This week, Blizzard dropped the long-awaited persistent co-op mode in Overwatch 2. This disappointing news marks a turning point for Overwatch, as Blizzard has officially ended its attempt to transform it into his more spectacularly competitive FPS-RPG-MMO thing. . But more than that, this week changed the way I (and many others) view my favorite games.
Now that we hear from game director Aaron Keller that it was always planned to turn Overwatch into the original vision of the canceled Project Titan MMO, we’ve been thinking about Overwatch for years. I feel like I understand only half of the story of . Despite recent disappointments, it’s a shame that Blizzard put so much goodwill into his failed PvE ambitions when they could have put that time and effort into growing the core Overwatch experience. This is unacceptable. As a player it’s frustrating for me, but it’s also frustrating for the Blizzard devs when years of hard work on hero mode doesn’t do any good.
Overwatch custodians have struggled for so long to understand the game they have: a one-of-a-kind hero shooter with dazzling heroes and unparalleled variety. So why should I trust what’s coming next? My trust in the Overwatch team to deliver on their basic promises has never been lower.
as overwatch 2 idea, We’re screwed. All this week, I’ve been thinking about the Blizzcon 2019 announcement, and in hindsight, how inevitable this was.
Blizzcon
Despite Blizzard delaying Overwatch 2 to 2020 and then to 2021, fundamental questions remained unanswered.
Likewise, when fans walked away from the Overwatch 2 announcement confused about what Blizzard was actually making, it probably wasn’t the best sign. It’s my job to give you the facts about the game, but I had little idea what to make of this announcement. Blizzard unveiled an epic cinematic trailer in the studio’s signature style, along with a short gameplay his trailer showing off all the new stuff promised for the sequel. The biggest by far is story missions and a “very replayable” co-op hero mode with his tree of talents and progression. .
Then former game director Jeff Kaplan took the stage and started saying things that seemingly contradicted the whole “2” part of Overwatch 2.
- There will be new modes, maps and heroes, but they will automatically carry over to Overwatch 1 players, and the two games will continue to be matchmade…weird.
- Skins carry over as well, but new skins must be earned in new games.
- Overwatch 2 was meant to be a fully standalone game for purchase, but will some of it just be free to existing players?
Kaplan confirmed that Overwatch 2 isn’t a traditional sequel, but assured fans that it would feel like a sequel-sized production. “What we want to do with Overwatch 2 is redefine what a sequel means,” Kaplan said.
It turned out to be a terrible idea. Fundamental questions remained unanswered as Blizzard delayed the release of Overwatch 2, he postponed it to 2020 and then to 2021. During that time, Overwatch 1 received minimal attention due to repeated seasonal events, the occasional addition of deathmatch maps, and no new heroes added since 2019. Something similar happened to the world and Blizzard around that time. In 2020 the pandemic forced work back home, and in 2021 he publicly acknowledged Activision Blizzard’s toxic work culture.
It’s been a tumultuous time for the company, with key Overwatch developers retiring between 2020 and 2022, including fan-favorite game director Jeff Kaplan. Players, meanwhile, were confused about how Overwatch 2 would end up.
Friends have asked me if I need to buy a new game to play with them, or if I can skip the PvE element and just buy a new hero. People talked about hero missions and story missions as if they were the same thing (which they really aren’t, but it’s still confusing), and ideas swirled about the surprises Blizzard had spent additional development time crafting. . Expectations were formed in the absence of specific details. With all these resources moved away from Overwatch 1, people thought the sequel must be massive.
When Blizzard met that expectation head-on, Reappearing at Blizzcon 2021 What will be revealed is… minor changes to heroes, some maps, one new mode, and an updated look at the same hero mode from two years ago?
This was the first time Blizzard’s “redefined” sequel started to look like a major expansion to some extent. However, Blizzard didn’t change course in its initial pitch for Overwatch 2. Keller argued that Overwatch 2 “will be the next evolution of the first game, a true sequel. It’s not an add-on, it’s not a small part, it’s not an extension of the game.” original game. This is an evolution and replacement of the original game. “
end game
The broken part of the equation is Overwatch’s creative direction.
With all the PvE elements in place, Keller’s vision might have felt at least more or less realistic, but in early 2022, Blizzard rewrote its game plan around one goal. That was his one goal to somehow release Overwatch 2 later this year. That meant “decoupling” PvP and PvE and just delivering competitive multiplayer.this Announcement video Comments from Keller feel worlds away from the exciting announcements of 2019.
Blizzard’s own description of Overwatch 2 has started to sound small, as if trying to subtly lower expectations while pitching Overwatch 2 as a major release.
First closed beta includes new heroes, push mode, controversial 5v5 rework, and ping system. “All together, this is the most new content we have introduced to the game since launch,” said Keller.
It’s true, and after two years of lack of content, I was excited, but does this really live up to expectations? overwatch 2So began the barrage of revelatory blog posts and dev logs six months leading up to release, outlining fundamental last-minute changes that are sure to piss off anyone who’s been playing Overwatch for six years. explained.
- 😄Overwatch 2 is now free to play!
- 😡 But heroes are on the other side of the paywall
- 😄 No more random chance loot boxes!
- 😡 But the battle pass is here and there is no way to get cool stuff for free
- 😄 There is a free way to unlock heroes!
- 😡…At Tier 55 of the Battle Pass
- 😄 No need to download another client.
- 😡 But Overwatch 1 is being removed for good
At the end of October 2022, Overwatch 2 will be released. This didn’t feel like a sequel at all, but it was still a sequel with more to come. Now, most of that promise has been dropped, and what we’re left with is essentially an expansion of Overwatch, poorly managed to the point of exhausting viewers.
The most disappointing part is Overwatch 2. game, That’s excellent. There are mixed feelings about 5v5 and not every new hero is a winner, but by and large people are enjoying Overwatch again. My friends play it every night, max out all battle passes, and eagerly await the new season. The game is doing well, and for the first time this century, Activision is making more money on his PC than on consoles.
The broken part of the equation is Overwatch’s creative direction. And to Keller’s credit, this week’s bad news tour seems to have admitted that early planning was a mistake.
“Overwatch was born from the ashes of Project Titan. It was a transformative moment for the team and the project…and something beautiful came out of it,” he wrote. “This is another moment of change, and the future of Overwatch is born out of it.”
Hopefully this means that for the first time in years, players and Blizzard are on the same page about what its future holds. It’s his FPS with regularly scheduled heroes, maps, and events, and is essentially a competitive game.
