If you're starting out on your journey, you may discover that Overwatch 2 heroes are locked. If you're confused by what's going on here, then read on, for we have answers to deliver.
And this isn't just for new players, who might have anticipated this. It is also happening for experienced players who shouldn't be facing this problem.
Whichever category you fall into, we'll explain what's going on. Let's dig in, and discover what's afoot with the Overwatch 2 heroes locked issue.
How to fix the heroes locked issue on Overwatch 2
As we mentioned above, there are two categories of player that are affected by this: new players, who have never played Overwatch before, and experienced players, who should not be faced with this problem. We'll tackle each in turn.
New players
For new players, there is a new player experience that needs to be completed before certain heroes can be unlocked. It's part of the process if introducing new plaeyrs to the world of Overwatch. And in this case, it isn't actually an error at all. It's a very deliberate decision.
For most new players, the full roster of heroes is unlocked after playing around 100 matches. So get stuck in, and eventually, all the heroes will be available to you.
Experienced players
It's a different story for experienced players, who already had an account for the original Overwatch. For those players, heroes should be unlocked, unless they've consciously chosen to start from scratch with a new account.
If not, here's what we recommend:
- Your first step is to make sure you've completed the Overwatch content merge process. This is easy enough - just click on the Account Merge button.
- If this doesn't work, try resetting your console or PC.
- Next, check that your internet connection is working properly. We'd also suggest checking the server status via the official Overwatch Twitter feed for Overwatch 2, in case the issue is on their side.
If none of these options works, then we'd suggest getting in touch with the Blizzard Support team for further assistance.
Why are my Overwatch 2 heroes locked?
Hopefully by now this question has already been answered. If you're new to Overwatch, then heroes are locked because you have to complete the new player experience in order to unlock them.
For more experienced players however, the most likely culprit is an incomplete account merge. In this instance, Overwatch 2 will not recognise that you are a veteran player, and will therefore treat you like a beginner.
For most players, merging your account will be enough to resolve this problem, and unlock all those heroes that you were previously denied access to. With one caveat: some players who attempt to merge their accounts are encountering an Overwatch 2 account merge queue reset issue. Which, if it happens to you, can cause more serious issues than being unable to access certain heroes.
As ever, it's down to you to decide whether it's worth the risk, or if you'd rather unlock heroes the same way as a beginner, or wait for Blizzard to provide a fix for that issue.