The novel Overwatch 2 mode, the stadium, is the third pillar of the game, says Blizzard

Blizzard entertainment gives Overwatch 2 The second enormous shock in 2025 this week, launching a novel game mode on Tuesday, which radically changes the standard rules of the team game and introduces completely novel powers for the heroes of the game. The stadium will also add a novel, optional view from a third party’s camera, abandon the mechanics of switching heroes in the middle game, which is necessary for other modes, and Da Heroes, wild novel varieties. Reinhardt can fly now.

Overwatch 2 The director of the game Aaron Keller describes the stadium as the third pillar for the HERO shooter, not only as a novel mode that can stand together with quick game modes and competitive. The game programmers are now with this in mind. Keller said Press in an interview at a round table that there is a “completely separate team of people who devote themselves only to work at the stadium.” They add novel heroes to the mode – the stadium will shoot with 17 playable heroes; Overwatch 2 Currently, it also has novel stadium maps and game modes every season.

“We really want to devote as much time and attention to the stadium support as the rest of the game,” said Keller.

Keller said that the stadium is in one form or another Overwatch 2 He explained that the goal with the novel mode was to give Overwatch 2 Players more tactical gameplay, with downtime between rounds, in which players could strate the hero’s compilation to counteract the compilation of opponents. “The reason why people play a hero’s shooter is simply to get this fantasy power about what it means to play this specific character, and the stadium allows us to push it further than ever in the game,” said Keller.

The stadium is a round, best of seven mode. Before each round, players spend a specific currency for a mode called Cash on items that boost existing skills and powers, which dramatically imagine these skills again. The heroes will initially receive modified abilities that boost damage or healing or shorten renewal times. As the stadium’s games progress, players earn more currency to spend on novel novel powers, as well as the option mentioned, that Reinhardt Fly when using his ability to charge the rocket.

The powers of some other heroes can be even more wild. Ana can unlock the ability to nano to strengthen the entire assembly or shooting the reinforcement by the walls. Moira can sluggish down the “multiball” balls. Mei can turn into a gigantic, rolling ice ball. Kiriko can create his clone when he teleports towards an ally with a quick step.

These powers of the hero for shopping are in a sense an alternative to switching heroes, because the stadium requires teams to choose the hero from the beginning of the game. But if your team has, for example, Genji, it can buy a power that offers a beam reflection to counteract the embarrassing Zarya or Symmetr. And because the teams arrange objects and powers while playing to the stadium, things can become quite tumultuous and feverish. But then the stadium is the most comical.

The initial offer of the stadium heroes includes characters that were in the game from the very beginning, including Reinhardt, Soldier: 76, Genji, Reaper and Zarya. Some experienced heroes, like Tracer and Hanzo, will come in later seasons. There is also a little fresh blood in the letter of the stadium stadium, including Juno and Kiriko. Freja, the latest hero of the injury class, is currently available in every mode except the stadium; It will be available at the stadium as part of the update in the middle of the season.

Full game Overwatch 2 The heroes are expected to come to the stadium on time, but adding them will take a lot of work, said the senior game designer Dylan Snyder and the designer at the leading level Ryan Smith. Snyder said that building dozens of power for every hero and an attempt to balance them all is arduous – and even more arduous for some characters.

“There are heroes whose sets are so tight and complementary that as soon as you start expanding them, you play with fire,” said Snyder. “Mercy was actually one of them; with such a powerful skill as resurrection, you need to be very carefully what you do to expand something like this.”

Smith said that “many high -power characters are risky,” noting that D.Va was a arduous figure to adapt to the stadium game.

Like other modes Overwatch 2Expect a fairly quick response to problems with a lack of balance, and perhaps even novel items and permissions that relate to holes in the sets of heroes. “I expect that we will get a large number of our player base to the stadium,” said Keller, assuring that players have postponed a novel mode at its rate.

Overwatch 2 It is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X. The novel game stadium mode appears on all platforms on April 22.

Correction (April 22): This article has been updated to explain the modes in which you can play a novel figure of Frej.