As Overwatch went offline on October 3 leading up to the launch of the highly-anticipated Overwatch 2, some hardcore players who didn’t know what to do during the downtime turned to a Roblox Overwatch clone to satisfy their urge to play the popular hero shooter. Overblox, a Roblox sandbox game version of the iconic title from Activision Blizzard, is similar to Overwatch — or at least as similar as it can be with lower-fidelity graphics, blocky characters, and far fewer features.
In Overblox, Robloxians can play as characters including Reaper, Tracer, and Mercy. The game looks and feels functionally similar to Overwatch — sort of. It’s an alternative to Overwatch, the same way watching a pirated version of a movie recorded in a theatre from an iPhone camera is the same as watching that same as actually going to the movies. Still, the game appears fairly popular as a free-to-play version of Overwatch. Overblox launched on Roblox in 2018, and since then, Robloxians have played the game more than 4.7 million times.
Overwatch isn’t the first game to be honoured with a Roblox clone, as there are several Roblox games that essentially amount to fan versions of popular titles in the shooter genre. With titles like Counter Blox (a CS:GO knock-off) and Fortblox (a Fortnite clone), these versions of games have many of the same essential elements of the game they copy but lack their extensive features.
As GamesRadar reports, even professional players dipped their toes in the blocky waters of Overblox. London Spitfire’s official Twitter account posted an image of team member SparkR playing the game with the caption, “We’re handling the whole ‘no Overwatch’ thing perfectly well, thanks for asking.” The tweet has garnered more than 7,000 likes.
Overwatch content creator Aquamarine posted an in-game image from Overblox on Twitter, saying, “I thought Overwatch was down, but It’s still here,” following it up by tweeting a video of Overblox gameplay footage. Aquamarine’s initial tweet has more than 8,000 likes.
Overblox wasn’t the only way that fans celebrated the final moments of the now-sunset game. Other celebrations included in-game parties and messages from within Overwatch that read, “Even the best journeys end, but a new one is right around the corner. Thank you, heroes! See you October 4th!” and “see you on the other side.”
If you’re interested in seeing what else is popular on Roblox, be sure to check out the best Roblox games in 2022. You’ll also want to follow all of our coverage of Overwatch 2, including our guide to Overwatch 2 characters: every new hero so far and all confirmed Overwatch 2 maps, from new locations to old favourites, which will properly prepare you for the launch day’s ensuing chaos. Our Overwatch 2 review is also live, so check out what we think of this first half of the updated PvP.