Why is Overwatch 2 the Worst-Reviewed Game on Steam?

As someone with hundreds and hundreds of hours put into Blizzard’s Overwatch, I was disheartened to see the game completely shut down and phased into Overwatch 2. With no choice to play this game I invested so much time and love into, I lamented and went ahead to try to enjoy Overwatch 2 once it was released. I couldn’t enjoy it (for more than a few reasons) and the masses tend to share this opinion as Overwatch 2 reached the unfortunate moniker of “the worst-reviewed game” on Steam by a long shot in less than a week. Why is the community so up in arms?

Overwatch was always a marvel to me. After a long day of work, my favorite pastime from 2016-2020 or so was plopping down, grabbing some cold beers, and messing around in Overwatch‘s Arcade Mode for hours on end. So much Total Mayhem, Random Heroes, and co-op gameplay were consumed, and Blizzard put tons of time and effort into each new season to maintain my interest.

I even bought an MMO mouse just so I could hotkey communication to it. It was one of my favorite games in that time period. After Overwatch 2 marred my view, it’s not as fun to look back on anymore.

The main problem that Overwatch 2 faces is that it over-promised and under-delivered. A robust player-versus-enemy mode was showcased, teased, and timelined well before the game’s free-to-play release. I was anxiously awaiting a chance to dive into this game with a bunch of buds with more focus on fun than competition. It’s too bad at the time of writing that this seems all but confirmed to never come to fruition. It is just a shame that this was marketed so hard before release, yet was scrapped, as that reflects badly on the title. Even if it comes about in the future, it’s too little and way too late.

Another problem point for Overwatch 2 is that it’s effectively the same game as Overwatch in an alarming number of ways. While some maps have a fresh coat of paint, they’re still the same maps. Other than a few altered aesthetics, they’re identical and offer nothing new to the table. On the other hand, Overwatch 2 fixed what wasn’t broken.

As the game shrunk from 6v6 to 5v5 and removed the second tank, tanks are now bullet sponges with weaker damage to the point that some are not remotely fun to play anymore. Gone are the days of charging in with Reinhardt as you’ll have to utilize his shield instead if you want to win.

While some issues with Overwatch 2 can be nitpicky things, the quantity of issues builds up to make for a lackluster, boring experience. Gone are my days of grinding Arcade for loot boxes and having a blast every step of the way. The issues I’ve raised here are personal and don’t even touch upon the battle pass, Blizzard’s office conduct, or a bevy of other issues that plague this once-promising franchise. I don’t think any source of goodwill or amount of changes is going to undo the stained legacy of the former king of hero shooters.