefit, too, as Overwatch will support Nvidia Reflex for cards as old as the GTX 900 series. Nvidia Reflex will be available on Overwatch’s Public Test Realm soon, with the feature rolling out to the game proper in the following weeks.

A report on KitGuru demonstrates just how much latency Nvidia Reflex is eliminating for Overwatch when playing at a demanding 1440p, 144Hz setting. The results are significant, with the most impressive results coming from the GTX 1660 Super, where latency is reduced from 63ms to 31ms with Nvidia Reflex switched on. 

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Virtually lag free?

The results bring the GTX 1660 Super’s performance more in line with the top-end RTX 3080, which averages at a latency of 26ms without Nvidia Reflex in use. Results will also vary depending on the GPU, but by and large the reduction in latency is significant across Nvidia’s back catalog of GPUs.

Nvidia Reflex is already being widely used across a range of popular PC shooters, including Fortnite, Valorant and Rainbow Six Siege. Valorant and Fortnite see especially impressive results, with reductions of up to 19ms and 12ms respectively when using an RTX 3080 with a monitor boasting a 360Hz refresh rate, according to a graph on Nvidia’s website.

With such astonishing results across a range of multiplayer PC games, it’s looking more and more like Nvidia Reflex is a must for Nvidia GPU users who frequently play competitive shooters online. In future, we hope more popular multiplayer games will be added to Nvidia Reflex’s roster of support, like PUBG and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.

How do I activate Nvidia Reflex?

If you want to reduce latency in your favorite multiplayer PC games, first make sure your Nvidia drivers are up to date, and that you have a supported Nvidia GPU.

Then, open up Nvidia Control Panel, and click on “Manage 3D Settings.” In that menu, find the “Low Latency Mode” option and change it to “On” or “Ultra” depending on your PC specs (lower-end machines might struggle with the Ultra setting). After that, just click “Apply” and you’re good to go.

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Overwatch has been enhanced for Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, but there's no word on whether a next-gen upgrade is also coming to PS5.

The latest Overwatch update makes Blizzard's multiplayer first-person shooter an Xbox Series X/S optimized game, offering a new "Preferred Mode" graphics option that lets players prioritize either image quality, resolution or framerate.

The "Resolution" preset allows for 4K at 60Hz on Xbox Series X and 1440p at 60Hz on Xbox Series S, meaning you get higher-resolution video at the cost of image quality. The "Balanced" preset does the opposite, prioritizing image quality at the cost of resolution, allowing the game to run at 1440p at 60Hz on Series X and 1080p at 60Hz on Series S. 

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Those who want super-smooth gameplay (which is key in fast-paced FPS games like Overwatch) will be happy to hear there's also a "Framerate" preset, allowing for 120Hz on both Series X and Series S (though it will drop the resolution down to 1440p on Series X and 1080p on Series S.

It is worth noting for the "Framerate" preset that you need a TV or monitor that supports 120Hz or VRR (Variable-Refresh-Rate) to take full advantage of the mode.

You can read the patch notes here.

But what about PS5?

While the Xbox Series X/S have undergone a next-gen upgrade, a PS5 upgrade was notably absent.

That's not to say that a PS5 upgrade isn't coming in the future, but it does mean that PC and Xbox Series S/X players may have an advantage over PS5 players in cross-play matches for the time being. 

That's because the 120Hz frame rates allow for smoother, more responsive, gameplay – something which is critical in online multiplayer first-person shooters that rely on a fast trigger finger. We've already seen Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Destiny 2 receive upgrades that allow for 120Hz gameplay on PS5.

It's likely a PS5 upgrade for Overwatch is on the cards in the future but, for now, Overwatch players on PS5 will have to continue to play the PS4 version.

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Blizzard’s hugely popular team shooter Overwatch is free to play on PC until January 4, and is 25% off should you wish to pick it up for the long haul. 

Players can experience the full game in all its multiplayer glory – that’s all 32 heroes and 28 maps – and any progress (including stats and cosmetics) made during the free trial period will be carried over if the game is purchased permanently. 

The online FPS has gone free several times since its release in 2015, but never before has the game been playable without spending anything such a long period (save for anniversary events and a one-off month in China).

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As part of the Blizzard Holiday Sale, its more expensive version – Overwatch: Legendary Edition – will also enjoy a 50% price cut to $19.99 (around £15) on PC, giving access to bonus skins and Overwatch-themed cosmetics for World of Warcraft, Diablo 3, StarCraft 2, and Heroes of the Storm (all of which are also part of the sale). There will also be discounts on the PlayStation and Xbox stores.

