These days, I’m lucky enough to work in games, and that means even if I don’t get a game code, I know that I’ll be able to write about a game and make money off it. In 2016 when Overwatch released, that wasn’t the case. I’d buy new games, beat them, then flip them at a second hand shop and use that money to buy another game, and so on. That’s a big part of why single player games, with a definitive ending, matter so much to me. The Witcher, The Last of Us, Horizon, Grand Theft Auto 4, Red Dead Redemption 2, and every FIFA from 09 to 19 all entered my life that way. Countless others, too. Despite this, I still have my old Overwatch disc, gathering dust on my shelf as it dwindles in value and my play time trickles up by a few measly minutes every six months or so. There’s just something very compelling about Overwatch’s existence that never quite translates to its gamep
Overwatch has received a lot of deserved praise and justified criticism for its growing cast of characters, two of which have been confirmed as members of the LGBT community. Tracer, the game’s cover star, is a lesbian whose partner has featured in the universe a number of times, while hardened marine Soldier 76 is also homosexual. This diversity is welcome, and a step above many other games out there, but much of the queer discussion surrounding Overwatch is pushed to the sideli
Before you post this on your angry gamer subreddit, hear me out. I think paid video game loot boxes are vile. They are predatory in nature, designed to exploit players and obscure the real cost of in-game items. I think every country in the world should outlaw them, and I’m glad Overwatch got rid of them. At the same time, Overwatch 2’s monetization is terrible. In the transition to free-to-play, we lost the ability to earn things for free. Though I’m mostly positive on the gameplay changes, it’s hard to ignore that Overwatch 2’s progression is worse in almost every way. I don't love admitting it, but Overwatch was better off with loot bo
Another aspect is to change heroes based on who is on your team. Select people who work together to aid them properly. Mercy works well as a healer for Reinhardt or Pharah, while you can have another healer like Moira taking care of everyone e
If you’re a free-to-play Overwatch 2 player, you only get 20 items from the seasonal battle pass. Overwatch 2 seasons last nine weeks, so it would take you just over 20 years of consistently completing every battle pass to earn the same number of items I got from Overwatch’s loot boxes. If you’re willing to upgrade to the premium battle pass, which gives you all 80 items, you’ll catch up to me in a little over five years - and it will only cost you $500. I’m doing napkin math here. I haven't factored in the 60 Coins you can earn a week or whatever we might get for free from seasonal events, but you can see my po
This is a result of Blizzard gently touching on the queer nature of its characters before running away and never mentioning it again. Fans are forced to draw their own conclusions, and the post-launch announcement that some characters are gay simply feels like performative nonsense. Was this the plan from the start, or did it seem like an easy diversity win when writing the next co
There are two at-risk groups that loot boxes exploit: gamblers and collectors. By axing loot boxes, Overwatch has removed its hook from the first group while simultaneously doubling down on the second one. If you had a desperate need to collect every single skin in the game, you would have been able to do it for much cheaper in the old system. Even if you only want one specific skin for your favorite character, you’ll either have to pay $20 or grind out those weekly challenges and save up. It will only take you 32 weeks to earn enough Coins for one legendary s
Overwatch 2 gives a fresh start for veterans and opens the door for newcomers who never hopped on Blizzard's hero shooter. Say goodbye to loot boxes, and hello, to reworked characters and new content. While many people are starting for their first time, there is a lot to learn that is unique to the seq
As I mentioned before, I haven't played the Overwatch 2 beta, so I know nothing of Junker Queen besides what she looks like. Still, what she looks like is a person who has been methodically grown in a lab in order to drive a tank, so she places high. Junker Queen also feels symbolic of all my confusing feelings towards Overwatch 2 lore|https://overwatch2fans.com/. Blizzard seems to have been a hellscape of harassment, and yet they've created such a diverse (Black women aside) cast of female characters with a range of body types. For all the oversexualised Widowmakers and Tracers, we had Zarya, Mei, and Moira putting spotlights on different kinds of women too. Junker Queen, with her exposed midriff, has elements of the Windowmaker philosophy, but also seems highly queer-coded and has the sorts of rippling muscles women are often not allowed in popular culture. In any case, good at tanks I rec