Overwatch 2 Is Dropping Premium Heroes And Adding A New Store

Big changes are coming to Overwatch 2, all of them an attempt to make the first-person shooter more "generous," according to game director Aaron Keller. Among the changes headed our way are the addition of the Mythic shop, greater coin distribution, new and reworked maps, a new game mode, and most notably, free heroes.

Starting with Season 10, all heroes will be free-to-play upon release. This includes Venture, a drill-wielding damage hero who also marks the game's first non-binary character. Additionally, all pre-existing heroes will be immediately unlocked for all players. Prior to this update, heroes were either obtained upon purchasing a premium battle pass or after substantially leveling up the free one. Though players will still be required to complete the "first-time user experience" before playing these heroes, this new move expedites the process of playing a new character substantially.

The next big addition to Overwatch 2 is the Mythic Shop, which completely alters the way Mythic skins are obtained. Though Keller didn't dive too deep into the new system in his announcement video, he recently spoke with GameSpot and shed a bit more light on the process. According to Keller, the Mythic Shop uses a currency called Mythic Prisms, which can either be purchased or obtained through the game's premium battle pass. Each season, a player will obtain enough Mythic Prisms to unlock a Mythic skin of their choosing and all its corresponding upgrades--so long as they complete their premium battle pass, that is.

All new Mythic skins will make their debut in the Mythic Shop and remain available for purchase throughout the entire season they are introduced in. Following that season, however, they will be pulled out of the shop for the next two seasons before being reintroduced permanently, adding a bit more of a timely element when it comes to obtaining them. Starting with Season 10, all Mythic skins from Seasons 1 through 7 will be available to purchase in addition to those features in Season 10.

Coins are getting a big change too, as players will now earn them through the game's free battle pass rather than weekly challenges. Each season, players will have the chance to earn 600 coins for free--a 60 coin upgrade from the previous cap of 560. Keller pointed out that this is enough for a player to purchase a premium battle pass for free every two seasons. Challenges, meanwhile, will now reward players with battle pass XP.

Finally, the accompanying press release stated the team is working on "significant updates" to Dorado, Circuit Royale, Havana, Colosseo, and Numbani. The team will also be introducing a new game mode, Clash, and the Hanaoka map for a limited-time trial at the beginning of Season 10. Keller described Clash as a reworked version of Overwatch's Assault mode, but with each team playing both offense and defense as they attempt to claim capture points. In Season 11, the Peruvian map of Runasapi will be added to Push mode.

Blizzard finished the press release with a notice that a developer update is scheduled for closer to the start of Season 10, which is slated to hit the game this April. The update will cover upcoming competitive and Defense Matrix updates, including "disruptive player behavior, grouping restrictions and competitive, and player anonymity."