And if that’s not enough, Blizzard is slashing a third off the price of the newly-released Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, meaning you can sneak behind enemy lines for only $39.99 (around £30).

What about Overwatch 2?

This isn't a bad time to jump into Overwatch, especially since its sequel is on the horizon. 

The upcoming Overwatch 2 was first announced back in November 2019 during Blizzard's annual BlizzCon event, though details of the new game are few and far between. Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan has, however, confirmed that new gameplay will be shared in February 2021 during the company’s next online event.

In a developer update on YouTube, Kaplan said: "As you know our big focus is Overwatch 2, which we will be talking [about] more in February with BlizzCon Online coming up."

"Can't wait to talk to you more about Overwatch 2. Can't wait to show you more with Overwatch 2. We know it's been too long, we know we've been quiet."

Expect some good news come February, then.

• Overwatch 2 will have ‘lots’ of heroes and larger maps 

Valorant, the new team-based multiplayer shooter from Riot Games, is a brave undertaking. Launching a brand new, competitive first-person shooter in an already saturated market is a major risk. But if any developer is up for the task, it’s Riot Games. After all, the developer built League of Legends from scratch and turned it into a household name in PC gaming circles. It’s also an incredibly popular esport, too.

However, despite the pedigree of its creator, Valorant has a Herculean task if it wants to thrive among the giants of competitive shooters. Is it an instant contender, then, or does Riot still have work to do? Let’s take a look.

 Time to fight 

Valorant’s gameplay can be closely compared to that of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO). It’s a precision-based, 5v5 tactical shooter that focuses on accuracy and crosshair placement above all else, which can admittedly be punishing for newcomers. You need to aim for the head, try to control bullet spray and recoil from a variety of guns, and there are no respawns if you die during a round. The twist, of course, is that Valorant has a clever character class system, along with nine Agents who each have their own abilities – but we’ll get to that in a moment. 

Valorant’s main two modes, Competitive and Unrated, focus on the highly enjoyable premise of attack versus defense which was popularized by CS:GO. The attacking team has to try to plant and detonate the spike (essentially a bomb), or wipe out the entire enemy team to win a round. The defenders, meanwhile, have to do the opposite: defuse the spike if it's planted, or wipe out the enemy team. Once the match reaches the halfway point, you’ll switch sides.

But that's not all. Players begin with a small amount of funds to buy weapons, armor and abilities at the start of each round, and more credits can be earned by performing well or besting your opponents. Winning a round will provide your team with extra funds, but you’ll still pick up some credits if you lose. 

The economy management aspect brings an interesting risk/reward element into Valorant gameplay, as you’ll need to use your money accordingly throughout the course of each match. If you spend big on a powerful weapon to maximize your chances of success, you open up the risk of having nothing to spend in the next round if you die. While if you’re too frugal with your cash, you’ll be at a big disadvantage if you come up against someone who’s better equipped. Decisions, decisions.

Sounds a lot like CS:GO, right? Well, there are a few distinct differences between the two games. For example, matches are best of 30 in CS:GO, as opposed to Valorant’s best of 13, which keeps games from being drawn out – particularly if they go the distance. Valorant also avoids feeling like a carbon copy through its striking visual presentation, excellent map design and unique agent abilities. 

There’s nothing wrong with building upon an incredibly successful formula, either. CS:GO is still one of the most played games on Steam every week, and Riot Games' approach to Valorant is reminiscent of how Epic Games approached Fortnite. There's no doubt it was built upon the foundations set by PUBG, who was the leader in the battle royale genre, but they added their own spin on the formula with huge success. Essentially, that’s what Riot Games has done here, and they’ve done it extremely well.

How does it compare?
To compare Valorant to Overwatch and Apex Legends in terms of gameplay would be unfair, then, as even though the games do share some similarities such as heroes, team-based gameplay and a colorful visual style, they’re all markedly different in the experiences they try to provide.

Choose your character

This is where Valorant really stands out. Known as Agents, Valorant’s nine heroes each offer their own perks and abilities that can turn the tide of battle when used correctly. From blocking sight lines to revealing enemies, you’ll need to make the most of your chosen agent’s arsenal if you want your team to come out on top.

Each character belongs to one of four classes: Duelist, Initiator, Sentinel and Controller. Duelists are ideal for players who like to push forward and engage the enemy head on; Initiators can be best described as scouts who can help determine the enemies location; Sentinels are suited to defensive players who prefer to support the team through healing; and Controllers are specialists at blocking off sight lines and disrupting the other team’s tactics.

Each character has three abilities (two of which are optional purchases each round) and an ultimate ability that charges over time/based on your performance. It's crucial, then, that you assess what's happening on the battlefield, the type of opponent you encounter and use the strengths of your particularly agent. 

