Blizzard Entertainment's free-to-play PvP hero shooter Overwatch 2 has gone through something of a significant rough patch lately, with overall player engagement and interest seemingly lower than it's been in the game's past. Today, however, the studio revealed that it's planning to shake things up with "groundbreaking PvP gameplay changes" soon, and will go over what these are in an Overwatch 2 Spotlight livestream on YouTube and Twitch that's scheduled for February 12, 2025 at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. GMT.
In Blizzard's official announcement post, it noted that "in 2025, Overwatch 2 is going to be packed with groundbreaking changes to the PvP experience that will be unlike anything you’ve seen before," before going on to say that "it’s going to take more than a blog or a developer update to let you know what we have coming this year." The livestream, then, will give the game's fans a deep and thorough overview of everything the developer is doing to revitalize the acclaimed FPS.
While we don't know exactly what's coming yet, Blizzard has shared some noteworthy details about what to expect. Specifically, players can look forward to "incredible changes [to] how the game is played," along with "a glance at new heroes, new maps, and even more content coming this February and beyond."
While that latter bit sounds a lot like standard fare you'd expect from new Overwatch 2 seasons, the first part about the hero shooter's structure will definitely raise some eyebrows. Given that there's been a ton of 6v6 playtesting in Overwatch 2 recently, I'm wondering if Blizzard is going to revert the game back to the 6v6 format Overwatch originally had; 5v5 has always been very controversial, after all, though I don't believe 6v6 would fix the game's issue of tanks being frustrating to play. A return to 6v6 would also lead to the awkward question of "what was the point of Overwatch 2, then?" considering the fact that 5v5 and its now-cancelled PvE campaign were its two largest distinguishing factors.
Whatever the studio is planning, it's coming at a good time, as Overwatch 2 now has a direct competitor in Marvel Rivals. Like Overwatch, NetEase's new hit is free-to-play and has accessible system requirements, along with a huge roster of characters, lots of interesting interactions between their abilities, and destructible environments that give its maps some unique flair. Since it's launch in early December, Rivals has quickly garnered a huge fanbase and is consistently one of the most-played games on Steam according to SteamDB data. Microsoft's Xbox chart also shows that it's the seventh most-played game on that platform; Overwatch 2 is in eighteenth place by comparison.
Marvel Rivals' explosive success has been impressive to see, though whether it remains this popular in the long-term remains to be seen. Regardless, its big debut highlights the importance of Blizzard getting Overwatch 2 into a state more players are happy with, which is why I expect the studio is planning a substantial overhaul for the game and wants to show it off to fans soon.
Notably, Blizzard has confirmed that in addition to seeing what's coming during the Overwatch 2 Spotlight, fans will also be able to check out several fan-favorite Overwatch content creators testing the changes out firsthand on the same day. If you link your Twitch or YouTube account to Battle.net and then watch one of the creators that Blizzard invites out to its headquarters on February 12 for one hour, you'll get the Cyber DJ Legendary Lucio skin (pictured above) as a drop reward. The streamers the developer is bringing out haven't been announced yet, but I imagine Blizzard will have more to share soon.
All in all, I think Blizzard is definitely making the right call in trying to renew interest in Overwatch 2 with structural/format adjustments and what sounds like a beefy roadmap for 2025. We'll have to wait and see if they actually have the desired effect, of course, but my curiosity is piqued. Come February 12, I'll be tuning in.
For fans of competitive games and hero shooters, Overwatch 2 is one of the best Xbox games and best PC games out there to play. It's completely free-to-play, too, though I should note that you get free skins, 30 Mythic Prisms to spend on unlocks, and a constant 10% XP Boost if you're subscribed to Xbox Game Pass.
