It would appear that the blowout success of another team vs. team hero shooter has helped prompt Overwatch 2 out of stagnation and into action as last night’s Blizzard stream took the wraps off a whole bunch of additions for Seasons 15 and 16, including new features, a new mode, and two more heroes to the roster.
Leading the list is the new perks system, which will introduce two “level up” choices players can make during a quickplay or competitive match: a choice between two minor perks that provide lighter passive upgrades to abilities, and one of two major perks that promise to redefine a hero’s gameplay. Given examples include Torbjorn’s Forge Hammer restoring teammate armor as a minor perk and the option to place turrets on walls and ceilings as a major perk. This feature will arrive with Season 15 on February 18th.
The next tentpole attraction is Stadium Mode, a new 5v5 best-of-seven brawl that introduces the option to play in third-person as well as first-person, and the ability to earn currency to spend on ability-changing upgrades that shift how hero skills work. This mode lands with Season 16 sometime in April and will have 14 heroes available to play when it arrives.
Speaking of heroes, Season 16 will introduce Freja, an elusive character who wields an explosive crossbow, can capture enemies with a set of bolas, and can dash to the side or upwards with her abilities. After that, a second hero is on deck for Season 18 codenamed Aqua who wields water-based abilities that can manipulate the battlefield. While Freja won’t fully release until April, Blizzard plans to have her playable in a trial weekend this month during the new season.
Circling back to Season 15, that will naturally start off a new competitive season, introduce a new 6v6 competitive queue, and an Overwatch Classic: GOATS mode that promises to relive “one of the most notorious and memorable periods from Overwatch’s history.” The shooter is also gearing up for the start of its next esports season and will rerun the collab with K-pop group LE SSERAFIM in Season 15.
Also of note for Season 15: Cosmetics-filled lockboxes return from the dead. These new boxes now have transparent odds and will be designed to guarantee a rare or better item in each one, an epic item after five consecutive boxes, and a legendary item after 20 consecutive boxes. Lockboxes can be earned from daily and weekly missions and from the shooter’s battle pass, granting one legendary lockbox for the free track and two legendary lockboxes from the paid track.
Blizzard also granted a rough overview of additions coming later in the year like hero ban options in competitive play, map voting features, and some new cosmetics. The full rundown of what Overwatch’s future brings can be either read or watched in a video below.
