Overwatch has been ‘relaunched’, the game’s previous ‘2’ has been removed from the title, and a new season of content has brought players flooding back to the hero shooter in droves. In recent hours, Overwatch managed to hit a new all-time high peak player count on Steam, soaring and prompting many to declare that Overwatch is back!
Of course, it’s not all good news. In the last couple of days, the community was wrestling with the voice actor for one of the newest characters, Anran, who used her position to ‘push an agenda’ regarding unrealistic beauty standards in games. She dubbed them ‘Ozempic chic’ and drew immense flak from one half of the community.
So, is Overwatch back?
Overwatch Skyrockets on Steam
Overwatch has hit a new all-time peak player count of 165,651 users on Steam in the hours before writing this article. That’s not just a slight climb over the previous high; it’s a 120% boost. Previously, Overwatch had secured a high of around 75,000, back in 2023. Since then, it had slowly been working its way down the leaderboard.
Despite the arrival of a rebrand and a fresh season of content, plus the huge leap in players, Overwatch has managed to drop in review standings. It has a rating of ‘Mixed’ in recent reviews and ‘Mostly Negative’ overall, so it might be a case of users dipping back in, seeing what’s what, not being impressed, and leaving again.
Regardless, fans of the franchise have taken to social media platforms worldwide to declare the almighty and unstoppable return of Blizzard’s hero shooter, which has fallen in and out of good graces over the last few years.
Even Zedd, a popular music producer and DJ with millions of followers, declared Overwatch back on socials:
Whether this resurgence is a flash in the pan remains to be seen. The five new characters (which include a cat with a jetpack), the new meta event, and the countless tweaks might not pay off for long enough for Overwatch to be considered entirely renewed.
What do you think? Have you gone back to Overwatch following the relaunch? Let us know your thoughts on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that Wolverine won’t show anything new at State of Play
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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