Blizzard earned its reputation as one of the best game developers today well before Overwatch. Now, with year one in the bag, it's time to take a look back at the year that was in Overwatch.

Calling All Agents

Overwatch released on May 24, 2016, after what seemed like an eternity in beta on the PC. Anyone who had gotten their hands on the game talked up the incredible multiplayer game they had just experienced, pitting two teams of six against each other in objective-centric matches. They also got to talk up the roster of unique heroes available to play as, with no one playing similarly to each other.

After all this buildup, it seemed like the game couldn't live up to it. Well, needless to say, it did - and then some. When the game was finally released, players on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC all got to experience the fun and addictive design of Blizzard's newest venture. From the roster of characters to the balanced gameplay, it quickly became the multiplayer game of choice for players the world over.

It didn't hurt that Blizzard was able to keep up with desire for new content and events as well. Over the next year, Blizzard sprinkled out multiple events, themed around either the actual season, like a Halloween-themed event, or inspired by the game's universe, like the recent Uprising. It also added new maps, modes, four seasons of competitive play, and three new characters. The fact that this was all free was a nice bonus.

Beyond The Game

While the game teased an incredible and colorful world, Blizzard used other media to give fans a taste of what the world of Overwatch was like. The most popular of these efforts were the Overwatch comics and animated shorts. Both gave fans a better look at the characters they got to play as every time they turned the game on.

Overwatch quickly became a focus of Blizzard at its annual convention BlizzCon. As with its other games, Blizzard gave Overwatch its own panel to talk about upcoming plans for the game. It was at BlizzCon that Blizzard announced the Overwatch World Championships, an international tournament with the top players from several countries. This showed off the game's popularity in a booming esports scene dominated by MOBAs like League of Legends and DOTA 2.

So with one year in the can, it's time to start looking forward to what else Blizzard has planned for its multiplayer shooter. And if you haven't jumped on the train yet, Blizzard announced a chance to try the game for free on May 26 to 29.