For example, if the enemy team is huddled up at the end of a narrow corridor, chuck a cluster grenade in as Raze to make them scatter. Don’t know where your opponents are hiding? Place a tripwire as Cypher and you’ll be alerted of any incoming hostiles if they trigger it. Want to lockdown an area but can’t cover every sight line? Place a wall as Sage to force the enemy to choose another entry point. Abilities can turn the tide of any encounter. 

Ideally, a balanced team will include a mixture of character classes, as teamwork is paramount in Valorant. It’s important to learn how each Agent operates, too, as if someone picks your favorite before you do, you’ll have to play as someone else. With each Agent offering new playstyles to master, then, there’s plenty of depth on offer.

How does it compare?
Perhaps somewhat predictably, both Apex Legends’ and Overwatch have had far more time to amass a roster of playable characters. Both games have been out for significantly longer, and it’s impossible for Valorant to compete with the likes of Overwatch’s 32-character roster. However, with Riot Games promising to add more Agents into the game in the coming weeks, months (and hopefully) years, the key to Valorant’s success will be ensuring that each new character is properly balanced and adds something fresh to the experience.

Rules of warfare

Valorant only had four modes at launch, Unrated, Spike Rush, Custom and Practice, but the long-awaited Competitive mode has now also arrived. This is where most of the player base will gravitate to, as it’s where Valorant’s chops as a competitive shooter will really come to fruition. 

That being said, Valorant’s Spike Rush mode is a fun, quick-fire game type that serves as a much-needed alternative to the longer form matches. Each player begins with the same loadout (there’s no in-game economy) and there are various stat-boosting and gameplay-affecting Orbs to collect on the battlefield. Every attacker has their own spike, too, meaning that rounds are often frenetic affairs. It’s a best of seven format, and is the perfect pre-game warm up mode.

How does it compare?
Other than that, however, the lack of modes could be seen as Valorant’s weakest feature right now. When judged against the competition, Valorant simply pales in comparison. The disparity is immediately noticeable when stacked up alongside Overwatch, in particular, which has four core modes Assault, Escort, Hybrid, and Control that are buffered by standard Deathmatch offerings, capture-the-flag, and rotating seasonal modes. Clearly, Overwatch has had longer to establish itself and find new ways to keep players engaged, but Valorant’s offering still leaves a lot of room for improvement.

Theaters of war

But what about the game’s maps? Unfortunately, there aren’t many stages to fight it out on yet – there are only four – but each one has at least been crafted to offer unique challenges to overcome and encourage you to experiment with new strategies. Haven’s bomb doors cut off certain entry routes, for example, and Split features a lot of vertically so things still feel fresh. 

How does it compare?
Unfortunately, Valorant is outclassed by its rivals when it comes to map selection, as both Overwatch, Apex Legends and CS:GO offer plenty more variety in selection and layout. Overwatch’s real-world locales mixed with more outlandish maps like Junkertown or the nostalgic wonderland BlizzardWorld are simply more interesting than anything Valorant offers. Meanwhile CS:GO’s 12 maps offer three times the choice, while also including a remake of arguably the most famous multiplayer map in shooter history in Dust 2. On the one hand, it’s unfair to compare a game that's still in its infancy to one that’s been around for a decade, but Riot knew what the competition looked like going in.

Put your money where your (micro) mouth is

Controversial as they are, micro transactions have become commonplace in free-to-play games, and Valorant of course is no exception. Riot decided to keep things simple here: buy a certain amount of digital currency for different amounts of real money, use that digital currency on cosmetics. Easy for people familiar with the format to understand, completely optional, and non-intrusive to the player experience, the micro transactions here are probably as good as they get. 

This falls in line with the other competitive shooters in the free-to-play field, with the majority of the in-game purchases sticking strictly to cosmetic attire. Both Apex Legends and Overwatch have a similar approach: not wanting to risk the integrity of competition by allowing players to buy game-breaking boosts or abilities. CS:GO also offers a ton of content through its micro transactions, but that game’s community market has become a haven for money laundering schemes, which isn’t great.

Well worth a go

The final verdict here is clear: despite the lack of variety of game modes and maps, Valorant is an expertly-crafted competitive shooter that has all the ingredients to hold its own among the more established titles in the genre. The action is arguably more exciting, and the unique characters are fun to learn and experiment with. The classic attack v defense format works wonderfully, too, and the game’s Competitive modes should make for some epic moments. As time goes on and more content becomes available, then, it’s not unreasonable to think Riot Games could have another tremendous hit on its hands.

