Blizzard launches the ranked game mode Competitive Play for the PC version of Overwatch, and plans to bring the feature to the console versions of the game soon.

When Overwatch launched last month, the game earned widespread critical acclaim, despite not having all its main features from the get-go. Overwatch released without its ranked Competitive Play mode, but Blizzard has been working to bring it to fans by the end of the month. For PC Overwatch players, the wait for Competitive Play is over, as the feature is now live in that version of the game.

Competitive Play went live for the PC version of Overwatch earlier today, with Blizzard writing a blog post explaining how it works. Basically, Competitive Play will be restricted until players hit level 25. From there, they will be required to play 10 placement matches to earn their skill rating, which will fluctuate based on wins and losses.

Competitive Play will consist of four distinct seasons (Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring) that each last 2.5 months at a time. Competitive Play stats are reset at the end of each season, and then a two week off-season will take place before the start of the next one. Each season will have exclusive rewards for players to earn, along with special currency that can be used to purchase unique items, such as an impressive set of golden weapons.

In the meantime, it will be interesting to see if the implementation of Competitive Play differs between the console and PC versions of the game. There have already been some differences in how the game is balanced between its two versions; for example, Torbjorn's turret was nerfed on PS4 and Xbox One, but Blizzard made no such adjustment to the character on PC. Therefore, it stands to reason that there may be some discrepancies with Competitive Play as well.

For example, console gamers may not be used to a ranked play setup where stats are reset every few months. This may frustrate or confuse some players, and so perhaps Blizzard will go a different route when launching Competitive Play on console. Of course, this is just speculation at this time, and there's a chance that Competitive Play will be the same regardless of what platform one uses to play Overwatch.

While some may have preferred to see Competitive Play launch alongside Overwatch last month, Blizzard has at least stuck to its promise of releasing Competitive Play in June. If things go smoothly for Competitive Play on PC, expect the feature to make its way to Overwatch on PS4 and Xbox One sooner rather than later.

Overwatch is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Source: Overwatch