I’ll always think of Overwatch as being one of my favourite games, aware as I am that my lack of playtime means that couldn’t possibly be true. I’m excited to see what comes next, even though I probably won’t play that much either. My favourite thing about Overwatch is hoping that it somehow becomes an open-world, third-person shooter RPG with Zarya in the driving seat - just please Blizzard, never ever make this game. Just let me hope for

But with the release of Overwatch 2 and its debut season less than two weeks away, we now have a concrete picture of how the experience will play out, as well as how much it differs from what came before. This isn’t a premium product anymore, but instead a free game that anyone can download, jump into, and have a reasonably good time without spending a penny. There’s a free version of the battle pass too, albeit with far fewer rewards and a focus on grinding things out over a prolonged period of time, but it’s there, and that kinda rules.

They wouldn’t even be the exception to the rule, either. Mercy’s skin is based on the history of healers, taking inspiration from Florence Nightingale, while Zenyatta’s is a deep sea diver because… well, I’m not sure. It looks cool, I gu

In total, I’ve probably played less than ten hours in Overwatch. That’s a pretty pathetic return for an online shooter that’s been out for five years. In fact, ‘an online shooter’ barely does Overwatch justice. For a while, it was the biggest hero shooter in the world, and despite increasing competition, it arguably still is. I know people who have hundreds, if not thousands of hours in Overwatch, and I’m still in single figures. Yet it’s a game I’m always thinking ab

Where a lot of hero shooters have characters that either riff on Overwatch or age old tropes, Overwatch’s originality makes it easy to project onto. They still aren’t perfect - we won’t be able to play as a Black woman until Overwatch 2 - but they’re head and shoulders above the competition in terms of what I look for in the genre, even though I never play

I don’t care for online shooters in general; I’m much happier with a good offline story game most of the time. That’s a big reason why my Overwatch numbers are so low - I’m busy playing through a gripping narrative rather than getting better at playing as D.Va or

If I see a skin I really love, I can either grind through the battle pass to earn it or buy things outright. Sure, they’re expensive, but it will run me far less than an infinite amount of boxes trying to pull it. However, my past behaviour means that all of my accounts merging into a single entity with the launch of Overwatch 2 means I already have most of the skins I would ever want. Of course there remain a bunch of cosmetics I’d love to earn and will probably end up treating myself to in the coming months, the repertoire of outfits for each character at my disposal is honestly quite overwhelming. I have 80+ unlocks for D.Va, and that includes over twenty unique skins ranging from Black Cat to Cruiser. She was a real sticking point for me, and every new mech was almost taunting me as I tried my best to earn them whenever a seasonal event rolled around. That struggle remains, but now it’s far more manageable.

While the main tank functions in this way, the off-tank is doing every tanky job the main tank doesn’t have time for - protecting support heroes, supplementing damage heroes, and tending to any objective that requires a big, chunky health bar. From Roadhog’s hook to Zarya’s bubbles, each off-tank has some degree of authority over space manipulation, too, which allows them to use the main tank’s anchorage to support more active area control. They’re an essential part of fluid, facile, and fantastic Overwatch - and guess what? They’ll be the first on the chopping block when it moves to

Right now I have almost everything I could ever want, and I’m smart enough now to avoid wasting money on currency unless there is something I desperately want. The battle pass is one of the few means of progression right now, with the character levelling system teased in earlier trailers abandoned until PvE rolls around. Seasonal skins that used to justify events are now available whenever we like, or a part of bundles that cycle through the store each and every day.

Overwatch was the game I played constantly at university, and playing around with its existing roster while delving into each new hero was a big part of its appeal. My flatmates and I would fall in love with specific roles, or gravitate towards certain heroes because their aesthetic called out to us. I’m a filthy weeb and also very gay, so my mains ended up being D.Va, Mercy, and Lucio, with venturing into DPS territory rarely.

I’ve been excited for Overwatch 2 Lore|Https://Overwatch2Fans.Com/ 2 for a very long time. Overwatch is one of my favourite shooters in history, as well as being my absolute favourite online game ever made. I’ve been excited about the potential a story with some of my most beloved characters in video games could have for donkey’s years, as well as the opportunity to run PvE gauntlets with my friends and all of the other mystery inherently surrounding Blizzard’s highly anticipated sequel to one of the most iconic hero shooters around town. 5v5, though? Nah. I’ll stick to current Overwatch for competitive, tha