Junkenstein’s Lab has OW2 players convinced canceled PvE abilities are coming back

Overwatch 2’s new Junkenstein’s Lab game mode is already a Halloween hit with players, and they think it’s a sign of something bigger in the works featuring canceled PvE content.

Season 13 of OW2 introduced a new PvP mode in the form of Junkenstein’s Lab, a limited-time experiment where players can upgrade and use special versions of hero abilities.

These abilities, referred to as “mutations,” add some new flavor to the game’s cast of heroes, and fans have fallen in love with the new mode for bringing so much new to the table.

While some players want the mode to become a permanent fixture year round, many have suspected that the mode makes use of scrapped PvE abilities, saying this could indicate that something bigger is coming from Blizzard.

Across social media, fans have shared their opinions on Junkenstein’s Lab, praising the mode while still mourning the loss of the planned PvE missions.

“The game mode is just amazing, and besides some balancing problems, it’s one of the most fun I’ve had with the game in a long time,” one said. “Seriously, I know that probably 90% or even all of the ‘mutations’ were taken off of the PvE foundation, but they bring so much more variety to the gameplay, almost like discovering a new hero.”

“It feels like I can replay this mode over and over with the randomized cards and have a really good time making the best RNG build I can,” applauded another.

On the Competitive Overwatch subreddit, users suspected that the mode’s level of polish was a good sign that Blizzard was cooking up something bigger with the repurposed PvE abilities.

“The new Halloween mode is sick and is clearly testing something bigger,” one remarked. “There’s zero chance they put this much work and polish into an LTE they plan to run for two weeks once a year.”

“I’m hoping they have plans for something bigger than a goofy occasional side mode, but most of this stuff is probably stuff that was originally meant for PvE, hence the polish and effort,” agreed another.

Others pointed to recent job listings that confirmed a “major” new Overwatch feature is in development and believe the two could be connected.

“There’s really no other feature that comes to my mind which would require special marketing consultancy other than a new Permanent game mode, a new way to play Overwatch.”

We’ll have to wait and see exactly what the future holds, but with this new mode generating so much discussion from players already, there’s little doubt Blizzard will return to this formula if they weren’t already planning on it.