Overwatch Developer Update Details BlizzCon 2018 Plans

Blizzard has released the October developer update for Overwatch, and in it, Game Director Jeff Kaplan discusses what fans can expect from the game at BlizzCon. The update can be viewed in full below.

The update focuses heavily on the Overwatch World Cup Viewer, which will allow Overwatch World Cup matches to be viewed in a completely new way within the game client. Spectators will be able to watch cup matches in real time from a variety of camera angles, including a top-down view that shows the status of each hero on the map. In addition to watching live matches, replays of the semifinals and finals matches will also be available for viewing after they conclude, with the added ability of replay speed control.

The feature will be deployed as a PC beta prior to BlizzCon on the Battle.net launcher. Later on, Blizzard plans to release the viewer on console versions as well, and hopes to expand the replay feature to include any match played in the game. Players who want to watch Overwatch World Cup matches during BlizzCon can also view them on the Overwatch World Cup website and various streaming platforms.

It was also revealed that new maps won’t be shown for the game at BlizzCon. Oasis and Blizzard World were announced at BlizzCon 2016 and 2017 respectively, but the development team felt that both were “lost in the shuffle.” New maps are in the works, and even though we won’t see them next week, Kaplan assures fans that “amazing” content for the game will be announced at the event.

Kaplan ended the update by mentioning that several heroes will see balance changes in patch 1.30, including Reaper, Symmetra, Mercy, and Roadhog. Mercy will see a buff for her Valkyrie ultimate ability and Roadhog’s hook and shotgun will be improved, but specific changes were not discussed for the other two heroes.

Expect more announcements for Blizzard games next week at BlizzCon, which takes place on November 2-3 at the Anaheim Convention Center. Just last week, Blizzard tempered expectations for possible Diablo announcements at the event, and heavily suggested that the next core game will not be revealed until a later time.