It Looks Like Overwatch Is Going Free-To-Play - Forbes

There’s a big Overwatch 2 reveal set for this week with the promise of major news, including details on the next PVP beta. Rumors have been flying around about what’s in store, and one that’s really catching fire is talk of Overwatch adopting a free-to-play model. If so, it would be long overdue.

Over the last week or so, a Twitter user with the handle @insider_wtf has been posting leaks that have proven completely accurate. They had the full list of reveals for Sony’s State of Play, the release date for the remake of The Last of Us Part I (before Sony itself leaked the news) and a hint about Hideo Kojima’s rumored next game, Overdose. In other words, the leaker seems legit.

(They also suggested that Hollow Knight: Silksong will come to Xbox Game Pass on Day One. We may find out more about that during today’s Xbox and Bethesda showcase.)

On Saturday, they posted a somewhat cryptic tweet that was, on the surface, cryptic. It ended with “We are free to play,” but all the rest of the text was from the Overwatch theatrical teaser back in 2015.

Tom Henderson, a journalist with a stack record of accurate reporting on upcoming games, responded to the tweet with a Hammond emoji. So, yeah, free-to-play is probably happening.

We’ll likely learn more details later this week, but I expect it’s only the PVP side of Overwatch 2 that’s going free-to-play, meaning the current game will be F2P too. I imagine the long-awaited PVE will be a separate purchase, making it what some might suggest would be one of the industry’s most convoluted pieces of DLC.

In any case, moving to free-to-play should have happened a long time ago. I’ve been arguing for years that Overwatch should make the switch. It could have helped bring fresh players in during the barren last couple of years and increased the hype for Overwatch 2. I’m glad it finally appears to be happening.

And who knows? With the Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal still in the works, perhaps the announcement could come as soon as the Xbox and Bethesda showcase.

Meanwhile, the Overwatch 2 Reveal Event (as it’s officially called) will take place on Thursday at 1PM ET. You can watch on the Overwatch YouTube and Twitch channels. Team 4 says it has “been eagerly awaiting the moment we can show you all the things we have been creating” and hinted at the introduction of more heroes.

The team closed out its blog post with another teaser: “Some might say it’s time for a reckoning.” Hmm. I wonder what that could mean...

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It Looks Like Overwatch Is Going Free-To-Play - Forbes
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