Well, it turns out I was wrong. Quite wrong. It now looks like Overwatch 2 won't be out until 2022 at the earliest, which likely means regular vanilla Overwatch won't see any significant updates for over a year. And that's a very bad thing when it comes to maintaining a stable fanbase for your multiplayer shoo

While we knew that most (if not all) of the original Overwatch maps will appear in Overwatch 2 , it was exciting to hear that Blizzard will be expanding some of those maps. During the Hero Shooter Competition Missions segment of the video, Blizzard revealed that Push the Payload maps will have branching paths, meaning the Payload might open up new areas of original Overwatch m

As a result, most of my Overwatch group began to fall off of the game since it was beginning to feel stagnant. It was no longer an evolving experience that was exciting and fresh. Instead, it was a game that was stuck in a holding pattern waiting for its sequel to come and revitalize

Overwatch wasn’t a failure. The servers didn’t need to go down. Blizzard has the cash available. If they can pay their nightmare marshmallow CEO millions in salary, stocks, and employee hush money , they can keep servers up. There’s no reason to insta-kill the original outside of shaking down fans.

Blizzard's Overwatch 2 videoshowcase also contains some details that are easy to miss on top of these new announcements. Like everything else shown in the video, these details are subject to change, but some give players a few ideas for what to expect in the seq

First up is the main menu, which is a real snazzy bit of presentation. The first thing you’ll notice is how much the colour scheme has changed, with many of the tones updated to feel more modern and grounded compared to the cartoonish first game. There’s still plenty of room for silliness, but the orchestral score is even more soaring and extravagant, doing its best to emphasise how this is a glorious return to form despite most of the game playing and looking the same. First impressions count though, and Overwatch 2 doesn’t disappoint.

When Overwatch 2 was revealed in 2019, I assumed that it had to be nearly finished. Obviously Blizzard was announcing it because it was going to be releasing sometime in 2020. Otherwise, it could risk losing a lot of its popularity. Devoting resources to working on a sequel rather than adding content to the current game could cause players to drop off as the updates became less frequent. So it had to be just about ready to come

As you can see, the only thing that won't be patched into the first Overwatch is the story missions. Every multiplayer aspect of Overwatch 2 will be in vanilla Overwatch. For most players the online component is the only reason they play the game, so if everything is coming to the title they already own, then what value does the sequel have? If anything, Overwatch 2 sounds less like a fully-realized follow-up, and more like an iterative release in the ser

But, you might be thinking, "Sure, Blizzard may be making it impossible to enjoy the game you bought while forcing you to play a different game - but can’t you still be Mercy in Overwatch 2?" And the answer is, "Yes, but who gives a shit?" Oh, goodness! What a fucking deal! If I paid money for the original Overwatch, I get the courtesy of unlocking all the characters I already paid for ? Talk about a good value! Thank you, Blizzard, sir! Thank you! What is going on here? Why is this cool with us?

Just because a sequel exists doesn’t mean I don’t want to play the original. When Warcraft 3 came out, I didn’t want Warcraft 2 erased from existence - even if Warcraft 3 had more content. When I play Smash Bros. Ultimate, I don’t wish Nintendo would break every copy of Smash Bros. Melee with their bare hands. Let me repeat that: even when a new game contains all or most of the content of a previous game, that doesn’t mean the previous game should have a bullet put in the back of its head. Especially if there are fundamental differences in the way games play out. Smash. Bros Ultimate may have the content of Melee, but the two feel different.

COD is one of the few game series left that get away with an annual release schedule. Every fall like clockwork a new COD comes out and sells like hotcakes. Activision likely loves the profits it makes from this FPS franchise, and it wouldn't be shocking if it thinks they can do the same thing with Overwat

In the video's example, Elite Grunts differ from standard Grunts in a few ways. Besides an increase in hit points and damage output, Elite Grunts get a second wind after they're killed; instead of just blowing up, these bots crawl after the player even after losing their limbs, ultimately exploding upon if they reach the player before getting gunned down. Who knows what else other Elite units will be able to

Even when (mostly) paying people back for their purchases on Stadia, Google is still showing it barely cares about its users. Not every game will allow saves to transfer. Hell, some games specifically designed for Stadia are now in limbo. Quick reminder - the people on the ground making these games are often creative folks who just want to bring something nice to the world. I’m not criticizing the engineers who made Stadia work or the artists and designers who make Overwatch look and play brilliantly. They deserve praise and probably better pay. Which, again, is funny considering these are all greedy companies sucking in dollar bills.