It’s been almost two years since Overwatch 2 was announced, and we still don’t know when the game will release. With the recent upheavals at Blizzard, including the departure of lead designer and game director Jeff Kaplan, the future of Overwatch, and the rest of Blizzard’s properties, is in question. Given these issues, it’s not beyond reason that Overwatch 2 could be canceled or delayed indefinitely.
Will Blizzard cancel Overwatch 2 or delay it?
Overwatch 2 was announced at BlizzCon on November 1, 2019. It’s been explained that it’ll expand the PvE gameplay significantly and move to a new five-versus-five format for PvP. While certain features are being released as exclusive to Overwatch 2, it’s intended for the original game to merge into a single product eventually.
While Overwatch saw many new updates, events, characters, and maps over its first few years, content releases have slowed significantly over the last year and a half. It’s likely this is a combination of COVID-related issues and the team switching focus to Overwatch 2. However, it also might be a result of poor working conditions inside Blizzard.
Overwatch 2 is unlikely to be canceled, but it’s almost certainly been delayed. Kaplan’s departure has to have set development back as the team adjusted to the change, and we haven’t got much info about the game since the initial reveal.
Another thing that could be delaying the release is the lack of a coherant vision for the game’s universe. It’s obvious that the story segments shown in comics and animated shorts are just made up on the spot. Since the PvE modes are supposed to expand on the plot the team now has to go back and somehow make sense of everything and fit it into a larger picture.
When last we heard, Overwatch 2 is coming out “when it’s ready.” Unfortunately, we’ve heard that before, and it didn’t turn out so well.
