Season 17 of Overwatch 2 has landed, with a substantial content update outlined in massive patch notes. A new Flashpoint map, major overhauls of the Stadium mode, and a batch of balance changes to the roster of heroes are included, seeking to hone the global play experience.
The new map, Aatlis, located in Morocco, is among the main map rotation for Competitive and Quick Play in Overwatch 2. Its variety, ranging from luxury resorts to ancient guilds of artisans, guarantees varied experiences. The Map Voting system, among the quality-of-life features of competitive gamers, where groups can have a say in map selection before the game, and it adds a strategic element to the choice.
There is also a new limited-term Arcade mode, “Hacks & Hijinx,” that introduces randomness through zany match modifiers that change by round to create a wild but entertaining diversion from standard gameplay. The mode introduces the likes of “Mini Maxing” to make heroes tiny and slice health, and “Lie Low” to offer invisibility when crouching, challenging players to adapt in the moment.
The Stadium mode is also being given significant focus, with Esperanca and Samoa’s volcano map now in line for the “Stadium treatment.” It is now possible to save, import, and export builds in the Stadium Forge, increasing the level of customization. The playable hero roster gets further additions of Sigma, Junkrat, and Zenyatta, along with changes to 16 other heroes and the addition of new generic items. Competitive rankings on Stadium have been set back to Rookie 1, giving everybody a clean slate. For complete information on all changes, see the Official Overwatch 2 Patch Notes.
Hero balance changes are in the limelight this Season 17 of Overwatch 2. The overall Damage role passive has its healing reduction increased, with the purpose of permitting damage dealers and reducing healing sustain slightly. Global base health regeneration timers have also been increased. Tank heroes such as Junker Queen and Mauga are given survivability and team utility boosts, and Ramattra and Zarya are given individual perk buffs. Damage heroes such as Tracer and Bastion are given overt upgrades, with Bastion seeing his model size diminished for enhanced survivability and Tracer being given buffs to his Pulse Pistol damage. Support heroes Lifeweaver, Lúcio, and Moira are given improved healing outputs or utility boosts, making them more valuable as a team resource. Zenyatta’s kit also gains from the bonus of the Duality kit, with its converted damage increased to deal more.
Outside of gameplay, Overwatch 2 Season 17 brings an overhauled Battle Pass, including the Mythic Horang D.Va skin and the Steel Death Mythic Reaper Weapon skin, both launching as available. The Epic Loot Boxes can also be stacked up, with a Legendary skin as a guarantee as well, from playing matches during launch week, giving extra incentive to get into the new season.
