Overwatch 2 is finally a real game that people have played. Sort of. The sequel to Blizzard team-based hero shooter has split its PvP and PvE modes into two separate betas. So far, we played the Overwatch 2 PvP beta, and it sure feels a lot like Overwatch (opens in new tab). But it seems like Blizzard has a plan to continue pumping the PvP beta full of heroes and maps until its eventual launch, so that could change. The PvE, on the other hand, is still a mystery, as is the final launch of the game in whatever form it takes.
A lot has changed since Overwatch 2’s 2019 announcement. Back then, Blizzard said its goal was for both the original game and the sequel to coexist. Whether you’re planning on picking up Overwatch 2 or sticking with the first game, you’ll be able to play alongside players from both in PvP modes. Unique to Overwatch 2 will be its PvE story missions. Following their successful character cinematics, which have consistently proved to be big hits with the community, expect to see a heavier focus on futuristic real world locations and lore in this game.
Here’s everything we’ve learned so far about Overwatch 2.
When is Overwatch 2’s release date?
At BlizzCon 2019, Blizzard said that Overwatch 2 is still early in development and isn’t sure when it will release. “I don’t know. I have no idea,” former game director Jeff Kaplan said at the reveal panel. “Like, just let us make it great, that’s what we care about more than anything. We don’t have a date in mind.”
We had our eyes set on 2022, but if that was Blizzard’s plan, it’s not happening anymore. Alongside its November 2021 quarterly earnings call, Blizzard released a statement that Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 (opens in new tab) have both been delayed.
A 2023 release now looks likely, but Blizzard recently decided to “decouple” the PvP portion of the game from PvE, suggesting new maps, modes, and heroes could come sooner than we thought. It’s possible that the PvP side of the game could launch early like Halo Infinite’s multiplayer.
Overwatch 2 hands-on impressions
After many hours of time spent in the Overwatch 2 PvP alpha and beta, we have a lot of thoughts about the direction of the game (opens in new tab). While new heroes like Sojourn are a blast to play, the game’s significant increase in speed puts it in stronger competition with its contemporaries.
“Sojourn’s entire deal can be described in a single sentence: she shoots a machine gun on left-click to charge up railgun blasts on right-click. It’s a gratifying one-two punch—the machine gun (which isn’t hitscan, but shoots fast) is perfect for chipping away at HP to soften heroes up. Once Sojourn’s charge reaches 80-100 (visible on her center reticle), the instant hitscan impact of the railgun is enough to finish most heroes off with one big shot. It’s a bit like having Soldier on left-click and Widowmaker on right-click with all of the potential pitfalls that those heroes have, too,” our own Morgan Park wrote in his impressions from playing Sojourn (opens in new tab).
“The original Overwatch’s DNA isn’t all gone in Overwatch 2, but it’s minimized enough that it starts to make certain non-aim-based heroes and strategies fall behind when they don’t fit into the new rhythm of the game’s team fights. Number tweaks can fix this, and I imagine that’s the bulk of the work that will go into the beta outside of new hero releases. But Overwatch 2 makes me question whether or not squeezing the game into this slimmer form is worth all the trouble,” our own Tyler Colp wrote (opens in new tab).
Overwatch 2 betas: When you can play next
The first Overwatch 2 PvP beta period is over. The next beta period is unknown at the moment. Blizzard announced an announcement for June 16 (opens in new tab), giving us a look at what’s coming up for the game. It seems likely that the next beta will start soon after that, but right now, it’s unclear.
The first Overwatch 2 beta test period for the sequel’s reformatted 5v5 multiplayer started on April 26 and lasted for three weeks until May 17. It’s likely that we’ll see another beta last for a similar amount of time. The first beta included new damage hero Sojourn and new map mode Push. Many of the original game’s maps and modes weren’t playable. That could change in the next beta; Blizzard might want to flip on other maps for focused testing. There also might be more new heroes and reworks, too.
Blizzard is splitting up Overwatch 2’s PvP and PvE releases
While Overwatch 2 was originally conceived as a single package, stalls in the development of its PvE mode have led Blizzard to split the game’s PvE and PvP content into separate releases, at least for the beta period. By decoupling the two modes, Blizzard has been able to begin its PvP betas earlier than it might have otherwise been able to.
Does this mean Overwatch 2 will release in some form in 2022? That much isn’t clear, but since it seems like PvE is taking longer than expected, the new PvP additions now have more room to breathe.
What does the Microsoft purchase mean for Overwatch 2?
In case the internet has been out for you and you missed the news that Microsoft is acquiring Activision Blizzard in their quest to assemble video-game-developer-Voltron, well, it’s happening. When it comes to Overwatch 2, though, what this means is still uncertain.
It’s unlikely we’ll see much in the way of effects for awhile, since Overwatch 2 might not be out until 2023, and the deal itself hasn’t been finalized yet. But it’s likely we’ll get some commentary on all the big Blizzard projects once the deal turns over, much like any kid—enormous-corporate-conglomerate or small—Microsoft will want to play with their new toys.
