Overwatch 2 players plead for return of old UI after “terrible changes”

The Overwatch 2 UI is not something that comes in for criticism too often. However, the July 11 update has made some drastic changes to the UI, and players are struggling to understand why.

Overwatch 2 Season 5 arguably hasn’t been the most groundbreaking of additions. The Summer Games Event 2023 is helping to stoke the fire though, especially ahead of Season 6. Yet, it’s the July 11 update that’s just dropped that is causing all the headlines at the minute.

Zenyatta’s Discord Orb nerfs have made players question the devs. As well as this, Soldier 76’s buffs have left the community positively stunned. Outside of Hero buffs and nerfs, the Overwatch 2 UI has also been updated. The early reaction is not a positive one though.

Overwatch 2 UI changes are “biggest universal nerf”

Overwatch 2 Reddit user TechTaxi pointed out to the player base two key changes made to the game’s UI. Firstly, commas have been removed from the main scoreboard. For example, under the Damage stat, if a player has done 1,467 damage, there used to be a comma, and now it’s been removed – meaning it would now say 1467 instead.

It’s a minor tweak, but one that’s already causing big visual problems for players. “Removing commas from the scoreboard screen is unironically the biggest universal nerf that they could have given to the playerbase,” declared the top comment, and another user said: “These are terrible changes.”

Certain UI elements were removed in the latest patch such as the XP bonus text in role select and commas in the stats tab menu
by u/TechTaxi in Overwatch

It’s not just displeasing on the eye for players, it’s also affecting their enjoyment too. “I for one struggle to read large numbers without the commas,” complained one user, and another said: “Same here! My brain just lags out for a second and I have to focus super hard to see what number it is.”

While not as impactful, another Overwatch 2 UI change that Blizzard has made concerns XP. It’s only minor, but the game no longer tells you how much Battle Pass XP you can get for choosing each role.

“Nice that they don’t want you to know if you are getting 100 bonus XP or 500 bonus XP. Hell, they could make it 1, and 99% of the playerbase would never know,” said one OW2 player.

The UI changes really haven’t gone down well with the community. Given that it’s affecting players’ accessibility, we can imagine this is something the devs will have to look at ASAP. The team also recently had to get hands-on to explain how the new “On Fire” system works in the game too.