For hardcore players, the main Overwatch 2 experience will be found in Competitive Play, and while fans can expect a similar level of intensity as the original, there are some major changes coming to the game mode. Blizzard has now pulled the curtain back on some of the biggest changes that are coming to Competitive Play with Overwatch 2.
Overwatch 2 is abandoning traditional levels to focus on the Battle Pass, so the old requirement of having to hit level 25 to unlock Competitive Play is being replaced. New accounts in Overwatch 2 will instead have to win 50 Quick Play matches on top of going through the First-Time User Experience in order to unlock Competitive Play. The idea behind this is that it will ensure those in the Competitive Play pool will be properly prepared before joining up with the more serious players. It also has the added benefit of discouraging people from engaging in disruptive behavior like cheating because if their account gets banned, it will mean going through all this again to regain access to Comp.
In the original Overwatch, Competitive Play was all about SR points, with players gaining SR upon winning a match and losing SR upon losing a match. Blizzard is doing away with this system in Overwatch 2 with Skill Tier Divisions. Skill Tier Divisions in Overwatch 2 retain the tiers that players could reach with their SR in the original Overwatch, with each tier having five levels (for example, Bronze 5 to Bronze 1). Players' skill ratings will adjust every seven wins or 20 losses as opposed to going up and down every single game.
Overwatch 2 is also changing up placement matches for Season 1 of Competitive Play. In Overwatch 2 Season 1, players will have to either win seven games or lose 20 games, whatever comes first, and then they will be given their rank. Most players are going to be ranked in lower divisions, with the idea being that they will then progress to the higher rankings as the season progresses. One's Competitive rank from Overwatch 1 will also be taken into account, but players should expect to place lower than expected regardless.
The rewards for Competitive Play in Overwatch 2 will once again be Competitive Points. Players get 10 Competitive Points for every win and three points every time they draw. Like usual, players will be able to buy golden guns for their Overwatch heroes using Competitive Points.
It will be interesting to see how the Overwatch community reacts to the Competitive Play changes. There has already been some backlash with some of the changes coming to the game, like the new phone number requirement for Overwatch 2, but these Competitive Play changes seem like they could be a good thing, at least on paper. Overwatch 2 fans will have to wait to get their hands on Competitive Play for themselves to decide if these changes are for better or worse.
Overwatch 2 launches in early access on October 4 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