Competitive teams are using a build of Overwatch 2 in 2022
Rather than using the existing version of Overwatch, players in the 2022 season of the Overwatch League are instead competing in an early build of Overwatch 2’s PvP multiplayer. The change has already had some bizarre results, even beyond the sudden shift from 6v6 matches to Overwatch 2’s 5v5: while playing on one of the game’s new maps in May, the Florida Mayhem esports team were forced to replay a round after performing what Blizzard ruled an “illegal maneuver,” (opens in new tab) having utilized an unintended map exploit.
What we learned at BlizzCon 2021
BlizzCon 2021 was the last time we heard anything major about the whole of Overwatch 2, largely because BlizzCon 2022 was cancelled. Overwatch 2 didn’t get the same opening ceremony treatment that its Blizzard cousins, but that hardly means it didn’t have any exciting announcements. We now have a much better sense of how Blizzard is tweaking Overwatch around its sequel. On the PvP side, the team discussed the big changes to the design and balance philsophy that we’ve now seen come to fruition in the beta. Tanks will be modified to play more aggressively (Reinhardt’s current iteration lets him throw two Firestrikes per cooldown and cancel his charge at will) now that there’s only one per team.
Blizzard also stated its intention to revamp game modes as needed. Former game director Jeff Kaplan suggested, for instance, that the unpopular two capture point mode may be gone forever in Overwatch 2. It may be replaced by a new mode that Blizzard feels confident in like Push. We didn’t hear anything more about the robot-on-robot Push mode at BlizzCon 2021.
For PvE, we heard a lot of the same things that Blizzard pitched when the game got announced. There will be story-based missions and repeatable ‘Hero Missions’ that will help you earn unique abilities for heroes. The dynamic missions will also include NPCs and unique objectives that sound like a more robust version of the PvE missions we already have in the base game.
What is Overwatch 2, exactly?
Well, it’s a sequel to Overwatch, but not in the way that we usually think about sequels (opens in new tab). By the sound of it, Overwatch 2 is more like a big expansion that focuses primarily on PvE missions. These missions appear to build off the Overwatch Archive seasonal events from the past few years. The new story missions will likely have more story, dialogue, and cutscenes than the highly repeatable limited-time events. We go over those in greater detail below.
Overwatch 2’s PvP will be 5v5 teams with only one tank
During a livestream in May, Blizzard revealed that Overwatch 2 would change team sizes down from six to five. It will also change up team composition, which will be limited to one tank, two DPS, and two support.
“We feel like this is the next step in the way that Overwatch ought to be played,” game director Aaron Keller said. “If you think about it, there is a lot going on in an Overwatch map. It is incredibly fast paced. We have always tried to make our combat easy to read and very understandable, and even with all of the work that we’ve put into that, sometimes it’s just hard to track what 11 other players are doing on the battlefield. Removing two of those simplifies everything, and it allows players to understand everything that’s happening around them, and to be able to make better choices.”
Tanks will also undergo some individual changes for Overwatch 2 aimed at making them “a lot more aggressive,” lead hero designer Geoff Goodman said. “They’ll be a little more hybrid-y on the gameplay side, and less just wall protection.”
Game director Jeff Kaplan has left Blizzard
In April 2021, Jeff Kaplan announced he would be leaving Blizzard. Kaplan’s role as game director for Overwatch is being taken over by former assistant director Aaron Keller.
“While I have no pretenses about filling Jeff’s shoes, I’m excited to step into the game director role and continue to be part of a team that’s putting all of its heart, talent, and focus into the next iteration of Overwatch, and I’m honored to continue serving this incredible community,” Keller said. He also noted that development of Overwatch 2 is “continuing at a good pace”.
The new 8-minute cinematic feels like a dramatic declaration of a new Overwatch age. It feels different from the disjointed hero cinematics that we’ve gotten used to over the years, tying together multiple characters into a focused story. Overwatch 2 will have a story that moves forward, and this is the kickoff.
The Overwatch 2 gameplay trailer is a quick rundown of everything coming in the sequel. We get a look at the story, co-op, and the new hero Sojourn.
Overwatch 2 PvE missions are divided between ‘Story’ and ‘Hero’ missions
Overwatch 2 is going all-in on PvE. The game’s main campaign, made up of co-operative Story Missions, will see new and old Overwatch heroes teaming up against the Null Sector, the robotic army players fought in the Uprising event from the original game.
According to Blizzard, players will “team up as different sets of heroes and fight to defend the world from the omnic forces of Null Sector, uncover the motives behind the robotic armies’ attacks, and come face-to-face with rising new threats around the globe.”
Story missions will also have item pickups that can slightly modify a hero’s playstyle. The three shown were an HP generator, a corrosive grenade, and a barrier shield similar to Winston’s. Any hero in the mode can pick these up and use them at will, but they don’t carry over between missions.
On the other end of PvE are Hero Missions, missions separate from the story that are designed to be highly replayable. In this mode, players can level up heroes and unlock customization options that modify their abilities. In the gameplay trailer, we see a modified Tracer build that chains her Pulse Bomb explosion to multiple enemies.
