"It's the worst": Players debate over allowing new heroes in Overwatch 2 competitive

The Overwatch 2 community has been debating over Blizzard Entertainment's decision to allow new heroes in competitive play immediately after release. While some players appreciate the opportunity to experiment with fresh additions in the game, others are frustrated by the chaos created by players who are picking new heroes without proper knowledge, resulting in unfair match results.

The official Overwatch Subreddit, home to over 6 million members, has become a hotspot for discussions regarding the issue. A post by u/Captain_Jmon has gained significant attention, accumulating over 1,700 upvotes and hundreds of comments in under a day.

Reacting to the post, one user expressed their frustration:

"It's the worst when it's a new tank, then you know your only tank likely won't know what they're doing. I played a few games, and they were actually more toxic than ever."

I am begging, BEGGING Blizzard to not immediately allow new characters in comp again byu/Captain_Jmon inOverwatch

Note: Some aspects of this article are subjective and reflect the writer's opinion.

In the above post, the user described that while the new Tank hero Hazard, introduced in Season 14, is unique and fun to play, the user requested the game developers to remove this hero from the active hero pool in ranked matches. The primary reason behind this is that a lot of new players are instantly locking Hazard despite not knowing how to play it which eventually results in a loss.

A lot of players seem to agree with the post. User u/Fureniku shared a similar case where one of their opponents was forcefully playing as Hazard in a ranked match despite others requesting him to switch the hero and ended up with a K/D ratio of 2/17. User u/MsAndooftheWoods mentioned that recent matches have been the most toxic ones due to the same issue.

Comments from the community (Image via Reddit || r/Overwatch)

Meanwhile, some players completely disagree. User u/Yahya_TV mentioned that excluding new heroes from ranked mode wouldn't make a difference, as a few days of playtesting are meant to give players a chance to learn the new hero, and both teams would have an equal opportunity to have an inexperienced player. User u/Big5mile had similar views as well.

More comments from the community (Image via Reddit || r/Overwatch)

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Should new Heroes be allowed into Overwatch 2 competitive?

Based on the mixed response from the community, it is not easy to give a definite answer to this. However, it is always better to give players at least a month before allowing a new hero to be playable in ranked mode.

The reason behind this is the fact that during playtesting, a lot of players don't actually spend time mastering a new hero and take it casually. There's a different mentality when you play the same hero in competitive mode, as you have to play more responsibly because your performance would affect your teammates' rank too.

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Read more Overwatch 2 articles:

• Overwatch 2 6v6 mode: release date and what to expect
• Overwatch 2 Season 14 Battle Pass: All Battle Pass tiers and rewards
• All Hero changes in Overwatch 2 Season 14