Overwatch 2 - What We Know So Far

Before we get too far into this, we have to be honest: we're basing our belief that Overwatch 2 is in development on rumors. The website Kotaku reported a while back that it spoke to anonymous sources at Blizzard, who not only stated that a new StarCraft game was canned, but that development on it ended in order to clear the way for games like Overwatch 2.

With that said, we don't have hard details on Overwatch 2, because as far as Blizzard would like us to know, the game does not officially exist. Everything beyond this point is either us reporting on rumors, or us speculating. So here's what we can offer in the way of Overwatch 2's potential release date, characters, and more.

This may come as a total surprise, but we do not know the release date for Overwatch 2 just yet.

Further, Blizzard's decision to port Overwatch over to the Nintendo Switch in mid-October 2019 also complicates the matter. If Blizzard is still pushing versions of Overwatch out into the world, when could it possibly plan on ushering everyone toward a brand new game in the series? We honestly don't know. If we had to guess, we'd say that Overwatch 2 — if it is indeed a thing — will come with the next generation of consoles.

Seeing as Blizzard has not itself confirmed Overwatch 2 as a project in active development, it would be awfully surprising for us to have a trailer for the game. Thus we do not.

We could see a trailer for Overwatch 2 coming as soon as E3 2020, however; especially if the game has been in development this long, and a launch is planned for next-gen consoles.

The existence of a campaign is perhaps one of the stranger rumors tied to Overwatch 2.

Overwatch is, as most would admit, an arcade shooter. The game was built with multiplayer in mind. How could something that plays like Overwatch suddenly become a game with a full player-versus-environment campaign experience? If that is indeed what's happening, we're very eager to see how Blizzard pulls it off. Until then, we'll hold our breath.

Overwatch has so many characters at this point that it's hard to imagine the game adding more. Yet what else could Blizzard possibly do? How do you sell an Overwatch 2 with the exact same roster? There will have to be new characters, and some are already speculating about who they could be.

GamesRadar, for instance, feels Overwatch comic characters like Liao and Lynx Seventeen could potentially make their way into Overwatch 2. Others believe we'll encounter new characters we've never even heard of yet. Will the roster grow a bit unwieldy with all of these new additions? Perhaps. But maybe Blizzard can solve that problem by killing off a few characters in the Overwatch 2 campaign.

What?! It's just an idea.

Another way Blizzard could justify the existence of an Overwatch 2 would be to add some new modes to the game. And fortunately, there's a game out there that closely mimics what Overwatch might look like if took place in a slightly different genre.

We have two words for you: battle royale. And then two more on top of that: Apex Legends.

Overwatch 2 could definitely add a battle royale mode with its current cast of characters. And Respawn Entertainment's Apex Legends has shown that it's entirely possible to mix the hero shooter and battle royale genres into something that makes sense. Will we see battle royale in Overwatch 2, or perhaps some other mode? We'll have to wait and see. But we'd love to see Blizzard give it a shot.