As far as we can tell, these ability modifiers are exclusive to PvE and won’t have any impact on PvP.
Get ready for skill trees, baby
To further increase the replayability of Overwatch 2’s Hero Missions, each hero will have three distinct skill trees that enable some absolutely bonkers abilites that would never work in PvP. Kaplan used the intriguing example of Junkrat dual-wielding grenade launchers. That sounds incredible.
The behind-the-scenes video also detailed Soldier 76’s “snowplough” build, which gives him the ability to push enemies away from him in a wave. This also pleases me.
Overwatch 2 may not have loot boxes
In an interview with PCGamesN (opens in new tab), former game director Jeff Kaplan discussed how the team is exploring other monetization models for Overwatch 2. “Well, we have made a lot of changes to loot boxes and how they work over the years, so we’re definitely open to change. Overwatch 2, in terms of business model, we’re exploring different options that move us away from loot boxes, but I think that will be more for Overwatch 2 than the core game. I would never rule anything out,” he siad.
Kaplan also said that he thinks battle passes are a great idea, but wouldn’t go as far to say that Overwatch would implement something similar. Still, assuming Blizzard doesn’t come up with a different model altogether, battle passes are a pretty good guess.
Sojourn is one of Overwatch 2’s multiple new heroes
And she looks cooooooool. We got to play her during the game’s PvP alpha and beta. She rocks a rail gun, a sweet slide, and an energy grenade. This Canadian woman is extremely mobile and blends hitscan- and projectile-based gunplay in her role as a DPS.
In her story trailer (opens in new tab), we learn that she’s been in the background for most of Overwatch’s history as an organization in the game’s lore. She is a pilot and commander that led the charge for the game’s most iconic heroes. Now, we can finally play her and learn more about her.
Blizzard is being coy about how many other new heroes we can expect at the launch of Overwatch 2. Fans previously suspected that Echo, the elegant flying robo revealed in the announcement trailer, would be another new hero in Overwatch 2, but turned out to be the last hero added to the original Overwatch.
Overwatch 2’s new Push mode is a tug-of-war match
Overwatch 2 is getting a new map type called Push. The premise is as simple as it sounds: Two teams fight over control of a robot that pushes two barriers back and forth across the map. Whichever team pushes farther into the other’s territory wins.
Push is a cool twist on traditional payload that might encourage different hero compositions based on which team is pushing farther. During the Overwatch2 BlizzCon panel, assistant game director Aaron Keller described the mode as “really flanky,” because players can access various points along the robot’s path through different shortcuts and connections.
You can see what he means when looking at this overview of the Toronto map. Keller said heroes that wouldn’t normally see as much utility on Control or Payload maps (Tracer, Reaper, etc) excel in Push thanks to flanking routes.
Like all PvP content in Overwatch 2, Push maps are also coming to Overwatch 1.
Overwatch 2’s new PvP maps are predictably gorgeous
Overwatch 2’s website and panel revealed a few new maps coming with the sequel, with the promise of more to come. The first four shown above are Monte Carlo, Toronto, Gothenburg, and Rio De Janeiro. The last one with the big ring in the sky is still a mystery, but I sure like its style.
In the PvP alpha and beta, we played on the New Queen Street (Hybrid), Midtown (Payload), Circuit Royal (Escort), and Colloseo (Push) maps. There was also an assortment of old maps at the opposite time of day as the usually are, like daytime King’s Row and golden hour Eichenwalde.
Overwatch 2 PvP is compatible with the original game
Since Overwatch 1 is receiving all of the PvP updates coming in Overwatch 2, the two games will be completely compatible. Overwatch 2 players can party up with Overwatch 1 players like they always have.
This is really cool, but it also raises interesting questions. Will Overwatch 1 receive the same graphical updates promised in Overwatch 2? If not, will players see things a bit differently depending on their version of the game?
No more new heroes will release until Overwatch 2
With the release of Echo, Blizzard is continuing to wind down support for the original Overwatch as it prepares for Overwatch 2. No more new heroes will come to the game until Overwatch 2’s release, will have multiple new heroes at launch (including Sojourn).
From here on out, we should also expect seasonal events to be simple reruns of past years’ content. The one train that doesn’t seem to be stopping is the cosmetic department, which is still pumping out top-notch skins for events.
All existing Overwatch cosmetics will carry over to the sequel
For existing players of Overwatch, that’s huge news. Going into Overwatch 2, many players will already have an extensive library of skins to equip. This bit of backward compatibility is great to see, but I also wonder if Overwatch 2 skins will come to the old game. Based on the “shared multiplayer environment,” it sounds that way.
That’s not Lucio’s glowing hair, apparently.
Listen, I know there’s a lot of seemingly more important stuff going on in Overwatch 2, but we need to talk about this. Initially, we thought it was his hair that was glowing. Now, we know that those green pool tubes aren’t his hair (opens in new tab), but some kind of hat. In Overwatch 2, for some reason, it is a glow-in-the-dark hat. I like it, but why and where do I get one?