The original Overwatch game was a massive success for Blizzard, earning widespread critical acclaim and becoming one of gaming's biggest new IPs of the last decade. Blizzard supported the first Overwatch with cosmetic items, game modes, seasonal events, and new heroes, keeping fans engaged for the long-term. But a few years after launch, Blizzard announced Overwatch 2, a game that promised hero revamps, new PvP content, and most excitingly, a proper story campaign. Overwatch 2 and Blizzard itself have gone through dramatic changes since the game's initial announcement in 2019, and what's being presented at launch is likely not what many fans had hoped for after the game's emotionally-charged reveal trailer.

Before expanding on its downsides, it must be stressed that Overwatch 2 is an incredibly fun game that will keep fans entertained for hundreds of hours. It features an impressive roster of 35 heroes, with three new characters joining the lineup for the sequel's early access launch. It boasts plenty of vibrant, impressively-designed, and memorable maps, and it offers a nice selection of PvP game modes, including the brand-new Push mode.

The biggest change in Overwatch 2 is the drop from a 6v6 setup to 5v5, which is dramatic but doesn't prevent the game from still feeling like Overwatch. In role queue, the new set-up allows for one Tank hero, two Damage heroes, and two Support heroes per team. Overwatch 2 Tanks have been significantly buffed and reworked to make this new setup possible. Orisa has been changed the most, losing her shield and original Ultimate in favor of a spear that can be thrown or used to pull unlucky enemies in for a devastating melee slam.

Other Overwatch 2 Tank heroes have had their existing abilities retained, but amplified, for the most part. Reinhardt can now throw two Fire Strikes at a time, and he also has the ability to cancel his charge. Zarya has two bubbles to work with, and Roadhog is able to use his hook and healing while using his Ultimate. With fewer shields to work with, the switch to a 5v5 setup and the changes made to the Tank heroes make Overwatch 2 a significantly more aggressive and faster-paced take on Overwatch. It's still distinctly Overwatch, but it's more action-packed and exciting than ever before.

There are those who will long for the original Overwatch's 6v6 setup, but most will take to 5v5 quickly. It's one of Overwatch 2's riskiest and best changes, and one of the few things that actually make the game feel like a sequel. Other gameplay changes and additions are great for the most part, with the three new Overwatch 2 heroes all incredibly fun to play.

Overwatch 2 has a new hero for each role. The new Damage hero is Sojourn, a soldier with enhanced mobility whose abilities cater to both those who enjoy the simplicity of Soldier 76's kit but like the accuracy demanded from snipers like Widowmaker. The new Tank hero is Junker Queen, a brawler who can throw a knife at enemies and yank them to her similar to Roadhog's hook. And the new Support hero is Kiriko, the only new character who wasn't featured in the game's multiplayer betas.

Most hardcore Overwatch fans likely participated in the Overwatch 2 multiplayer betas, and so they have already played Sojourn and Junker Queen, but Kiriko is brand-new for launch. Kiriko is the first new Support hero in over three years, and she is a very welcome addition to the roster. She is able to teleport through walls, heal allies with a stream of magical talismans, and throw an item to the ground that grants her teammates temporary invincibility, which is great for countering otherwise-devastating Ultimate attacks. Better yet, Kiriko is equipped with deadly kunai that deal a ton of critical hit damage, so she doesn't just function as an effective healer, but also as an effective attacker.

Kiriko's Ultimate ability in Overwatch 2 is a force to be reckoned with in the right hands. It creates a path of torii gates that grant any teammates in it a massive speed boost, allowing them to spam their attacks and abilities in a way that can completely change the tide of a battle. Games can legitimately be won or lost in Overwatch 2 if Kiriko's Ultimate is used effectively, which is why blocking access to her behind the Battle Pass is such a huge misstep.

With the original Overwatch, new heroes and maps were always added to the game for free. This way, Overwatch players were kept on an even playing field, and it gave the game a sense of fairness that is lacking in some other shooters. In favor of trying to convince people to buy the premium Battle Pass, Overwatch 2 abandons that philosophy, making it so players have to either grind all the way to level 55 to unlock Kiriko, or buy the Battle Pass and unlock her right away.

