Overwatch 2 devs reaffirm commitment to pro scene despite OWL team buyouts

Although Activision Blizzard recently publicized a plan to pay a $6 million termination fee for any Overwatch League team looking to shut down later this year, Overwatch 2 developers remain committed to supporting the competitive scene as best they can.

The Overwatch League is currently in its sixth season, though this round of competition could be the last. With viewership dwindling, franchises losing money hand over fist, and some already fleeing the scene entirely, a plan has now been put in place.

As outlined in Activision Blizzard’s Q2 earnings report, the publishing giant is set to hold a vote at some stage in the near future. Here, remaining OWL teams will choose a new operating agreement or opt to part ways with the League altogether. Should they go for the latter, they’ll be paid a $6 million termination fee.

With some teams already out the door and others reportedly eyeing the exit, it could spell doom for the League. But even with OWL’s possible collapse, devs on the Overwatch 2 team are still committed to supporting the competitive scene however they can.

Overwatch 2 devs commit to supporting path to pro regardless of OWL’s status

When approaching the topic during a recent sit-down with media ahead of Overwatch 2’s Season 6 update, Executive Producer Jared Neuss claimed he was just involved in a meeting about the future of competitive Overwatch that very same day.

“One of the things we’ve been talking about in general, is what is the future of competitive Overwatch?” Neuss said. “We believe it’s a big part of the game, a big part of the community.”

While no concrete details have been ironed out just yet, at least none that can be shared publicly for now, conversations are certainly happening and devs are putting rough plans in place for either outcome of the OWL vote later this year. They remain steadfast on one thing, that being a commitment to the pro scene.

“It’s extremely important to us that we have a thriving competitive scene and that there is a clear path to pro for players.”

Exactly what form that may take in the following year is anyone’s guess for now, should OWL come to a close. But based on these comments, it may not be a complete guttering of the esport as we know it.

What will happen to OWL skins and cosmetic rewards moving forward?

Naturally, another area of concern for many players is on the cosmetic side. With dozens of OWL skins, Contenders skins, and the odd player-based or region-based skins mixed in as well, what’s to become of these rewards if the League no longer exists in 2024?

This is apparently exactly what devs discussed earlier in the day before joining us for a Q&A. “I was in a conversation today about what that can look like next year,” Neuss continued, with Art Director Dion Rogers echoing as much too.

“For Overwatch League [rewards] and our own competitive rewards, I think there’s a lot of room to make those more exciting. To tie them more directly into the player and viewer experience.

“We have a bunch of ideas for next year that I think are awesome. Some of those I guarantee we’ll be able to execute on, some of them I’m a little more like ‘we’ll see if we can make them work.’ So I would expect some changes there, but nothing concrete.”

Thus, it’s safe to expect not only will existing rewards carry forward, but new rewards may become available via new methods in future as well. We’ll just have to wait and see exactly how things pan out on the competitive side in the months to come.