While the recently released Overwatch 2 can provide fun and engaging gameplay, a huge appeal of the title stems from the intense competitive playlists that the game offers. The new title has revitalized the franchise's longstanding player base since its October release, especially by providing more material to master to the diehard players attracted to the more intense gameplay of competitive matchmaking.
However, as might be expected from Overwatch 2, since it is a sequel to the original game, many aspects of the new release's core gameplay have undergone significant changes. This includes some changes that have been made to the game's competitive mode and player ranks, which many are characterizing as appealing to more casual fans as opposed to more consistent players.
Overwatch 2's Competitive Playlist
The Overwatch franchise has long been lauded for the level of strategy and team dynamics that its core gameplay fosters, being a high-octane team-based shooter that takes place within a variety of complex environments. With different heroes and their unique abilities constantly shifting the established metas and tactics of the franchise, it is no wonder that Overwatch 2 has enjoyed similar popularity levels to its predecessor.
Given this level of depth within the franchise's gameplay, Overwatch has always enjoyed a popular competitive mode which exists away from the more casual experience of standard matchmaking. Within competitive, players engage in several placement matches against each other to earn a rank based on their skill, ranging from Bronze all the way to the top 500 of an Overwatch region.
These ranks exist within a season, and are subject to a reset with the start of a new season that usually coincides with the launch of a new battle pass for Overwatch 2. However, recent changes that have been made to this seasonal competitive resets, such as "rank decay", have divided the competitive community in quite a significant way.
Overwatch 2's Competitive Rank Decay
The competitive mode of Overwatch 2 has much higher stakes than the game's standard modes, since players regard their placement ranks as a badge of honor reflecting serious dedication and commitment. While rank decay has existed in some form since the first Overwatch, this specific element of competitive placements now has a much more significant impact within the newer release.
Rank decay sees a players rank decrease after extended periods without playing competitive matches, and while this was historically a way of ensuring that players were of a correct skill level for their rank, players now also face a blanket rank decrease at the start of every new season. Reportedly, the impetus behind this change is to foster a greater sense of progression for players throughout a new competitive season, ranking them lower than what they previously were so they can grind back up to their previous bests.
Despite the lower ranking following a season's reset rank decay, players are still matched to other players of their ability, meaning that matches are just as difficult, but are simply labeled as lower rank lobbies. This has proven to be quite controversial, with more hardcore Overwatch 2 players complaining that the achievements of a previous season should have a higher legacy value going into a new one.
The new form of rank decay appeals to more casual players in the sense that it fosters replayability in the form of face-value progression, instead of putting players immediately back into their previous ranks to try and reach even higher placings. While Overwatch 2's competitive mode is still popular among fans, it is clear that some of its changes have created a slightly more casual environment than what some long-term players are used to
Overwatch 2 is now available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.