Overwatch community feels like game finally earned its sequel status

The Overwatch community has responded positively to the game’s upcoming changes after the recent Spotlight event.

Overwatch announced a huge list of updates coming in 2025 and beyond, with some of the major highlights being an absolutely massive “Perks” system, the return of loot boxes, hero and map bans, and new heroes to shake up the game.

The Overwatch team was facing mounting pressure from the community and beyond due to heavy competition from Marvel Rivals, a game that has siphoned players and content creators away from Overwatch. Now, with these major changes, fans are feeling hopeful about the future of the game and feel as if the game may have finally earned its sequel status.

Overwatch fans are ready for future updates

A viral thread saw fans expressing their support for the upcoming updates, with players who have played since launch feeling a level of excitement they never have before.

“[I’ve been] playing Overwatch since 2016, and I’ve never been that excited [for] new updates,” said the original poster, calling the updates a “huge W” overall.

For a long time, the community felt as if the devs were stagnant over the game and that the game needed to make bigger swings overall, even if they didn’t land. With a massive list of changes and the potential of the new hero perks system, the community feels as if Blizzard may finally be willing to take more dramatic swings and earn that “2” in its name.

“So glad they went with the ‘f**k it we ball’ mentality and just pushed out some bigger changes without being hesitant,” said one player. “Hero perks, hero bans, map voting, and this new Stadium mode will add so much more versatility to the game in the long term…I’m glad Overwatch didn’t just roll over and admit defeat [to Marvel Rivals.]”

Blizzard

The community appreciated the announcement for the new heroes as well, with players appreciating Freja’s design as a high skill-based character, and overall excitement for Aqua who seems to carry the ability to control water.

“I’m very excited for Freja,” stated one player. “Her range plus explosives make me think of Ashe, Cassidy, and Junkrat.”

The Overwatch community can expect these changes as early as next week, as hero perks will launch in Season 15. More features will be rolled out throughout the year, with hero bans and Freja coming a season later and Aqua arriving in Season 18.