Overwatch’s New Map Is Coming, But So What?

It’s that time again: Blizzard has announced new content for Overwatch. This time, we’re getting a map, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Every four months, we get a hero, a map, and two events. We got Doomfist in July, the Summer Games event is now, and we can expect that a Halloween event will occur in October. It only makes sense that they fill the extra month with a shiny new map called Junkertown.

This month’s release of the Summer Games event came as a bit of a disappointment for avid Overwatch fans, though, as it seems to confirm that Blizzard is perfectly okay with recycling annual events. They even brought back Rocket League’s ugly step-cousin, Lucioball. Suddenly, the rest of the upcoming events become a bit too predictable – I hope you liked Dr. Junkenstein for more than just two rounds. Snowball fights coming in December. February probably holds the year of the Dog. Once you can read into the future of a release schedule, it tends to seriously kill the anticipation for new content. At this point, my Overwatch hype is confined to the single potential hero release between now and the end of the year. How is that supposed to hold my interest? What exactly happens now?

Overwatch came out on a wave of momentum; never had a game been so deserved of the pre-release excitement then Overwatch and dropped like a match to tinder. I was living in South Korea at the time. Within days of the release, Overwatch was the number one game being played in PC bangs, overtaking League of Legends for way more weeks than it had any right doing. It was an exciting revolution, as FPS games outside of Sudden Attack rarely hold any sway with Korean gamers. Alas, League would eventually return to the top, but Overwatch had made its mark. This was the new gold standard for shooters.

Among the various reasons for its success, Overwatch had an abnormally positive atmosphere to it. Everything in the game was tailored to make you feel like you accomplished something after every round. Perhaps you had your highest healing in a round, or maybe you were commended for keeping Zarya fully charged. No matter what, you did something right, and Overwatch wants you to know that. It certainly didn’t tell you what you did wrong, and that created this aura of positivity. For once in internet history, a competitive game had a happy community. People worked together. Enjoyment was had by all!

That lasted right up until the competitive Seasons began. Suddenly, people were once again calling out every error, blaming others for losses and finding anything they could to complain about. That’s where the releases came in to save the day. Blizzard released tiny hints of an upcoming Hero, and the fanbase once again had something to celebrate. Overwatch was going to get consistent updates, and that was exciting. We never knew what would come next. Could it be new modes? Maybe we’ll get a new map this time. What could all these different events hold? It was a time of discovery, and gamers love discovery. The competitive side flourished with the addition of sanctioned leagues in Korea and America, while the casual side was held aloft with multiple new modes and updates to keep Overwatch feeling fresh and inventive.

Ana released on July 19th, 2016. Doomfist released on July 27th, 2017. The release calendar may have just completed its first cycle. So what exactly happens now? The competitive mode has grown stale and just a bit more salty as people realized that Blizzard was intentionally dropping their ranks between seasons. The events coming up are going to be more of the same for any loyal fans. This is the first real test to see how much staying power Overwatch has in the competitive gamespace. So far, they’ve only offered us more of the same, and they threw in some competitive changes. That’s not enough.

It may seem like I’m just a big hater, but I love Overwatch. There’s no doubt that it’s a great game, and it’s done quite well for itself up to this point. However, my interest wanes as every round is just more of the same. There’s a ton of potential in the Overwatch universe, and Blizzard is already capitalizing on this by creating plenty of different storylines and interactions. It’d be fun to see more events like Uprising, where players got to act out a critical moment in the Overwatch lore. That’s so much more engaging than tossing snowballs at nine other Mei’s. Instead of rehashing old events, let’s push this universe forward. That’s a game that could hold an audience for the long term.

I can only deal with one round of Lucioball before I recall why I hate it. There aren’t even Olympics this year. The players deserve better than that.