The Overwatch 2 development team revealed patch notes for the beta on Tuesday, giving more information for players as rolling access begins. This includes covering topics such as the new game mode, Push, 5v5 and the tab scoreboard.
Bring! It! On! I LIVE for this!#Overwatch2 PVP Beta access will now begin rolling out to select participants throughout the day. pic.twitter.com/QM9iG8UIpR
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) April 26, 2022
Big changes for Overwatch 2
A lot of these patch notes covered the news that fans already knew of, from the new game mode to 5v5.
As a quick recap, Push is the game mode replacing Assault in Overwatch 2. Instead of having to capture two points, Push is essentially a tug-of-war. The maps revolve around the Treadweather TS-1 Large Utility Robot, which begins in the middle of the Push maps. The team that pushes the robot closer to their enemy’s spawn wins within the eight-minute time of the map.
As for 5v5, instead of the traditional two tanks, two DPS and two supports, Overwatch 2 has only one tank per team. Alongside that, each tank is changed to suit a solo-tank role.
One entirely new change is the scoreboard. Now, it shows key statistics to everyone in the lobby, like eliminations and deaths. Due to this change, the fire and medal systems within the game are gone, at least to start in Overwatch 2. The patch notes mentioned a possible return for the fire system in the future.
Updates from small to big
The patch notes go into detail about all the changes Overwatch 2 brings. This includes environmental audio updates, better sound options and the long-awaited ping system.
Of course, other new additions are the day and night cycles on the classic maps. This includes evening on Ilios, dawn for Lijiang Tower and so on. The new maps of Circuit Royal, New Queen Street, Colosseo and Midtown look to have a static time set in the beta.
As for hero changes, there is a lot to go through, but role passives are now in the game. This includes a movement speed buff for DPS heroes, knockback resistance and less ultimate generation for taking damage for tank heroes and health regeneration for support heroes.
As for specific hero changes, we have the new hero Sojourn along with big reworks for Doomfist, Orisa and Bastion. Every hero has some new changes, so make sure to hop on and see what’s different with your favourite hero.
