Summary
Blizzard has revealed some major changes coming toOverwatch 2in Season 15, 16, and beyond, including the return of loot boxes and the introduction of hero bans.Overwatch 2is currently facing its stiffest competition yet inMarvel Rivals, and while the new hero shooter on the block has proven to be wildly popular, Blizzard isn’t going down swinging. On the contrary, Blizzard is preparing some massive changes toOverwatch 2that look to not only bring back lapsed players, but convince newcomers to give the game a shot as well.
To reveal all of this information to fans, Blizzard hosted its first-everOverwatch 2Spotlight event, which gave fans the rundown on major new updates on the way for the hero shooter. Quality-of-life and fan-requested changes are being made, like players getting exclusive weapon charms if they hit Plat or above in Comp starting with Season 16 and rank icons coming back to hero portraits.
One of the most notable changes toOverwatch 2is the return of loot boxes, starting with Season 16. Loot boxes were a key component of the firstOverwatch, but they were removed with the introduction ofOverwatch 2, which shifted to an in-game store.Overwatch 2’s monetization has been highly controversial, and so the return of loot boxes, which let players unlock cosmetics for free, will no doubt be appreciated by the community. This time around, loot boxes will be earned through the free track of theOverwatch 2battle pass and as rewards for completing weekly challenges in the game.
Overwatch 2 is Making Big Changes This Year
Another massiveOverwatch 2change won’t come until Season 16. In that season, Blizzard will finally be introducingOverwatch 2hero bansin Competitive Play, giving players the chance to block annoying heroes from matches.Overwatch 2will also be adding a map voting feature, though that won’t come until some point after Season 16.
In the more immediate future,Overwatch 2is bringing 6v6 backfor an Open Queue Competitive Play mode mid-Season 15, with teams limited to two tanks total. Fans can also look forward to Overwatch Classic returning to the GOATs meta, as well as the return of various seasonal events like Lunar New Year, April Fools, Summer Games, Halloween, and more. Time will tell if these efforts seeOverwatchreturn to its former glory, but these are certainly changes that will be appreciated by longtime fans of the hero shooter.
