Overwatch fans are currently enjoying Summer Games, a seasonal event that has appeared in the game on several occasions. However, Summer Games is far from the only event to feature in the hero shooter, as players can experience a half dozen different events each year. With special challenges for Overwatch heroes interspersed throughout the year, too, there is almost always something special going on in the game.
Each event comes with special skins that are themed around the event's topic, with players only able to collect those skins during the event. If they miss out, they need to wait several months for the chance to buy them once again, meaning that gamers should be sure to log in if a specific event appeals to them. With an exclusive Brawl offered in every event, too, gamers get access to some limited time modes alongside the event skins. For those that have only recently gotten into Overwatch, or do not play it enough to keep up with all the events, this information should prove useful.
Overwatch’s Lunar New Year Event
Overwatch always kicks off the year with its Lunar New Year event, a fitting celebration that sees cosmetics themed around Asian folklore. Plenty of neat skins have come from these Seasonal events, with Sombra’s Face Changer outfit being a real highlight. Seeing the hero cycle through the various masks is a lot of fun, though she is hardly the only character to get a standout skin. A few months back during the Year of the Ox event, Echo became a Kkachi, with the Korean bird represented through feathers and wings. Ashe transformed into a Tiger Huntress, while Orisa took the form of a Bull Demon.
Alongside these neat skins, every Lunar New Year event sees the Capture the Flag Brawl becoming a focus. Following the same rules as the versions of the mode seen in other multiplayer games, it has proven to be a ton of fun due to the various abilities wielded by the Overwatch heroes. In the Year of the Ox version of Lunar New Year, the Bounty Hunter mode was also introduced. This saw a fun twist being placed on Free-For-All, giving players an extra thing to be excited about when the Lunar New Year event returns in 2022.
Overwatch’s Archives Event
After Lunar New Year comes Overwatch’s Archives event, which sees younger versions of the heroes being thrust into the spotlight. The skins often showcase the heroes before they received their iconic looks, with examples being seen in Cadet Tracer and Combat Medic Mercy. Blackwatch skins have also provided new looks for Genji and McCree, showing the two characters when they were in a darker period of their lives. However, the real star of the Archives event is the co-op missions.
While many feel that the Archives event has grown stale due to the lack of new missions, the three that have been released are all extremely memorable. In Uprising, players witness Tracer’s first mission. Retribution shows the kind of missions that Gabriel Reyes, now Reaper, was once a part of. Finally, Storm Rising sets up a meeting between Doomfist and a mysterious Omnic, something that will surely be brought up during Overwatch 2’s PvE campaign.
Overwatch’s Anniversary Event
Overwatch’s Anniversary events have celebrated the game’s five years on the market, with gamers able to play every special brawl and unlock every skin from the other events. The three week period brings new skins, too, and these outfits are usually just aimed at being cool designs that fit each hero’s personality. With Overwatch Anniversary events being a celebration of the game, its characters, and the fans, it serves as a great time for players to hop on and collect some loot boxes. With so many skins able to be collected, players often save up their coins for each year’s Anniversary event.
Overwatch’s Summer Games Event
Next up is the Overwatch event that is live right now. From now until August 10, gamers can partake in the 2021 Summer Games. The event features Lucio Ball, which is arguably the most popular seasonal Brawl in Overwatch. Alongside the Rocket League-like game mode, players can collect some memorable outfits for the game’s cast of heroes. This year’s Summer Games skins see Mei as an ice cream shop worker, Orisa as a Referee, and Symmetra as a Mermaid. With Scuba Sigma getting some hair and Ashe wielding a squirt gun in her Poolside skin, there is plenty to love about the latest lineup.
Overwatch’s Halloween Terror Event
Overwatch’s Halloween Terror offers another co-op Brawl, this time taking the form of a defense mode. Players need to protect the Eichenwalde castle from Dr. Junkenstein, with the twisted version of the scrapper Junkrat sending robots to attack the players. With AI mini bosses like Mercy, Roadhog, and Reaper also attacking, players have to work together using a select lineup of heroes. With all the villains wearing Halloween outfits and some unique narration heard as the story progresses, the mode is addictive. There are tons of standout skins, too, with Pumpkin King Reaper joined by Will o’ the Wisp Tracer and Van Helsing McCree. For those that enjoy seeing characters dressed up for Halloween, this October-exclusive event is a must-play.
Overwatch’s Winter Wonderland Event
Overwatch’s final yearly event celebrates the Holidays, and as always, there are tons of fun skins to collect. Toybot Zenyatta from Winter Wonderland 2020 is particularly memorable, as was his Nutcracker skin a few years prior. A nice touch during this event sees Blizzard giving players access to five free loot boxes on Christmas Day, giving gamers a present to open when they load into Overwatch.
Like Lunar New Year, Winter Wonderland features a few special Brawls. The first is Mei’s Snowball Offensive, a team-based mode with a premise like Call of Duty’s One in the Chamber. Players can regain snow from piles around Ecopoint: Antarctica, however, and with all of Mei’s abilities active, the mode is a ton of fun. Another brawl is Yeti Hunter, which sees one player controlling a beefed-up version of Winston and another team using several versions of Mei. While the team can use traps to catch the Yeti Winston, the monster can eat meat to deal a lot of damage to the hunters. Possibly the most unique Brawl in Overwatch, Yeti Hunter joins a Deathmatch variant and Mei’s Snowball Offensive to make for one of the most well-rounded seasonal events in the game.
Overwatch is available now on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
