For the first time in a long time, Overwatch 2 has a major competitor. Marvel Rivals has taken the hero shooter world by storm since its launch last December, and ever since, Overwatch fans have been curious to see how Blizzard would react to the sudden contender.
Today’s Overwatch 2 Spotlight showed that Blizzard isn’t ready to let Marvel Rivals walk all over it just yet. Over the course of 34 minutes, Blizzard announced a slew of new features coming to Overwatch 2 in the near future, including a revolutionary new perk system that lets players customize their hero abilities, and a new third-person Stadium game mode. But while a ton of new features were announced, Overwatch 2‘s most exciting upcoming content is arguably the features that bring it closer in line with the 2016 original.
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Why Overwatch 2’s Current Meta is Controversial
Overwatch 2’s current meta has become quite chaotic because of one damage-turned-tank character who recently received some buffs and updates.
Overwatch 2’s Season 15 Update Has Some Big Features That Cater to OW1 Fans
Overwatch 2 Season 15 Is Bringing Back Loot Boxes
Loot boxes were an incredibly controversial aspect of the video game industry at their height of prevalence in the late 2010s. A virtual crate containing a random assortment of in-game items, loot boxes were deemed as a form of gambling by many gaming regulation authorities, and thus heavy restrictions were placed on them in most countries.
When it came time to release Overwatch 2 in 2022, Blizzard made the decision to remove loot boxes altogether. Very soon, fans began to express their disappointment with this decision. When Overwatch 2 first released, the only way to get skins was to earn them through the premium battle pass or purchase them outright using OW2‘s in-game currency. Overwatch 1‘s loot boxes at least gave players a chance to earn expensive skins for less money, or entirely free-of-charge if they earned them through leveling up.
After years of asking, fans are finally getting their wish. Loot boxes return to Overwatch 2 at the beginning of Season 15. The recent Overwatch 2 Spotlight confirmed that loot boxes will be available in the free track of the battle pass and via weekly rewards. It also seems like players will be guaranteed to earn a legendary skin for every 20 loot boxes they open.
Overwatch 2 Season 15 begins on February 18.
Overwatch 2 Season 15 Doubles Down on OW Classic and 6v6
Overwatch 2‘s recent 6v6 playtests have done a great job of enticing OW veterans to return to the game, offering a gameplay experience much more akin to the early days of the original hero shooter. The recent Overwatch 2 Spotlight showed that Blizzard is doubling down on these playtests, with 6v6 getting its own Competitive queue in Season 15’s mid-season update. This 6v6 Comp mode will be open queue, but there will be a limit of two tanks per team.
On top of 6v6 getting its own Competitive queue, Overwatch 2 will also be adding a new “Overwatch Classic” mode to the game, this time hearkening back to one of the original’s most infamous competitive metas. Named after the Esports team that dominated the 2018 North American Overwatch Open Division Season 2, the GOATS meta sees a team pick three supports and three tanks. This meta became wildly popular in 2019, and it makes its return in Overwatch 2 Season 15’s mid-season update.
- Released
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October 4, 2022
- ESRB
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