Overwatch 2: Blizzard introduces changes to ranked matches

Ranked play is at the heart of Overwatch 2. As the sequel has changed in terms of gameplay, Blizzard needs to adjust the ranked experience as well.

Difference between newcomers and returnees

“First, seasons should be exciting and tell their own individual stories. Players should embark on a new journey each season, with new heroes, maps, game modes or balance changes,” reveals Blizzard in its new blog post.

Losing a game, on the other hand, shouldn’t be a negative experience. Blizzard wants to give players room to progress and tools to improve.

But Blizzard thinks not only of new, but also of returning players. Instead of portrait experience, the experience points therefore flow directly into the Battle Pass.

As we already know, new players who create an account on or after October 4th will only unlock all heroes and ranked matches after going through an introductory sequence and winning 50 matches. This is how the new players get to know the gameplay and the maps. Anyone who has already been able to play ranked games in Overwatch will be able to do so directly in Overwatch 2.

The numeric value SN is replaced by divisions and game level ranks. It should no longer feel like “the result of a school exam depends on a single question and not on the overall performance”. The ranks remain at Bronze to Grandmaster, each having divisions from 5 to 1. The top 500 has no divisions.

Ranked positions are no longer defined by individual matches

Your rank will be adjusted every seven wins or 20 losses – no longer after each individual game. So Blizzard wants to take the pressure off players.

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Ranks and medals are no longer displayed to other players before ranked matches. In Overwatch 2 you only see name cards and titles in the view. However, there will be special limited ranked titles that you can earn throughout the seasons.

Before you can rank up or down, you must first obtain a rank. That happens after the first seven wins or 20 losses. In any case, you play longer without a rank than in Overwatch. You’ll probably end up in a lower rank for now and work your way up from there.

New game, new rank – also for former players

“Players who were ranked prior to Overwatch 2 will have their rank adjusted at launch. Overwatch 2 is a very different game, so we applied a formula to allow returning players to redefine their rank when they plunge into the updated leaderboard,” writes Blizzard.”

“Most players will initially rank slightly lower as they learn new concepts and the new meta. On the other hand, players who have learned the game in our betas or are following the Overwatch League may find themselves at higher ranks than ever before find again.”

In the new game reports you can get an overview of your performance with the individual heroes. If you’ve been inactive for a long period of time, your matchmaking ratings will be reduced slightly.