Nowadays, I feel like it’s more of a “jack of all trades, master of none” situation. I just like playing the game as heroes I enjoy. I’m not looking to play into whatever the current meta is or optimize my team composition to climb through the ranks.
I think where the trouble really comes in is that as much as I play the game, I would consider myself a casual player. With the roster expanding all the time, it’s just too much to keep up with, and I find myself reaching for the characters from that original 21 instead. The game didn’t expect any baseline understanding from you, which made it perfect for someone like me to play as I was getting into first-person shooters and multiplayer games for the first time. Seasoned gamers could try their hand at characters like Genji or Symmetra, who had some of the most complex playstyles, while newer players could start off with easy-to-understand heroes like Mercy or Soldier: 76. Because their kits were so simple yet effective, it was easy for new players to dive right in for the first time and do fine, but it was still possible to hone your skills and rise through the ranks with a hero you excelled at playing.Įven better, the original UI in Overwatch had star rankings to telegraph to the player how difficult each hero was to play. It was a great roster to launch with, especially for players to pick up and start playing right away. The original lineup included 21 heroes in total: If you ask me, each character on that launch day list had that level of focus and efficiency when it came to their design. Mercy changes the way you play the game entirely because her kit is built for you to focus almost solely on keeping your team alive and boosting damage, only focusing on the enemy for the purpose of avoiding them. Pharah’s jetpack and rockets meant she was the go-to choice for another angle of attack. Reinhardt had his shield, and while he could be a force to be reckoned with if you got too close, his role was to protect the team. Each hero had one thing they did really well, a secondary that supported their main ability, and an instantly recognizable ultimate ability. Most importantly, though, their kits were simple and streamlined. Obviously, the lore was awesome, and those early cinematics and comics fleshed out the characters in really compelling ways.
The different characters catered to every possible playstyle you might want, from up-close brawling to dive heroes to across-the-map snipers. Sure, some characters are always going to be too powerful or too weak, but overall, each original hero had a unique, strong design.
The original Overwatch lineup was nothing short of brilliant in my book. That said, it feels like the game has moved away from the simplicity both in its character and gameplay design. I want to be clear here–I am absolutely biased and have a rose-colored view of Overwatch as it was in its early days. That being said, the roster is filling out fast, and I don’t find myself too thrilled with the most recent additions.
#Overwatch 2 designs series#
Despite my qualms with the series (of which I have many, including recently getting hit with a ban from the entirety of Season One after a series of unfortunate disconnections from competitive matches), it’s still one of my favorite and most-played games to date. With every nerf, rework, and new hero drop, the game has evolved so much since 2016, and to many fans, it’s not even worth playing anymore, especially after the Overwatch 2 relaunch. I’ve been playing Overwatch on and off basically since day one, so I’ve seen the game through all of its changes, for better and for worse.
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