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We learned late last year that Riot Games was working on new projects, with some focus on expanding the League of Legends universe. One of those games - codenamed Project A - would be a team-based, tactical shooter, and falls into Riot Games's push to challenge Blizzard, per PCGamer. Now, Riot Games has given the world a first look at the game, which is officially named Valorant.

While an official Valorant tweet lists a suggestive date of 'Summer 2020,' The game will get a Q2 or Q3 2020 release, depending on how things go in the beta, PCGamer reports. That's surprisingly soon considering how little information was previously known about the mysterious Project A, including its actual name.

Riot Games is already stressing the serious competitive nature of the game. On the official Valorant website, Riot Games details how it plans to use 128-tick servers spread out globally to achieve latency below 35ms in major cities around the world. The company has also focused on optimization to offer low-spec computers an attainable 30fps and high-spec rigs a consistent 60-144fps.

Of course, that all matters only if there's an actual competitive scene for the game. That's where the game design comes in. From the gameplay reveal, we can see that Valorant borrows plenty from other popular, competitive shooters. Have a look:

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The video shows an Alpha playtest that starts off with players buying their weapons and even purchasing them for one another. The feel is much like CS:GO, as are the semi-realistic weapons themselves. The playtesters even regularly switch over to their knives as the move around, something frequently seen in CS:GO.

But, the game features more cartoonish textures and special character abilities that Overwatch players are sure to find familiar. One character can be seen channeling an ability that lets them jump extra-high. Another character pulls out a bow to fire off a sensor arrow that reveals enemy positions in true Hanzo fashion. Yet another character is seen surrounded by floating knives that presumably fire out like Zenyatta's orbs. 

The goal the players are seen fighting for is more like CS:GO in nature: 5v5, no respawning, with an objective the offensive team is trying to accomplish. At the end of the video, a player on defense defuses a bomb planted by the enemy team.

Of course, the look and feel of the game does have time to change between now and its launch. It is still in Alpha after all. 

Riot Games plans to slowly reveal more over various social media platforms. A closed beta for the game is also coming, but no date has been provided.

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Activision Blizzard’s library of games disappeared from GeForce Now shortly after the game streaming service was officially launched, but it seems like that might have been Nvidia’s fault, after all – in terms of a misunderstanding over the terms of the deal between the two firms.

At the time, Nvidia didn’t give an actual reason as to why all Activision Blizzard’s titles were dropped from the service, but in a statement noted that this was “per their request”, and that it was “unfortunate”.

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However, Nvidia has told Bloomberg that the reason for the move was a misunderstanding in that it believed the agreement with Activision Blizzard regarding its involvement in the beta of GeForce Now applied to the initial post-launch trial period of the service, too (in other words, the first three months of going live).

Evidently this wasn’t the case, and Activision Blizzard wanted some kind of a commercial agreement (which sounds sensible enough, let’s face it) before proceeding to the full launch of GeForce Now, and this didn’t happen – hence the publisher requested its games library to be pulled.

This seems like a pretty big oversight, one way or another, but it perhaps does give some hope to GeForce Now subscribers – those who signed up to play the likes of the Call of Duty games, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Overwatch, World of Warcraft and many more besides – some hope that the issue might be resolved.

When Nvidia first announced that the games had been dropped, the company said that it hoped “to work together with Activision Blizzard to re-enable these games and more in the future”.

Nvidia repeated that sentiment in another statement published by Bloomberg: “Recognizing the misunderstanding, we removed [Activision Blizzard’s] games from our service, with hope we can work with them to re-enable these, and more, in the future.”

Returning to the fold

So perhaps, at least theoretically, there is no reason why these games might not return, given that Activision Blizzard was certainly happy enough to be part of the beta test. But of course an agreement will need to be hammered out, and who knows how many hurdles might stand in the way on that front. The use of a word like ‘hope’ in Nvidia’s statement doesn’t inspire full confidence, either.

If the situation was rectified, that would go a long way to restoring the faith of those who specifically subscribed to GeForce Now and bought games like the latest episode of Call of Duty (Modern Warfare) to play via the service (those whose own PCs aren’t up to the task of running these titles).

Remember that the key to GeForce Now is that you’re effectively paying to rent a powerful gaming PC you can connect to remotely – you still have to buy all the games you wish to play yourself (and they have to be supported by GeForce Now, of course).

The incident has served to highlight one of the major potential weaknesses of Nvidia’s service, in that if publishers do turn around and decide they no longer want to be involved with GeForce Now, those who bought specific games to play solely on the streaming service are obviously out of luck.

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Via PC GamesN