"Where is all the time spent?" - xQc slams Overwatch 2 developers for scrapping much-awaited PvE mode

On May 17, 2023, Twitch star Felix "xQc" shared his thoughts on the controversial update that Overwatch 2's developers recently shared. During the Dev Chat livestream, the game's executive producer, Jared Neuss, announced that the much-awaited PvE (Players versus Environment) mode, which was one of the hero-based shooter's biggest selling points, had been scrapped.

xQc was flabbergasted after hearing the news and wondered what the future held for Overwatch 2. He then highlighted that only three maps and a new hero had been released since the competitive game's launch. The French-Canadian started making graphs in Microsoft Paint to compare new features in Overwatch and its sequel while saying:

"If they are not working on PvE and they're not doing it anymore, then where is all the time spent then?! We're talking about thousands of hours gone! Where are they?! I'm confused! Brother... because Overwatch 2 wasn't even an update! It wasn't. It was just... the updates that were missing, from the main game, dropped at once!"

---

xQc is not happy with Overwatch 2 dropping the PvE mode

xQc was browsing the r/LivestreamFail subreddit when he came across a viral video of Jared Neuss announcing that Overwatch 2's developers have decided to scrap the PvE mode. Neuss said the team won't be able to deliver the "original vision" for PvE. He elaborated:

"With everything we've learned about what it takes to operate this game, at the level you deserve, it's clear that we can't deliver on that original vision for PvE, that was shown in 2019. What that means is that, we won't be delivering the dedicated Hero Mode and the Talent Trees. That long-term power progression. Those things just aren't in our plans anymore."

After hearing this, xQc suggested that, with no PvE mode, Overwatch 2's situation was the same as any other game with a normal content roadmap:

"Wait, hold up. What the f**k? Wait, then what is the plan then? Wait, brother! Then, what even is the plan then? What do they have? There is literally... brother, Overwatch 2 is like, three maps, one character, which is, okay... which is literally the same thing as the normal content roadmap for updates for the main game!"

Timestamp: 00:16:30

xQc then launched Microsoft Paint and began creating a graph to compare Overwatch 2 to its predecessor:

"This is Overwatch updates (Y-Axis). This is one update, per whatever. Two. Three. Four. Right? And this is your timeline (X-Axis). Right, chat? You guys get it, or not? Right? And then, before Overwatch; red is Overwatch 1. It is kind of like this (the streamer displays Overwatch 1 getting constant updates during its lifetime). They would update the game constantly, right? With, like, a new character, or like, a new map, every once in a while. Right?"

According to xQc, Blizzard Entertainment stopped delivering content for Overwatch 1, causing the game's popularity to plummet. He added that the primary goal of Overwatch 2 was to address the content drought:

"Basically, Overwatch 2 was just literally them catching up with all the missing updates, they just... continued to do the same way, but they just added on other things that were missing. Right?"

---

Fans react to the streamer's take

xQc's take on Overwatch 2 developers scraping the PvE mode has received a lot of attention on YouTube. With over 430 comments, here's a snapshot of some pertinent ones:

Fans in the YouTube comments section reacting to the streamer's clip (Image via xQc Clips/YouTube)

One viewer joked that Blizzard Entertainment "made nothing out of something." Meanwhile, another community member stated that Jeff Kaplan's departure from the Overwatch team should have served as a "huge red flag."