2 hours in Overwatch 2 is enough to show me what I’ve loved about this game for 6 years
Overwatch 2, the “successor” to Blizzard’s great hero shooter, will start shortly. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus was able to play the release version in advance and is enthusiastic – albeit with some drawbacks.
When Overwatch came out in 2016, I put dozens of hours into it. I’ve always been into shooters, but Overwatch struck a chord like no game before. Not even Team Fortress 2, to which it has often been compared, was as much fun for me.
Then the years rolled by and Overwatch just kind of got… sluggish. I don’t want to say boring. Even if we and other sites reported less about it, the game was buzzing.
Nevertheless, the hype died down over time. For me, as well as for others. The best players stayed and it became more stressful to adapt. Annoying combos like the infamous GOATS meta, dive comps, and tanks in general became more popular.
This was no longer the game I fell in love with. No longer the fast-paced shooter where you can turn any situation into an opportunity. It became a trench warfare with short action spikes. Not what I like in a shooter.
Then Overwatch 2 was announced, the successor whose unique selling point should be a co-op mode. Cool, I was happy but not excited. Especially since everyone expected it to be a full-price title at the time. Maybe a little skinny.
Over time, it became clear that Overwatch 2 was going to be more of an update. Improved graphics, new maps and mechanics and above all: Free2Play, at least the multiplayer part. Is this the salvation for the successor? A clear “Yes!” from my side, at least after the tests.
I recorded my tryout session with Marylin Marx from GameStar and Jan Stahnke from the hardware team. See our first round including impressions here:
I never want to go back to Overwatch 1
I already loved the beta. Overwatch was finally as much fun as it used to be. Sitting in the Voice in the evening with friends, win or lose – it doesn’t matter, we have fun. Real, undiluted fun, peppered with heated tryhard moments and deep bouts of frustration that only make the joy all the sweeter.
One – at least for me – inconspicuous change makes this possible: only 5 players per team play. And more important: there is only one tank. Tanks were the big problem with Overwatch 1.
It’s no fun firing at shields of energy, armor plates, and flesh that soak up all bullets and broad-shoulder to protect the hard-to-hit healers behind. Do you know the meme with the Heavy from Team Fortress 2 and the Medic? That’s exactly what it felt like. Immortal beefcakes you just can’t get dead.
Here’s what it felt like to play against a Mercy or Ana with a tank:
Overwatch 2 halves the number of tanks per team. This means that DPS heroes have the opportunity to eliminate an opponent if he is wrong or plays risky. Snipers are a real threat, just as they should be.
And as a supporter you really have to be careful where you stand. I need to know because I mainly play healers like Brigitte and Mercy. Accordingly, I am often the target of the opponents. But it’s fun, I have to reconsider how I play and don’t stand behind Reinhardt holding down the healing ray and sipping milk coffee with the other hand.
Overwatch 2 brings more of what made Overwatch 1 great
That kind of action and strategic thinking was there in Overwatch back when no one knew that 3 tanks and 3 healers was the best (and most boring) way to get through the game.
At heart, Overwatch 2 remains the same game I’ve known and played for 6 years. I don’t have to learn anything new, I know the characters, I know what they’re doing. I know most of the maps, the objectives and strategies to win.
In the pre-test for journalists, I played intensively with colleagues for 2 hours and rediscovered why I love Overwatch so much. No matter what role, I was in the game right away and had more action, mainly due to the reduced number of players.
It’s hard to point fingers at the things that make me enjoy Overwatch 2 so much. Many details result in a well-rounded overall picture and, as stupid as it sounds, the best way to discover them is to play the game yourself. Much is lost when watching or reading.
“The poison that’s so nice ‘at tingled in your belly button”
But one thing stuck in my mind, which I want to record here as an anecdote. The humor that Blizzard has been known for for more than 20 years also inspires Overwatch 2.
Already in the first part there is one or the other funny saying. But the successor has actually got new voice lines that simply put you in a good mood. Even completely voiced in German, because I prefer to play Overwatch in my native language.
Perhaps the best example is Widowmaker, one of my mains. In one situation, out of nowhere, she came up with the sentence: “The poison that tingled so beautifully in your belly button.” The moment caught me so much that I laughed and died. And admittedly, our opponent was damn good:
Other characters also got some new sentences and dialogues. Here I am reciting a conversation between the cyber ninja Genji and his Sensei Zenjatta:
Genshi: “Master, how do you keep your inner peace in all the battles?”
Zenyatta: “I watch my breathing.”
Genji: “But… you’re not breathing?”
Zenyatta: “Exactly.”
It’s these details that I love Overwatch and Blizzard for, and I hope to discover more of when Overwatch 2 launches on October 4th.
Not just roses and rainbows
However, this opinion should not be a praise for the new shooter, but a first impression. This also means that I list things that I didn’t like. Admittedly, these were few, but clear ones.
One is the new Battle Pass. With Overwatch 2, Blizzard relies on a Free2Play system with Battle Pass, which includes new heroes, skins and more. I have nothing against Battle Passes per se. But I rarely play through them.
In the old system, I could earn anything at any time with enough time. I don’t like setting time limits now. Colleague Marylin Marx from GameStar has calculated that it takes roughly 40 hours to play through a Battle Pass.
You can find Mary’s opinion at the GameStar.
That’s actually still within limits. I would still like alternative ways. Because simply buying all levels would cost between 140 and 160 euros (16,000 coins) depending on the premium bundle, if we did not miscalculate.
Blizzard is blowing up Overwatch 2 for breaking a 7-year-old policy
The Battle Pass is the biggest controversy in the community right now and I can see why. As a casual gamer, the system bothers me more. Fortunately, I already have the best skins for me.
The second thing that bothers me is hero balance. Some heroes received reworks or are new. Orisa and the new Junker Queen just feel unbalanced in places. Kiriko, on the other hand, predicted by the community to be “too strong”, seems a bit too weak.
The Junker Queen looks really cool in the gameplay trailer – In-game, her anti-heal is pretty damn annoying:
Of course we only played in a small circle and almost always against the same opponents. Accordingly, little can be said about the balance and we will see more after the release. Still, I had some great moments of frustration.
I have to say that I played a pre-version. Theoretically everything can still change, but in practice this usually never happens. If Overwatch 2 turns out the way I played it, I’ll be happy, even if I’ll be annoyed at times. But it will always be enough for at least 40 hours of fun – and I don’t have to pay anything for it. for now.
It remains to be seen how the development will continue in general. Because after Jeff Kaplan, another important employee has disappeared:
Another one gone at Blizzard: Overwatch 2 loses its chief hero designer
Reference-mein-mmo.de
