When Blizzard first announced Stadium for Overwatch 2, I was convinced it was an awful idea. The mode didn’t sound bad, but PvE story missions were already axed because of how time-consuming they would have been for developers to keep pumping out. If that was too much, then developing and maintaining an entirely untested MOBA-style mode, with its own separate balancing and meta, sounded like the straw to break Winston’s back.
I’ve never been more wrong. As a lapsed player who hasn’t really bothered with the sequel, Stadium has hooked me right back into Roadhog’s loving embrace. I’m not alone, either. It’s the most popular mode, flying ahead of quick play and competitive. So, maybe it’ll take some extra elbow grease to maintain, but it undoubtedly breathed new life into the game, right when it needed it most.
Balance Doesn’t Matter In Overwatch’s Stadium Mode
Stadium is the power fantasy of a hero shooter fully realised. Obviously, there’s an element of balancing to ensure that you aren’t being steamrolled by the same two heroes every game (looking at you, Zarya), but the further along a match gets, and the more abilities you unlock, the more broken everyone becomes. Soldier 76 can get little bursts of aimbot every time he fires a rocket. Moira can summon half a dozen orbs that latch onto enemies with their mega-damage-dealing tendrils. And don’t get me started on Lucio! The range. He practically heals the whole map.
There’s a freedom to how unashamedly busted Stadium is, and everyone knows that going in. You’re committing to a match where Zarya has a doubly-powerful shield and laser, and where Mei is a pseudo-tank capable of killing you with her ice wall. Blizzard might have already nerfed the heroes who got a little too unfair, but it’s a game mode where everyone feels viable because there are so many unique ways to make them stronger, and mastering the chaos of a biblically accurate Orisa is half the fun.
Stadium Is Like Learning Overwatch From Scratch
A new mode will always feel fresh, but there’s a unique longevity to Stadium’s appeal because it makes every hero feel new, as well. You might know Mercy, but do you know a Mercy who auto-heals and damage boosts in Valkyrie form, freeing her up to use her blicky-turned-assault rifle? Even if you have hundreds of hours in Overwatch, you have to relearn everything in Stadium, because not only do you play differently, but enemy combatants do, too.
Coming up against Reinhardt could mean anything, depending on how he’s been built, and there’s an ingrained strategy to tailoring your build based on your enemy’s composition, and how they’re, in turn, building their toons. It makes Stadium a much more involved mode, one that demands you pay attention and react not just while escorting a payload, but also while cooped up in spawn, preparing for the next round.
It’s a thrilling back-and-forth that makes the typical Overwatch formula far more dynamic. Rather than locking heroes at the start or changing your comp on the fly to counter enemies, you need to stick with your squad and fine-tune how they play each round, making every match incredibly fluid. It’s amazing watching all the moving pieces snap together in real-time, while still enjoying the usual boots-on-the-ground gunplay.
I imagine it’s still a lot of extra work keeping tabs on a new mode as intricate as Stadium, with so many possible combinations, but so far, Blizzard seems up to the challenge. And we’re seeing the payoff already, as right at the peak of Marvel Rivals’ enormous success, Overwatch 2 has carved out an identity of its own again.
It remains to be seen how the team will handle adding new heroes, which demand their own individual abilities and perks, as well as maps and modes, but right now, Stadium has given Overwatch its spark back and proven that there’s still life in these old bones yet.
Overwatch 2
- Released
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August 10, 2023
- ESRB
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T For Teen // Blood, Mild Language, Use of Tobacco, Violence
- Engine
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Proprietary Engine
