Overwatch 2 went from one of the most anticipated sequels ever to a despicable shooter that constantly lied to fans. It seems that the game’s fanbase agrees, as the shooter has declined in engagement and player investment.
During Activision Blizzard’s Q2 2023 earnings report (via IGN), the company confirmed that their free-to-play shooter has “declined sequentially.” Activision Blizzard didn’t provide a reason for the game’s failings, though they are hoping next month’s Invasion update changes things.
"While engagement and player investment in Overwatch 2 declined sequentially in the quarter, the Overwatch team is looking forward to the August 10 release of Overwatch 2: Invasion," the publisher wrote. "This will be the largest seasonal update yet, planned to include new PVE Story Missions, a new game mode, and a new hero progression system as well as an additional hero."
Although not mentioned here, it’s clear that the game’s decline is due to broken promises and reliance on paid season passes. The developers promised a unique mode called Hero Missions that would have made each character feel unique. However, after years of promising the mode, it was abruptly canceled.
If that wasn’t bad enough, the company finally brought in Story Missions but is making players pay $15 for them. While paying extra for a free-to-play game doesn’t sound too bad, fans were promised plenty of free content, including these Story Missions. Even new characters are locked behind season passes, when the first game always made them free.
Players can’t even go back to the original Overwatch anymore. The launch of Overwatch 2 turned all copies of the first game into its sequel. All physical copies of the shooter are now just this maligned sequel.
Read More: Overwatch MMO game scrapped after cancellation of Hero Missions PvE
Granted, the first Overwatch wasn’t a perfect shooter either. It arguably made loot boxes a trend for multiplayer games or, at the least, popularized the concept. Unfortunately, loot boxes are better than the slow progression and paid rewards of Overwatch 2.