Blizzard recently broke its silence regarding the future of Overwatch 2. In a brief update posted to the official website on January 29, Team 4 indicated that February 12 will be a big day for Overwatch 2. Despite the developer updates on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and in Game Director Aaron Keller’s Director’s Takes, also posted on the official Overwatch website, concrete details about the hero shooter’s content roadmap have remained scarce.
Ever since its release, Overwatch 2 has faced controversy and criticism. The game has experienced no shortage of obstacles, from debates over its monetized seasonal battle pass to infrequent hero releases and the transition from 6v6 to 5v5 in 2022. As such, while February 12 is expected to bring groundbreaking changes to Overwatch 2’s PvP experience, it needs to be a pivotal moment for the game and its community.
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Overwatch 2’s Spotlight Event Premiers on February 12
Overwatch 2 Needs To Deliver or Risk Falling Behind
As Overwatch 2 heads into 2025, Blizzard will analyze how the game is played while unveiling new maps and heroes. With the studio stating it will take more than a blog or developer update to outline what’s coming this year, a live stream event is set for February 12 to reveal the details. While the announcement brings exciting positives, like the Lucio Cyber DJ Legendary Skin as an exclusive drop for watching eligible creators’ streams, and the potential for major changes, it must be substantial.
In recent months, NetEase Games’ third-person shooter has gained significant attention. This has led to Overwatch 2‘s developers commenting on Marvel Rivals and emphasizing that competition is healthy. As controversial as the comparison of the two games has become, Marvel Rivals‘ popularity could ultimately benefit Overwatch 2 fans. Marvel Rivals‘ success can help Team 4 continue to refine its game and carve out its niche in the hero-shooter genre.
Unfortunately, loyalty to a franchise nearing its tenth anniversary – considering Overwatch‘s first beta released in October 2015 – can only carry a community so far. While Blizzard’s title remains well-polished and unique, Marvel Rivals has also attracted players by offering similar features and seemingly learning from Blizzard’s challenges in its development process. For some players, while Overwatch‘s Game of the Year accolade is notable, the February live stream may be their final hope.
With Blizzard bringing back nostalgic features in recent seasons, like Pink Mercy in Season 11, the Overwatch Classic game mode, and 6v6 playtests, it’s apparent the studio is listening to its community’s feedback. However, the game still faces plenty of criticism, and there are several features that the player base is requesting, which Team 4 has the opportunity to address. While it would be impossible to appease everyone, the upcoming content roadmap must be robust and offer more than just new heroes and maps.
To start, fans have expressed the desire for the permanent return of 6v6 in Overwatch 2, with ranked leaderboards and rulesets. Though it could be a while before this is implemented, a simple acknowledgment and promise of this feature being worked on could go a long way. After all, Blizzard extended its first 6v6 playtest after high player interest, and it hasn’t shut down the idea of 5v5 and 6v6 coexisting.
“Fans have expressed the desire for the permanent return of 6v6 in Overwatch 2, with ranked leaderboards and rulesets.”
Additionally, hero bans in Marvel Rivals have reignited the conversation within Overwatch 2‘s player community. Some players have proposed that this feature could help prevent overpowered heroes from frequently dominating matches, which, following Hazard’s dominance in Season 14 and Juno’s prevalence in Season 12’s meta, could be noteworthy. While hero bans in Overwatch 2 may not function as effectively as they do in Marvel Rivals, since NetEase Games’ title lacks role queue, further experimentation could be a massive step in the right direction.
Overwatch has experimented with hero bans in Competitive before during its Hero Pools system, which temporarily disabled certain heroes for a week. Other variations of hero bans have also been seen in professional play, such as the 2024 Esports World Cup and FACEIT tournaments.
To coincide with any potential competitive changes, some players have advocated for the return of Skill Rating (SR) points rather than the reworked tier system that debuted with the sequel. When Overwatch removed SR, it was incredibly controversial since players could no longer see an associated number relating to their skill. Given the ongoing discussion about ranking up in the game, it might be worth either removing tiers and replacing them with SR again or keeping the divisions while adding an SR value to help players track their progress.
Furthermore, game modes like Clash and Flashpoint lack variation in their map pools. This problem can be fixed over time, but it is worth commenting on nonetheless. Players have indicated they would like to see locations such as Gothenburg, which was featured in Overwatch 2‘s PvE missions, become playable in a PvP environment. However, based on what has already been seen of this location, if it were to become a permanent fixture, it seems more likely to be an Escort or Hybrid map.
Unfortunately, though Blizzard has abandoned the Invasion missions from Season 6 due to poor sales, lore enthusiasts are still hoping to see the narrative continue. Overwatch 2 could take a page out of Marvel Rivals‘ book and implement stories in-game. Alternatively, reintroducing the annual Archives events from the first game could be a great option, particularly for those who wanted to see the Suravasa mission shown at BlizzCon 2019. In the past, Archives events featured PvE modes where four players grouped up to complete missions based on key moments from the game’s lore.
Ultimately, a solid content roadmap could prove invaluable for the community, in addition to continued communication from Blizzard. With Overwatch 2‘s next playable hero speculated to be Maximilien, there’s still a lot to look forward to in the hero-shooter. If Team 4 doubles down on its identity as a first-person shooter with unique characters and role queue, the February spotlight could mark a monumental day for the game.
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October 4, 2022
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