Overwatch 2 is ready for an enormous shake-up with the launch of Season 15 on February 18, with Blizzard introducing a brand new Perk system that can see gamers augmenting their heroes’ present skills in highly effective, and doubtlessly game-changing, methods.
As detailed by Blizzard throughout its Overwatch 2 Highlight livestream, Perks will are available in each Main and Minor variations. Over the course of a match, gamers will earn XP and finally have the ability to choose between two Main and two Minor Perk choices to reinforce their playstyle. Minor Perks will come pretty early in a match and can enhance particular skills, however not change how they essentially operate, Blizzard mentioned.
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Main Perks, nonetheless, are one other story. Blizzard mentioned these Perks are about including new skills or shifting a hero’s core gameplay loop, and described acquiring it as “an enormous second” that may “completely change the way you method an engagement.” It gave an instance of a Main Perk for Reaper giving him a secondary hearth choice that may deal good injury at mid vary, or the return of Hanzo’s Scatter Arrows as a Main Perk choice for that hero. Perks are per hero, so swapping to a special one in the course of a match would require gamers to earn the Perks once more, even when that they had already earned Perks on a earlier hero. Nonetheless, swapping again to a hero that had their Perks unlocked already will not require gamers to earn them once more.
Although Perks sound much like the scrapped expertise system that was meant to play an enormous position in Overwatch 2’s now-canceled PvE Hero Missions, lead recreation designer Alec Dawson in an Xbox Wire weblog put up mentioned the thought behind Perks has existed since early final 12 months and got here collectively extra totally within the final six months. He mentioned the crew went by numerous phases of trial and error earlier than touchdown on the present incarnation of the system. Initially, gamers obtained particular Perks mechanically over time, and whereas they did present an influence enhance, they did not change the core gameplay or give gamers choices. That led to Blizzard touchdown on the present system the place gamers get to decide on find out how to construct their hero over the course of a match.
“Each decision–whether it was deciding how highly effective perks ought to be, creating trade-offs, or guaranteeing stability throughout heroes–was made to maintain the core Overwatch DNA intact,” Dawson mentioned. “We spent a number of time debating situations the place ‘much less is extra,’ putting the fragile stability of giving gamers enjoyable Perks with out making issues chaotic or unfair.”
Overwatch has all the time had a component of hero-based MOBA video games like DOTA 2 or League of Legends, and the Perk system appears to go additional into that territory. Actually, Overwatch 2’s new Perk system does not sound all that completely different from how abilities work in Blizzard’s personal MOBA Heroes of the Storm. In that recreation (which even options quite a few playable Overwatch heroes), gamers degree up their characters over the course of a match and get to decide on between abilities that increase their skills in vital methods or grant them new ones completely.
Having gamers make vital selections about their hero in the course of a match may doubtlessly be an issue, so Blizzard designed two methods for gamers to pick Perks mid-game. One technique permits gamers to carry down Alt on PC (or Up on the D-pad for console gamers) after which left/proper click on (or left/proper bumper on console) to decide on between Perks, whereas the opposite permits for Perk choice with a single button press.
“Muscle reminiscence and familiarity will construct over time, however these choices make sure you will not really feel overwhelmed in these clutch, intense moments,” Dawson mentioned.
Perks are only one method Blizzard is mixing issues up with Overwatch 2 in 2025. Blizzard can also be bringing again loot bins, a function from the unique Overwatch that was eliminated as a part of the free-to-play transition into Overwatch 2, as a part of Season 15. It is moreover introducing a wild new round-based, third-person recreation mode referred to as Stadium that appears to attract inspiration from video games like Valve’s still-not-technically-out Impasse and even Counter-Strike.