Vortex Gaming

February 13, 3 AM (KST), 'Overwatch 2 Spotlight' introducing new content for Overwatch 2 was broadcast on YouTube and Twitch. The broadcast lasted about 40 minutes, and tens of thousands of players watched it in real time.

The information revealed that day included the approximate update plan for Season 15 and beyond, new core game systems and game content, new hero and skin information, etc. As a significant amount of information was revealed, we have summarized only the key points.

The biggest change in Season 15 is the introduction of the 'Perks' system. The structure of the Perks system is as follows.

- During the game, players can enhance their heroes through two level-ups.

- At level 2, you can make relatively weak enhancements, and at level 3, a powerful change that changes the play style occurs.

- Perks are designed to expand and enhance the hero's abilities, and can be an important variable that determines the outcome of the game depending on the play style or team composition.

- The examples revealed in the video are as follows.

ㄴ At level 2, Torbjörn can choose between 'Repairing ally armor and increasing turret repair amount by 25% with the Forge Hammer' and 'Reloading rivet gun ammo during Overload'.

ㄴ At level 3, Torbjörn can choose the perk 'Turret is upgraded to level 3 during Overload' or 'Turret can be attached to walls or ceilings'.

ㄴ Bastion's 'Primary Weapon - Configuration: Assault' fires rockets instead of a Gatling gun (level unknown)

ㄴ Sojourn's 'Disruptor Shot' sticks to enemies, pushes them, and deals damage (level unknown)

ㄴ At level 2, Orisa can choose between reducing primary weapon heat and granting 100% additional health that gradually decreases when Fortify is active.

ㄴ At level 3, Orisa can choose between a perk that changes 'Javelin Spin' to an area-of-effect barrier and a perk that increases the power, speed, and knockback of 'Energy Javelin' when charged, allowing it to penetrate enemies.

ㄴ Pharah's Concussive Blast pulls enemies together, or Jump Jet uses fuel, and the total fuel amount is doubled. (level unknown)

ㄴ At level 3, Ana can choose one of the perks: 'Headshots apply' or 'Nano Boost also applies to self'.

- In addition, perks are adjusted regularly, and there will be a larger system reorganization this year.

- 'Galactic Weapon' is provided as a seasonal perk weapon.

- From Season 15, depending on the tier, you can additionally obtain weapon decorations that match the tier from Platinum or higher.

- Tier markings are displayed again on hero portraits in Competitive Play.

- From Season 16, 'Hero Ban' will be introduced. It is not a hero pool restriction. In addition, map voting will be introduced in a future season (undetermined), and hero bans and map voting will only be introduced in Competitive Play.

- From a future season (undetermined), detailed information about each hero will be revealed. Damage, range, duration, cooldown, and all information will be expressed in specific numbers.

- From Season 15, 'Loot Boxes' are back. It is the same as the past loot box system, and can be obtained through Battle Pass, daily challenges, and events.

- Overwatch 2 was adjusted to 5:5 due to various problems such as game pace and balancing.

- As requests for 6:6 increased, the 6:6 mode is being rebuilt without compromising balance, and tests were conducted as a limited event to receive feedback.

- We will update the analysis results of this feedback within a few weeks and continue to adjust it.

- '6:6 Competitive Content' will be opened during Season 15, and will be conducted in the Open Queue format. Two tanks are assigned per team.

- Annual events such as April Fool's Day and Halloween will remain the same.

- In Season 15, a limited mode 'Overwatch Classic GOATS Meta' inspired by the most brilliant and infamous era of Overwatch 1 will be held.

- 'Overwatch Classic GOATS Meta' is a 6:6 mode in which two teams consisting of three tanks and three healers compete, and is a battle of strength without surprise attacks or snipers.

- Information about the new hero 'Freyja' has been revealed. Freyja is a hero with the codename 'Wind Dasher', and has the setting that she was active in Overwatch's search and rescue team in the past, and is now working as a bounty hunter after the disbandment.

- Freyja's primary weapon is a revolver crossbow that supports two modes: rapid fire and single shot. Single shots fire powerful explosive bolts.

- Freyja's cloak is a type of aerial mobility device, similar to Pharah, with omnidirectional dash and aerial jump capabilities. However, gliding is not possible like Pharah.

- The ultimate is a bola bomb that instantly stuns enemies and deals great damage.

- Brief information about 'Hero 44', which is scheduled to be released in Season 18, has also been revealed. This hero, codenamed 'Aqua', is a hero from China who handles water, and the developers explained that she has the most unique skill set of all the heroes that have appeared so far.

- 'Stadium' is a mode that undergoes a bigger change than any game mode that has appeared so far, and is content that will be updated in Season 16, which will be released in April.

- 'Stadium' is the ultimate battlefield that requires not only physicality and instinct, but also strategy and teamwork, and provides a completely different form of gameplay than before.

- The game is 5:5, best of 7, and you can earn 'coins' depending on your performance at the end of each round.

- 'Coins' are used to purchase 'modes' for each hero. Modes range from intuitive enhancements such as cooldown reduction and increased health and attack power to changes or enhancements to skills, and the performance of the hero varies greatly depending on which mode is the main focus.

- You can also play in third person instead of first person depending on the game mode selection option.

- There are a wide variety of 'modes', and you can transcend the hero's role depending on the build. For example, Reaper's 'Wraith Form' can be added with a flight function, or Reinhardt can charge while using a barrier.

- Depending on the growth path, Soldier: 76 can play a support role, or Kiriko can be given a mode that allows her to teleport to an enemy target and be raised as a dive dealer.

- 'Stadium' features a shortened Hanaoka Classic map that has been modified from the existing map and a new Push mode map.

- 'Stadium' is not a limited game mode, but a mode that will be maintained for a long time and is scheduled for continuous updates, and can be played with 14 heroes at first. Heroes that can be played will continue to be added as the update progresses.

- The Mythic Skin for Season 15 is 'Zenyatta's skin. It was created inspired by the golden dragon Pishu.

- The new Mythic Weapon is 'Widowmaker's weapon, which appears as a weapon that directly images Widowmaker's concept of the black widow spider.

- The concept of the skins to be added in Season 16 is 'Magical Girl', and is named 'Dokiwatch'.

- It has the concept of a battle between 'Heroes of Hearts' and 'Void Hearts', and various magical girl concept skins of female heroes appear.

- 'Juno' is in charge of the leader of 'Heroes of Hearts', and shows a more evolved skin.

- The Mythic Weapon for Season 16 is Mercy's weapon, which will be added during the season.

- In Season 17, 'D.Va's Mythic Skin inspired by the Siberian tiger will be added, and Reaper's weapon will be added as a Mythic Weapon.

- The collaboration skin with 'LE SSERAFIM' will reappear during Season 15.

- We will provide more conversations, matches, and more drops by adjusting the competitive format.

- The hero ban system will also be applied to the tournament.

- OWCS will increase from 2 stages to 3 stages, and live events will also be added.

- The 'FACE IT' league is introduced and integrated into the OWCS system, providing more intuitive match progress and wider participation opportunities.

- We plan to introduce a promotion and relegation tournament.

- We will introduce a team partner system to encourage each regional esports brand to participate in OWCS, and the profits will go to the teams and players.

- With China and Australia participating in OWCS, we will open a league dedicated to China. Australian players will be active in the OWSC APAC region.

- A ranking-based promotion league will be introduced to the FACE IT League and Calling All Heroes.

웹진 인벤정재훈 기자
2025-02-13