GameStop Orders Employees to Destroy Copies of Overwatch 1

gamerant.com:

GameStop is reportedly asking its employees to destroy copies of the original Overwatch game in light of the sequel's digital-only, free-to-play launch. The original Overwatch launched in 2016, and now, six years later, Blizzard has replaced it with Overwatch 2. Unlike most game sequel launches, Overwatch 2 completely overwrites the Overwatch 1 client, meaning that as of OW2's launch, the original game has ceased to exist.

Overwatch 2 is a free-to-play game, and as such, is digital-only. The original Overwatch was a premium boxed product. Even though Overwatch 1 is six years old at this point, retailers still carry copies of the game, especially video game retailer GameStop, since it sells used copies of older titles.

Overwatch 2 is Being Review Bombed

Now it seems GameStop is destroying its remaining copies of Overwatch 1, at least in the case of some stores. TikTok user and GameStop employee ksihinata has uploaded a video of GameStop's orders to destroy copies of the game for PS4 and Xbox One. Curiously, the Nintendo Switch version of Overwatch isn't mentioned in the document, possibly because it was merely a box and didn't actually include a game cartridge. It's also unclear if this is a company-wide mandate or if only some GameStop stores will be destroying their remaining stock of Overwatch 1 now that the sequel is readily available to download.

Destroying copies of games is generally frowned upon, but the Overwatch 1 disc no longer serves a purpose beyond those that simply want to collect it. As previously mentioned, Overwatch 2 has overwritten the Overwatch 1 file, so the disc is essentially useless at this point. Those that want a copy of the game as a keepsake may want to contact their local GameStop to see if they