Overwatch 2 director Aaron Keller is “apprehensive” about Blizzard weighing in on the ongoing 6v6 debate, as he’s concerned players will go to war with one another over the sequel’s change to 5v5. Players have been debating the loss of one tank since OW2 launched, but Blizzard’s recent admission that the role needs some work has reignited player calls for a walk back.
Ever since Overwatch 2 moved to 5v5, the loss of one tank role has been a hot-button issue in the community. The dynamic of the FPS game changed, and years of balance adjustments have turned tanks into a far cry from what they once were. Blizzard is aware of this, with game director Aaron Keller gearing up to talk about the move from 6v6 very soon. That doesn’t mean he isn’t worried about what Blizzard’s comments could do to the community, though.
“Hey all. Still working on the 6v6 Director’s Take. It’s, uh… going to be pretty long […] I’ll need a few more days of writing and about a week to localize it for all regions,” Keller says on Twitter. One user then says the director’s take will break the internet, with Keller responding by highlighting how nervous he is about the piece.
“Not going to lie. I’m apprehensive this is going to cause people to go after each other, even more, over their preferred version of the game. Open-minded dialogue over dogma.”
Players started talking about 6v6 again as Blizzard admitted Overwatch 2 tanks aren’t “tanky” enough. “Many times, both support heroes need to focus solely on the tank just to keep them alive,” Blizzard writes, adding that the two roles “are essentially tied to each other.”
While not mentioned in the article, many players drew a line between the tank problems and moving to 5v5 with Overwatch 2. Two tanks became one, and since then OW2 has introduced mechanics like passive health regeneration, knockback, and headshot damage reduction to detrimental effect for tanks.
Keller took note of the discussion, saying Blizzard would like to “share our POV” on why it went to 5v5, with the update coming soon. Keller’s newest statement suggests we’ll be waiting quite some time to hear Blizzard’s thoughts, however, but I wouldn’t expect a move back to 6v6, as the balancing alone would take up a lot of developer time.
OW2 has been a mixed bag, to say the least. Our own Overwatch 2 review scored it 6/10 at launch, saying the “PvP feels more like a simple content update than a full-blown sequel,” and this is something we still stand by. The sequel didn’t just lose a tank; it lost a lot of the love too.
With Blizzard’s comments on 6v6 imminent, we’ve got you covered with the best Overwatch 2 settings for PC and a complete Overwatch 2 tier list in the meantime.
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