Overwatch players demand major Quick Play changes after influx of new players

Lauren Bergin
Overwatch Quick Play

Overwatch’s Quick Play mode can be quite the roulette in terms of teammates, but players are demanding a fix after an influx of new accounts has started ruining games.

While Overwatch’s Quick Play mode is designed to be more relaxed than competitive, this really isn’t the case.

Despite Blizzard continuing to bring down the ban hammer on tens of thousands of illegitimate accounts, players who are using Quick Play as an easy means of completing in-game challenges are still encountering swathes of bots and cheaters.

When you throw new players into the mix, things get even worse. After a recent sale for console players, there’s been an influx of new accounts to Quick Play, and Blizzard’s “poor” matchmaking is leaving veteran players reeling.

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Overwatch fans are done with Quick Play

In a Reddit thread that asks if “anyone else noticed the quality of matches having dropped significantly?” hosts of angry players have vented their frustrations in the comments.

Noting that this is”probably due to the recent sale,” the thread starter writes “there’s smurfs/throwers/new players in every damn match and it’s just a complete toss-up whether it goes in your favor or not. I don’t remember the last time I had a decently competitive match, nothing but stomps one way or the other for the past week.”

“QP’s got it much, much worse,” notes another respondent. “We’re dealing with the actual noobs. Happens every sale.” Another echoes this: “I generally played daily for two years. Never comp, usually Quick Play or Mystery Heroes, and lately it’s a s**t show.”

While seemingly harsh, lobbies should be adjusted by skill level to ensure competitive integrity. Without good matchmaking, new players will feel overwhelmed playing against high levels, and skilled players will be sick of not getting challenged. Both lead to one thing: rage quits.

Is Overwatch’s crossplay to blame?

In the wake of Blizzard introducing cross-play to their flagship FPS, some players have found that the quality of gameplay has decreased.

While one commenter writes that “crossplay is the death of a great game,” others have highlighted that influxes of new players post-sale always cause havoc.

“To be honest, I don’t feel any difference with crossplay,” one respondent argues, noting that “it has been s**tshow for a good year now. That’s why I try to avoid playing Quick Plays at certain times (anything between usual 4 PM to 8:30 PM) and weekends.”

Whatever the issue is, Blizzard will have to implement some sort of MMR fix soon. As players continue to turn to the likes of Riot Games’ Valorant or Respawn Entertainment’s Apex Legends for a more competitive experience, Overwatch continues to slip into the competitive landscape’s history.