Overwatch 2 Adds In-Match Perks

Blizzard Entertainment has announced several major changes coming to Overwatch 2 with Season 15, which is due to begin on Tuesday, February 18.

By far the most significant addition, described by the studio as the biggest gameplay innovation since the franchise launch, is in-match Perks. While in a match, players will now level up two times, gaining hero-specific bonuses that are meant to provide greater strategic depth.

With the first level up, the player will get to pick between two minor Perks. For example, with Torbjorn, they can either choose ‘Craftsman’ (Forge Hammer restores armor health to allies and the turret repair heal is improved by 25%) or ‘Fully Loaded’ (activating Overload completely refills the Rivet Gun’s ammunition). Another example shared is Lucio’s ‘Bass Blowout’, which increases the knockback of his Soundwave skill.

With the second level up, Overwatch 2 will offer a choice between two major Perks. In the case of Torbjorn, you’ll be able to pick ‘Anchor Bolts’ (increasing the throw range of Deploy Turret by 50% and allowing it to be attached to walls and ceilings) or ‘Level 3 Turret’ (which will transform your turret into level 3 for five seconds when using Overload). With Reaper, the ‘Dire Triggers’ Perk gives him a Secondary Fire that does decent mid-range damage and is great for getting that last shot on an escaping foe.

Blizzard said that the Perks concept originated in early 2024, though most of the project came together in the last six months. It went through several stages of trial and error; for instance, Perks was initially just a leveling system featuring predetermined upgrades. However, that version of the system lacked player choice, which is what the team focused on adding for the final version.

Blizzard also shared some of their favorite Perks:

• Winston’s Chain Lightning lets him charge up Secondary Fire to zap multiple enemies near his target.
• Hanzo’s Scatter Arrows will make for some great multi-kill clips.
• With Baptiste’s Shoulder Turret, when using Amplification Matrix, the turret comes out to add extra Automated Healing.
• Ramattra’s Vengeful Vortex enables players to explode Ravenous Vortex in the air and send down any flying enemies.

In case you were wondering, these Overwatch 2 in-match Perks will be available in both Competitive and Quick Play modes.

Season 15 will mark the beginning of this year’s competitive season for the game, bringing with it a Ranked reset, new competitive Galactic Weapons designed to give players the power of the stars, competitive rank Weapon Charms, and new Player Portraits.

Players will be able to join the new 6v6 Competitive queue as well as Overwatch Classic: GOATS. Moreover, Loot Boxes are coming back, being available via weekly and event rewards, as well as earning 1 Legendary Loot Box in the Free Battle Pass and an additional 2 Legendary Loot Boxes in the Premium Battle Pass.

The Overwatch 2 team has already shared the official Loot Boxes drop rates in an attempt at transparency:

Moreover, Blizzard said that a Rare or better item is guaranteed to drop in every single box, with an Epic item within five consecutive boxes and a Legendary item within twenty consecutive boxes.

That’s not all Bizzard discussed today. The developers also outlined major additions coming later this year with Season 16, starting with the brand new Stadium game mode. Stadium is meant to be a wholly different way to experience Overwatch 2, starting with the camera, which, for the first time in the franchise, will default to a third-person view (although switchable at any moment to the familiar first-person view). Blizzard says that the new perspective slightly slows down the pace of action while also allowing players to better see the more iconic abilities of their hero.

Stadium is played 5v5 in a best-of-7 format (with role queue) where players will earn in-game currency each round to purchase and customize abilities. These are powerful upgrades that can alter your character’s survivability and damage output and even completely overhaul their skills. Stadium features a redesigned and intuitive user interface and icons, allowing players to seamlessly view, buy and sell mods (which include Items, Hero Items, and Powers), as well as see the builds of your rival team’s builds to maximize your strategy from round to round.

Stadium also features its own Ranked Mode with multiple divisions, ranks, and unique rewards.
There will be at least 14 core heroes when Stadium launches in Season 16. Over time, Blizzard plans to introduce more heroes, maps, and modes.

Season 16 will bring even more to Overwatch 2, including a brand new Hero called Freya. She’s a former search and rescue operative turned bounty hunter, equipped with an explosive crossbow and unique abilities. Her abilities include Take Aim, which can be used to line up the perfect shot and fire a high-speed explosive bolt; Quick Dash, a dodge that also reloads Freya’s explosive bolt; and Bola Shot, which grabs enemies. Freya can also use wind updrafts to propel herself into the sky. While she’s slated to join the roster in Season 16, players will be able to check her out during a free trial weekend later in Season 15.

Blizzard even teased another character, currently codenamed Aqua. This one is a Chinese hero featuring water-based abilities. He’s currently slated to launch in Season 18. Season 16 will also see the arrival of Hero Bans in Competitive Mode. Later in 2025, Blizzard will add a new Map Voting system.

Overall, it seems that the developers have been hard at work revamping Overwatch 2 in various ways. Whether this will be enough to reignite interest in the game remains to be seen.