Overwatch 2 Gets Swamped with Negative Reviews Immediately Upon Release

Urian B., Tech Times 11 August 2023, 08:08 pm

Overwatch 2 was immediately swamped with negative reviews upon its launch on Steam. Thousands of players left negative reviews overpowering the number of positive ratings which can be seen on Steam's own stats.

Overwatch 2 Launched on Steam and was Met with Massive Negative Reviews

According to the story by IGN, the launch of Overwatch 2 on Stream was met with a rough start as it was bombed with negative reviews. Only a small fraction of the total reviews were positive, as seen on Steam's stats.

Only 14% of the game's 25,000 users left positive reviews and now, Overwatch 2 has what was described as an "overwhelmingly negative" rating on the platform owned by Valve. The majority of the reviews were reportedly focused on one major issue, monetization.

Overwatch 2 Launched in Late 2022 and Forced Players Into the Premium Model from the Free-to-Play Title

Blizzard received massive feedback upon the launch of Overwatch 2 in late 2022 because of how it forced players into its premium predecessor to what used to be a free-to-play title. Upon the launch of the newer premium model, the original Overwatch became unplayable.

Ever since that move, Overwatch 2 has ended up with multiple controversies, including the cancellation of a mode that they long announced and that fans were looking forward to which is called the PvE Hero mode. According to players, this was the feature that justified the existence of the sequel.

Overwatch 2 Invasion Update Wasn't Enough for Gamers as Reviews Were Still 'Overwhelmingly Negative'

In the recent Steam launch, the game came with the Invasion update, which was supposed to be a way for Overwatch 2 to expand its player base. However, Blizzard already highlighted how it was considering Overwatch 2 to transition from its initial early access phase.

Overwatch 2 reportedly reached the top five best-sellers on Steam when it came to revenue and even hit a peak concurrent player count which totalled 52,349. However, the title has still been met with much pushback upon its release.

User Explains that the New Title Just Wanted the Players' Money

A particular review from Ornge, a Steam user, sums up the sentiment felt about the game. It was noted that the game had no respect for its users and that it was just an attempt for Overwatch 2 to "pry open your wallet" while pretending that it was still the game it used to be.

The backlash focuses on the free-to-play nature of Overwatch 2, wherein the new approach by Blizzard regarding cosmetics all highlighted changes that were negative compared to the original Overwatch title.

Fans Express Disappointment with Blizzard's Decision to Ditch the PvE Hero Mode

Fans have also expressed how they were disappointed with the major decision by Blizzard to ditch the long-planned PvE hero mode. This was despite the addition of new story missions that came with the game's Invasion update.

It was noted that the new story missions can only be played when players pay $15 for the dedicated bundle, with many players saying that it wasn't worth the money.