Oops. ]]>The Overwatch League’s 2023 season unofficially begins in ten days when the West Region takes on select Overwatch Contenders teams in the Pro-Am Tournament. Various teams still have to announce new rosters and fans are getting antsy with a lack of communication and content.
Leaks of “scrim codes,” or replay codes of OWL scrimmages between teams, have been the savior of the late offseason by offering sneak peeks of new rosters and players. While these practice rounds won’t exactly dictate how well teams will do in the actual season, they offer a ton of entertainment when we need it the most.
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It's a great day for people who hate Arcade mode. ]]>It’s a wild day in the Overwatch 2 community for both hardcore players and casual fans who love a good crossover episode. The game’s collaboration with One Punch Man launches today and players can complete challenges to unlock cosmetics or purchase additional skins to complete their shiny new collection.
Overwatch League fans will also get to update their in-game wardrobes today as new skins launch for multiple teams, especially those who have undergone rebrands or major transitions. The Vegas Eternal and Seoul Infernal, formerly the Paris Eternal and Philadelphia Fusion, respectively, have introduced completely new color schemes for the upcoming 2023 season. Those skins can be unlocked with Overwatch League tokens.
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They're trading the Lone Star State for a facility closer to home.]]>After winning the Overwatch League’s 2022 championship, the Dallas Fuel is moving that shiny trophy to an entirely different continent.
The team announced today it will be competing in the league’s East Region in 2023, relocating from the West Region it has called home for the past five years of competition. While this change allows the Fuel’s players to spend more time in their homeland, South Korea, it’s the latest in a series of massive changes that could affect the team’s fanbase.
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Some of the league's old guard return for another chance at redemption. ]]>With a little over three weeks before the Overwatch League season kicks off with a West Region Pro-Am Tournament, the clock is ticking for teams to publicly announce their rosters. Some teams remain completely MIA, but the Washington Justice has finally unveiled its squad featuring former OWL pros from multiple regions.
The team announced players every few hours on March 4 and 5, resulting in a six-player roster with many names familiar to long-time Overwatch League fans.
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The Washington Justice is aware of the situation and has involved a third-party legal team. ]]>A member of the Overwatch community has claimed that they were “groomed and sexually exploited” by Zouheir “GetAmazed” Baba, current head coach of the Washington Justice and former coach of multiple European Overwatch Contenders teams.
The poster, who goes by Kassian, detailed the accusations in a TwitLonger that circulated around the Overwatch community today.
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We hope he likes barbecue. ]]>While some Overwatch League teams have yet to announce a single player from their 2023 rosters, other teams are wrapping up their big reveals with a fancy bow.
Former San Francisco Shock support and two-time Overwatch League champion Park “Viol2t” Min-ki is joining the Houston Outlaws, the team announced today. The franchise also advertised Viol2t as the “final piece of the puzzle,” effectively completing a five-player 2023 Outlaws roster.
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The game's narrative designers took us behind the scenes of the mode that finally fulfills our wildest dreams. ]]>On a rainy day last week, I logged on to my high-end, RGB-powered gaming computer after chugging an entire gallon of cold brew in preparation for a truly difficult task. I was about to take on the most brutal challenge Overwatch 2 had ever created, far beyond the skills of most of its players.
I had only one goal in mind: I needed to win the heart of a cyborg ninja, a brilliant doctor, and a decidedly non-cherubic archer in under an hour, while not making a complete idiot of myself in front of two of Overwatch 2’s greatest narrative masterminds.
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A limited-time arcade mode brings back a deleted ability with bonus heart emojis. ]]>Dozens of hero abilities have been axed over the many years of Overwatch‘s tenure, like Symmetra’s Shield Generator and Reaper’s strange floating soul orbs he used to have to collect to gain health back. Among them is Scatter Arrow, Hanzo’s once-legendary ability that relied entirely on geometry (and luck) to get hits on unsuspecting enemies.
For Overwatch 2’s Ultimate Valentine event, which kicks off on Feb. 14, players get one more shot at showing off their Scatter Arrow skills in a limited-time arcade mode.
]]>They range from titillating to positively terrifying. ]]>For the first time since the franchise’s 2016 release, the Overwatch team is embracing love by creating an event all about Valentine’s Day. The Ultimate Valentine’s Day event runs from Feb. 14 to Feb. 28 and comes with a bonus dating simulator in the form of Loverwatch.
A bouquet of new, romantic voice lines were added with the season three launch on Tuesday, Feb. 7, however, so players can get an early look at the corny (or cringe-worthy) content coming their way next week. All of the lines can be unlocked by completing challenges during the Ultimate Valentine’s Day event.
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Especially in the East Region, Overwatch Contenders teams will get to join the action throughout the season. ]]>Overwatch League fans are used to relatively long offseasons, with the esport often lying dormant between the Grand Finals in October and the advent of a new season the following spring. This offseason was especially brutal, with upwards of 100 players in the free agent pool amid an uncertain future. A broken partnership with NetEase also threw the league’s East Region into chaos as Overwatch 2 and other Blizzard games were effectively banned in mainland China.
To make a cohesive season, the Overwatch League is inviting some new players to the party in season six, according to the year’s first Community Update.
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