Ready to step back in time? Overwatch 2‘s Classic Mode takes you straight to the game’s roots. This limited-time event is perfect for anyone craving that first Overwatch experience with its original hero abilities and balance. Classic Mode is all about fast, high-stakes action where you can rediscover old strategies and relive the early days.
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Whether you’re aiming for rewards or just enjoying a blast from the past, there’s plenty of fun to go around. Ready to jump in? We’ve got you covered with all the details to help you make the most of this nostalgic event. Let’s dive in.
This is a limited-time event running from November 12 to December 3.
What Is Classic Mode?
Overwatch: Classic is a limited-time event within Overwatch 2, allowing you to relive the early days of the game. It offers a nostalgic experience, bringing back the original 21 heroes, 12 maps, and game balance from the game’s launch in May 2016. This mode is designed to let players experience the Overwatch’s original 6v6 team-based gameplay.
Expect high-risk, high-reward gameplay and heroes with abilities that haven’t been seen in years. The event features maps like Hanamura, Temple of Anubis, and Dorado, giving you a chance to revisit these classics.
For a nostalgic touch, Overwatch: Classic uses only the original default skins.
How To Play Classic Mode
To play Overwatch: Classic, go to the main menu of Overwatch 2 and click on the orange ‘Overwatch: Classic’ in the top left corner. This will take you to the event hub page, where you can queue up. Classic Mode uses the traditional Quick Play ruleset.
In the first few days of the event, there will be no hero limits, meaning you can have multiple versions of the same hero on your team. After this initial period, hero limits will be enforced, allowing only one of each hero per team.
Heroes are grouped into their original roles — Attackers, Defenders, Tanks, and Supports — but you’re free to pick any hero regardless of your team’s position. Classic Mode also features faster Ultimate charge rates, allowing you to use your Ultimate abilities more often.
What Are The Classic Event Challenges?
Overwatch: Classic includes several challenges to complete during the event. Some challenges require you to play a specific number of games, while others are hero-specific. You’ll earn rewards for completing these challenges, such as an exclusive player title, spray, and icon.
The challenges include:
- Playing 15 Overwatch: Classic games as any offense, support, tank, or defense hero
- Playing incremental games of Overwatch: Classic
Some challenges reward double progress for wins, so make those victories a priority!
What Are The Classic Event Rewards?
There are several rewards earned for completing the above challenges. Keep playing, keep winning, and collect them all.
- Play 50 games to unlock the 6v6 Enthusiast Player Title.
- Play 10 games to earn the Classic Cooperation Spray.
- Play 60 games to unlock the Pachihardt Player Icon.
- Complete six of the Classic Mode challenges to earn the Strike Commander’s Watch Name Card.
Overwatch has evolved significantly since its release, so going back to some of the iconic strategies from 2016 can be a lot of fun. There are some of the metas from the early days of Overwatch to try out.
Symmetra Teleporter Cheese
Before her redesign, Symmetra had a powerful Teleporter ultimate that allowed players to bypass large portions of the map, quickly setting up an overwhelming offense. This meta, commonly referred to as ‘teleporter cheese,’ is all about using Symmetra’s teleporter to get your team into key positions faster than the enemy could react.
Symmetra’s ability to teleport players from spawn directly to the action make for some quick assaults on the enemy’s defenses.
Bastion Shield Strategy
Bastion was one of the most infamous picks in 2016, especially when placed in a turret form on certain map choke points. The strategy involves hiding Bastion behind a shield or in a well-protected area, allowing him to deal massive damage to anyone who dares cross his line of sight.
Pairing Bastion with a Reinhardt shield, or a Zarya for protection through bubbles, is key to making this strategy work.
Triple Tank
The Triple Tank meta focused on creating a durable frontline with three tanks, each providing different types of protection and utility. Reinhardt serves as the main shield, Zarya deals strong damage with her energy gain, and D.Va provides mobility and Defense Matrix for crowd control.
The synergy between these tanks allows for sustained team fights, with D.Va and Zarya absorbing damage and Reinhardt holding the frontline. This comp is great for pushing objectives and holding tight chokepoints.
