Overwatch 2 is getting radical changes that might finally help that '2' make sense, starting with a third-person mode and over 160 hero perks
Two months ago, the internet gathered around and informally crowned Marvel Rivals as the new popular hero shooter of note. I'm having lots of fun with it, but its rule-breaking heroes and experimental abilities have kept a question nagging in my noggin: Why isn't Overwatch 2 trying anything like this?
Well, now it is. In a 34-minute Overwatch 2 «Spotlight» video that premiered today, Blizzard laid out the next year of Overwatch, which includes the biggest shakeups and additions the FPS has seen since Blizzard slapped a '2' on it. It's safe to say this is a bigger deal than 5v5 ever was.
During the first few seasons of 2025, Overwatch 2 is getting:
From that list, only perks and the 6v6 competitive queue are arriving in Season 15: Honor and Glory, on February 18. Stadium, Freja, loot boxes, and hero bans won't arrive until sometime in Season 16.
Each hero has two pairs of perks earned throughout a match. Heroes begin at level one and gain XP through kills, damage, and playing the objective. At level two, you choose between one of two «minor» perks, which Blizzard describes as «a little boost to warm you up.» Level three gives the choice of two «major» perks, which can be anything from a significant damage buff to an entirely new ability. All 42 have four unique perks, meaning longtime players will need to get familiar with 168 new variables that didn't exist a week ago. After skimming a complete list of hero perks, I'm surprised by how strong they sound. A few examples:
Orisa
Zenyatta
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Genji
As a lapsed Overwatch player, I'm still in mild shock. These changes are big enough that just one of them would be the centerpiece of a regular balance patch. This is Blizzard upending its nine-year-old shooter overnight—the gall!
If you have hundreds of hours clocked in a hero, it's easy to imagine how differently they'll play after February 18. Genji mains can get more
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