Overwatch fans almost always have an event of some kind to look forward to. Not only do special hero challenges drop every few months, but there are six proper seasonal events each year. While the Halloween Terror and Archives events feature brawls aimed at co-op play, the content featured in Winter Wonderland is a lot more focused on PvP action.
Alongside a few special brawls, fans have seen many holiday-themed skins added to Overwatch at the end of each year. There are now a few dozen Christmas-inspired costumes that the cast can dress up in, something that will likely surprise newcomers since there is such a massive amount of content. However, that was not always the case, as the original Winter Wonderland was a lot more limited.
How Overwatch’s Winter Wonderland Event Has Changed
The first Winter Wonderland event made its debut in December 2016, the year the game released. It featured visual redesigns for King’s Row, Hanamura, and Ecopoint: Antarctica, giving the maps some festive decor. Some tame skins were added, like a Santa outfit for Mei and a Scrooge skin for Cassidy. Mei’s Snowball Offensive also made its debut, with the mode playing like a more playful version of One in the Chamber from the Call of Duty series. In Mei’s Snowball Offensive, players can gather a snowball from piles on the ground to shoot it at their foes, with each being a one-shot kill. Considering that players only have a single life, the mode can be very intense.
2017 saw the return of Mei’s Snowball Offensive, which was welcomed back with open arms due to how fun and addictive the seasonal brawl can be – even if Mei’s threatening dialogue is a bit creepy at times. Some more complex skins began to be added in the second version of the event, too, like Sombra’s Rime skin and Ana’s Snow Owl outfit. However, the best thing about the second year of the event was that it also introduced another seasonal brawl: Yeti Hunter.
This PvP brawl is comparable to Turtle Rock Studios’ Evolve, as the mode places four hunters against one player controlled monster. In this case, the hunters are versions of Mei in her Yeti Hunter skin, while Winston himself becomes a Yeti through a special skin of his own. The Mei players need to kill the Winston, who has extra health, while the Winston player needs to collect three pieces of meat to become enraged and deal extreme melee damage. With Junkrat traps available to Mei players alongside their usual abilities, the fun mode required some good strategy for both the Meis and the Winston.
2018 brought Sugar Plum Fairy Mercy and a gift-wrapped Bastion, though it lacked a seasonal brawl. Winter Wonderland 2019 included the fan favorite Ugly Sweater: 76 outfit, and it also expanded upon the Mei’s Snowball Offensive mechanics a bit. A Deatmatch variant was included alongside a catch mechanic allowing players to defend themselves from incoming snowballs. As for Winter Wonderland 2020, players were able to collect standout skins like Toybot Zenyatta and Conductor Reinhardt. The third seasonal brawl was also introduced: Freezethaw Elimination.
In Freezethaw Elimination, two teams of four face off with the unique mechanic of freezing replacing death. When Overwatch players are eliminated, they will be frozen in place instead of dying, allowing teammates to thaw them out and bring them back - a feature that adds a lot more strategy to each fight. Unfortunately, Winter Wonderland 2021 is similar to the 2018 event in the sense that it does not introduce a new brawl of any kind, with Freezethaw Elimination coming back instead. Still, there are some neat new cosmetics like Reindeer Orisa, expanding the already massive lineup of holiday outfits. While the lack of a new brawl this year may disappoint some gamers, Winter Wonderland has clearly grown quite a bit since it first appeared five years ago.
Overwatch is available now on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
