A trailer for Overwatch 2's season 6 will have an impressive amount of compelling content to offer, piquing interest in players both current and potentially returning, but it may not bring enough to the table for the fed-up portion of its fan base. Between Blizzard's public scandals, shift in monetization strategy, and the recent announcement that Overwatch 2 would be ditching a large chunk of its planned PvE mode, the once-thriving hero shooter is at its most critical juncture.
Hosted by the Xbox Games Showcase, Blizzard unveiled season 6 of Overwatch 2. Shown a few days before the June 13 launch of season 5, fans will have to wait until August 10 for the content teased in the two-minute trailer. There was plenty to stoke interest in the forthcoming season, with the Invasion co-op mode taking center stage. In line with its previous seasons, fans also got a glimpse of the new battle pass and another new support hero, but setting itself apart was the new intriguing Flashpoint game mode, the hero mastery and a firing range - both long-requested quality-of-life features - and story missions that are the salvaged remnants of Overwatch 2's discarded PvE mode.
Blizzard Still Needs to Prove Overwatch 2 Was Necessary
The switch from Overwatch to Overwatch 2 was always going to be divisive, but Blizzard's implementation left some of its fans indignant. As the franchise looked to embark on its next chapter, the last act of Overwatch was a year-long content drought as the studio bolstered the initial package for Overwatch 2's launch. The switch to a battle pass system for cosmetics in conjunction with an in-game shop was met with criticism, and the decision to lock new heroes behind a battle pass purchase or arduous grind further degraded the game's good will. Overwatch 2's launch was a rocky affair, with a wack-a-mole approach to bug fixes that had multiple heroes disabled from play.
Overwatch 2 eventually found its groove, and fans seemed pleased with the pace of new additions to the game, with Blizzard putting out new seasons and addressing player feedback in a timely manner. That positive momentum ground to a screeching halt as the development team announced that work on Overwatch 2's expansive and ambitious PvE campaign was being canceled. The initial pitch for the necessity of an Overwatch 2 that otherwise met almost none of the criteria for a full-fledged sequel was that PvE content, and now with its exclusion, public perception of the game is at a low point.
Overwatch 2 Still Has the Potential to Be Truly Special
With Overwatch 2's future in flux, it has never been more important for Blizzard to wow the game's remaining players with a season that is a step above its previous offerings. Game design can be a sordid affair, with the best laid plans occasionally falling to pieces, but even still, the announcement of Overwatch 2's hero mode being sidelined came across as a betrayal to many of the game's fans, despite the studio's best intentions. The planned story missions appear to be the usable portions of the PvE mode, and the hope is that those will be enough to satisfy players for the time being.
The season 6 trailer for Overwatch 2 does seem incredibly promising, but time will tell if it will be enough to stem its hemorrhaging player base. One of Overwatch's strongest elements has always been the strength of its cinematics, and the reveals for the story missions seems to be leaning into that strength. Blizzard is certainly well-aware of the importance of season 6 for Overwatch 2, and will hopefully be devoting the care and resources to deliver the game's most impressive update since its initial launch, because anything less might mean rough sailing for the game's future.
Overwatch 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