This wouldn't be all that bad if reaching level 55 in Overwatch 2's Battle Pass was possible without dedicating an absurd amount of time to the game, but that's simply not the case. It will likely take most free-to-play gamers weeks of constant play to unlock Kiriko. To put it in perspective, after over 90 games played and 50 games won, we're only at tier 32 in the Battle Pass. And that's with the 20% XP boost from owning the premium Battle Pass, so those that opt to stick to the free track will have their work cut out for them.

The best way for Overwatch 2 players to speed up their Battle Pass progress is by completing challenges, which are a great new addition to the game. Overwatch 2 has daily, weekly, seasonal, competitive, lifetime, and hero challenges for players to complete, most of which offer big Battle Pass boosts. Some challenges might encourage players to play in ways that are detrimental to their team, like one that asks Support hero Zenyatta to get an environmental kill with his new kicking ability, but most of them simply encourage players to try new heroes and explore game modes beyond the standard Quick and Competitive Play options. The rewards aren't always equivalent to the work required to earn them, like only getting half a Battle Pass tier for winning 100 Competitive Play matches, but they still make the Battle Pass a little less grindy at least.

Growing distaste for loot boxes and the fact that they have been outright banned in some countries meant that Blizzard had to make changes to Overwatch 2's monetization. However, locking new heroes behind the Battle Pass, especially with the Battle Pass being as grindy as it is in its current state, was not the right call. Overwatch loot boxes were honestly some of the least egregious loot boxes in the industry, as they only offered cosmetics, and players could unlock plenty of high-quality skins in the game without spending a dime. Ironically, it seems Overwatch 2's attempt to move away from predatory loot boxes has actually made the game's monetization more predatory and far less consumer-friendly.

Another way Overwatch 2 feels more anti-consumer than its predecessor is with its new phone number requirement. Overwatch 2's phone number requirement is meant to beef up the game's security and make it more difficult for cheaters to create a new account and get right back in after a ban. However, it creates an unnecessary obstacle for legitimate players to get into the game. As evidenced by posts from concerned fans on social media, there are those whose phone numbers aren't accepted by Battle.net, like if they use a prepaid phone, for instance. It may be a relatively small number of people, but there will be those who purchased Overwatch 1 and enjoyed it who will suddenly be unable to play a game they paid money for because their phone number isn't compatible. Since the vast majority of free-to-play games do not require a phone number, it's safe to say most gamers are fine without the requirement, even if it means less security in the unlikely event that their account is somehow compromised.

Many gamers will be able to overlook this new requirement as they will have a compatible phone service provider and jumping into Overwatch 2 will be a simple matter of updating their Battle.net account. But this inconvenience is far from the only reason why some fans may be frustrated or disappointed in Overwatch 2's launch.

Overwatch 2 is launching with six new maps, three new heroes, and the new Push game mode. However, it's also getting rid of the Assault game mode for Quick and Competitive Play. This means that Overwatch 2 is really launching with the same number of game modes that its predecessor had, and only three more maps in total. The biggest letdown is that the much-hyped story campaign is missing completely, and that was really one of the bigger selling points for the sequel, if not the biggest. It's true that the game is technically in early access, but those who have been waiting years for a proper sequel to Overwatch will likely be disappointed regardless.

The Overwatch 2 story campaign is supposedly coming next year, along with plenty of new PvP content. Blizzard gave us a look at some heroes, maps, game modes, and more that are on the way in 2023 and beyond, and assuming everything goes to plan, Overwatch players should never have to suffer through a content drought again. After all this content is added, Overwatch 2 will be a game that feels like a proper sequel to the original. But a game can't be judged based on what it will be. It can only be judged on what it is now. And right now, Overwatch 2 is mostly composed of content that fans have already been playing through for years, which is disappointing despite how incredibly fun that content still is. For long-term players, Overwatch 2 may feel more like a glorified update with problematic progression and roadblocks to enjoyment that didn't exist in the original game. In its current state, Overwatch 2 is more product than art, but there is still plenty of time to turn things around between now and whenever the game's 1.0 version launches.

Overwatch 2 is available now in early access for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. Game Rant was provided a PC code for this review.