I finished Overwatch 2’s season 12 battle pass last night. There are only 11 days left in this season and it’s easily the longest it’s taken me to work my way through the hero shooter’s daily challenges to unlock all the skins, emotes, and voice lines Blizzard offered in these past nine weeks. As I finished the battle pass, I realized that today, October 4, is the two-year anniversary of when Blizzard shut down the original Overwatch to replace it with the sequel.
In 2022, everything changed for Overwatch…well, kind of. It was supposed to, at least. Now, two years later, it’s clear that my faith in Blizzard’s original vision for the sequel hasn’t been rewarded—and that’s mostly because we didn’t get most of what was promised: a story-driven sequel that would also nurture a thriving competitive suite.
Now, let’s take stock of what we actually got:
- A free-to-play game
- A battle pass system to unlock cosmetics
- An incredibly expensive shop that keeps finding new ways to monetize the cosmetics you unlock as seasons go by
- A 5v5 competitive format that no one in the community can agree on, even as Blizzard tries to appease everyone
- PvE modes were gradually hacked off the game, including a story mode that got three missions, followed by radio silence from Blizzard
- Reports from us and Bloomberg that the narrative missions were canceled without an official announcement or alternative to move the story forward
- The abandoning of the Pixar-style animated shorts that felt like an event (though they still put out some that were less exciting)
- A growing reliance on crossover events that have some great skins but are starting to feel like the only newsworthy thing that happens in the game
- Some cool events like the Mirrorwatch remix from earlier this year, but mostly falling back on old shit like Summer Games and Winter Wonderland
- A few new, great heroes who build upon the world, add new dynamics and synergies to the teamplay, and are usually a lot of fun to play
- A pretty neat Pride event
All of this should be read with the context of the extensive layoffs at Blizzard, turnover due to the company’s reported work culture, and significant leadership changes throughout the years.
I still have a lot of love for the Overwatch universe. After playing over 1000 hours across both the original and the sequel, characters like Soldier: 76, Sombra, and Lifeweaver have embedded are some of my favorite video game characters of all time. I love playing as them, but that isn’t enough anymore—I’m on autopilot, unlocking cosmetics for them I won’t use and feeding a machine that isn’t giving me what I want or was promised. My numbers are going up, and nights I’d otherwise stare at the ceiling (or play a different game, what a concept) are still filled with my friends’ laughter as we push payloads. But I think about Overwatch 2 less and less these days, and I used to be invested in this world. Now it’s just a fashion show for characters who feel like props for the meta of the week.
Hoping for the game that was promised feels futile but I still want it to be more than it is now. But can a team that’s being hit with cuts do more? Is Overwatch 2 doomed to be just enough to sell another Kiriko or Mercy skin? Overwatch was once the biggest game in the world, and its sequel was supposed to finally deliver on more of its promise. Now, it’s no longer the undisputed king of the hero shooter, and stiff competition is on its way.
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