Overwatch 2 is adding plenty of new features and tweaks to ensure that the sequel stands out from the original title. Along with creating a new team dynamic and adding new heroes, the most noticeable new addition is the Push game mode. The first game rarely added new core game modes, as it had found a groove with its main objective-based modes for competitive play, but Overwatch 2’s goal is to continue to grow the hero-shooter.
The Push game mode was made specifically for Overwatch 2, so it has been molded around the more aggressive and fast-paced gameplay. With smaller team sizes, the matches in Overwatch 2 are intended to be full of action and quick, high-octane combat, and the new Push mode encompasses all of those ideas.
How the Push Game Mode Works
The concept behind Push is simple and not unlike other game modes in Overwatch 2. There is a single objective, which is a sentient robot, that teams must stay near in order to walk the robot to the enemy’s side of the map. Teams fight for control of the objective and must maintain control as they move with the robot onto the enemy’s side of the map. Each map is not necessarily large, but there are turns in the path that slow progress as well as checkpoints that allow a team to recall the objective if they lose but then regain control.
Essentially, Push is like the already established Escort mode, but with no Attacking or Defending teams. Both sides must stay on the attack in order to keep control and move the objective, which removes the one-sidedness that often comes with other game modes. The straightforward approach to Push also eliminates the need for a second round, as both teams have an equal opportunity to move the objective and win the match.
The challenge in the new game mode is maintaining control as the objective gets deeper into the enemy’s area and further away from the friendly respawn point. With the Overwatch 2’s smaller team sizes and fewer Tanks for protection, it is more crucial than ever for players to work together to stay alive and fend off the enemy team. Push seems to be working just as the developers intended because the matches move very quickly, and due to the smaller map and team size, teams are almost always engaged in skirmishes over the objective.
Why Push is a Good Fit for Overwatch 2
Overwatch 2 is attempting to recapture the magic of the beloved hero-shooter while also creating some notable changes and making players think differently. The most obvious changes have been the reworking of heroes’ kits and the addition of two new heroes with a third to be announced before the game fully launches. And many of these changes have been encouraging faster, more mobile gameplay in Overwatch 2.
Between the new heroes and tweaking of existing heroes, Blizzard is encouraging players to never become stagnant in matches in Overwatch 2 and the Push mode is a perfect fit for that playstyle. Push requires each team to stay constantly in motion and makes it very difficult for the match to come to a standstill. Even if one team begins to move the objective far into enemy territory, the close spawn points and agile heroes are able to reengage the objective and could quickly turn the tides of battle, sending the objective to the other team’s side of the map.
Push is not only a nice change of pace from the usual game modes in Overwatch 2, but it perfectly exemplifies how the game is designed to be played. The redesigned Tank role fits right into the aggressive playstyle of the new game mode, and Overwatch 2’s more mobile heroes are able to keep up with the constant back and forth. Push will likely not be the only additional game mode coming to Overwatch 2, but it is proving to be a perfect fit for the highly-anticipated sequel.
Overwatch 2 launches on October 4 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
