Blizzard is making major additions to its upcoming FPS, Overwatch, which is due for release later this year. It’s currently in an extremely limited closed beta with much of its content in flux. The game’s beta went live back in February and saw the addition of a progression system and aesthetic unlocks.
The newest patch weighs 1.5gb and comes with a new map, Route 66.
Though the travelers and road trippers who used to cross the US on historic Route 66 are gone, the Main Street of America still stands, a testament to a simpler time. The gas stations, roadside shops, and cafes have gone into disuse, and the fabled Deadlock Gorge is mostly seen from the comfort of transcontinental train cars. But amid the fading monuments of that earlier era, the outlaws of the Deadlock Gang are planning their biggest heist yet.
It also adds a new game mode called Weekly Brawl, which functions similar to the weekly Tavern Brawl in Hearthstone, offering a new set of rules every week to keep the game fresh and interesting.
Blizzard explains: “In one Weekly Brawl, you’ll only be able to play Soldier: 76, while in another Weekly Brawl, a random hero will be selected for you each time you respawn.”
Players can join Weekly Brawls as a squad or solo. For the duration of the beta, the mode will rotate daily but will return to a weekly schedule later on. You can select it from the main menu.
The patch allows players to also record their plays with a new personal highlights feature to complement the Play of the Game feature. Players will see some of their best plays, which Blizzard plans to allow players to export in the future. For now, you’ll have a maximum of five highlights, which will be lost when you exit the game.
The Play of the Game has also been improved to make it more varied and interesting. Players will be thankful to not have to sit through boring replays of Torbjorn’s turret.
You can read some of the patch’s highlights below:
Player Progression
- All available and unlocked achievements can be viewed in the Career Profile > Achievements tab
- Select achievements will now unlock general and hero-specific sprays (which can be equipped in the Hero Gallery)
- Players will now unlock a new portrait frame every 10 levels, instead of only at levels 10, 25, 50, and 100
- Players will now receive a promotion every 100 levels
- When a player receives a promotion, they will unlock a new portrait frame theme
- With each new promotion, the player’s level (and the EXP required to level) will be reset
- New Legendary skins have been added for several heroes
- Plays of the Games have received a polish pass
Joining and Leaving Games
- Players will now receive an EXP bonus for playing multiple matches in succession
- Players who backfill into a match will no longer receive a loss for that match (even if it ends in a defeat), but can still receive a win
- These players will also receive an additional EXP bonus for the match, if completed
- Players who leave an in-progress match will now receive an automatic loss
- Players who repeatedly leave in-progress matches will also receive a temporary penalty on EXP gained from future matches (this penalty will persist as long as the player continues to repeatedly leave in-progress matches)
Group Improvements
- Players can now request to “Join a Group”
- When a group leader leaves a game, he or she will now have the option to leave with the group intact
- Expanded preferences for groups have been added to the Options menu
- Option to allow current group members to invite other players to the group
- Option to allow “Anyone,” “Friends,” or “No One” to join your group without an invite
Miscellaneous
- The new player experience has been updated
- The Tutorial and Practice Range have received a polish pass
- Dialogs will now guide new players through the Tutorial, Practice Range, and Practice vs AI modes before recommending Quick Play
- Players can now browse the main menu while queued for Quick Play, Play vs AI, or Weekly Brawl! games
- “Healing Done” has replaced “Final Blows” as an available end-of-match medal
- End-of-match commendations have received another tuning pass
- AI heroes will now melee and use Health Packs
