The dragon awakens. Play Overwatch Kanezaka Challenge on Jan 12! https://t.co/C545E093CH
[CORRESPONDENCE] As winter leads to spring, let me write a letter of lightness. Perhaps it will grant us both a lit… https://t.co/q4YlUUzLhY
As winter leads to spring, let me write a letter of lightness. Perhaps it will grant us both a little peace, even as I turn my blade to keeping the peace here from shattering altogether. -Asa
Back in the fight! TRACER-LONDON CALLING 4 from @DarkHorseComics lands into your hands on Jan 13th, but here’s a s… https://t.co/esTgthT0ca
#Nendoroid https://t.co/mvJh2Ma0Wt online! Learn more about this new collectible + pre-order yours today:… https://t.co/G6oAYswFmf
Hey everyone!
We’re back with another Experimental mode focused on testing some balance changes. As with all Experimental modes, these changes are not guaranteed to reach the live version of the game. Check out the patch notes here.
What are we trying to address?
While we don’t have an overarching theme for today’s Experimental patch, we’re hoping to get your feedback on a handful of heroes.
What are we testing?
For this Experimental patch, we’re adjusting four heroes:
Ashe – The Viper has received a number of adjustments over last year, resulting in a slightly too powerful state when combined when damage boosts. Her capability to eliminate 200 health enemies with a single headshot became too dominant. We’re reducing her aim-down-sight (ADS) damage, but also reducing her ADS recovery time, netting similar damage output, but requiring at least two shots to reach the same result.
Hanzo – Storm Arrows doesn’t quite have the impact we’re hoping for at the moment. We’re slightly reducing the shot recovery time between arrows to make it feel a bit more impactful over the course of the ability’s five arrows.
Sigma – Sigma’s received a lot of feedback recently, particularly surrounding his barrier. We’re increasing the cooldown of the Experimental Barrier ability to make its use a bit more of a commitment and open up more opportunities for counterplay.
Wrecking Ball – Wrecking Ball’s survivability is currently a bit too high. The combination of his high mobility and high shield capability has made him a bit too slippery of a target. While the initial 100 shield provided by Adaptive Shield remains unchanged, we’re reducing the amount of shield generated per nearby enemy from 100 to 75.
We hope you check out the new Experimental mode and provide us with your feedback! Science will reveal the truth – And all great science requires data! As always, this is an Experiment, so the changes in this test may not reach the live game.
Thank you!
Season 26 of Competitive Play is here!
Unlocked at level 25, Competitive Play is designed for those players who want to put their skills to the test, and offers a more serious experience than our Quick Play or Arcade Modes.
Before you can kick off your competitive career, every player will be required to complete five placement matches in a selected role to obtain their seasonal skill rating for that role. Within the standard Role Queue competitive mode, players will earn separate skill ratings (SR) for each role in Competitive Play, for a total of three distinct SRs. This rating will be a number between 1 and 5000, with higher values indicating a greater skill level. Players will also be assigned a tier per role based on their rating—Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Master, or Grandmaster – and climbing into the next tier is possible as you improve. Open Queue will utilize the same rating and tier system, but since there is no Role Queue system, you will have a separate, single SR reflective of your performance across all heroes within this game mode.
Skill ratings and tier icons will be visible at the beginning of every match. As you compete, your selected role or Open Queue skill rating will increase or decrease with each win or loss based on a number of factors, including your own performance and the skill of the other players in the match.
A detailed breakdown of the skill tiers, along with icons and information about the corresponding skill ratings can be found by pressing the “Information” button under the Competitive Play menu.
In addition to experiencing the thrill of victory, players can also unlock unique rewards through Competitive Play. Anyone who completes their placement matches in any role or Open Queue during a Competitive Season will receive a special spray and player icon.
On top of that, as you complete competitive matches, you’ll earn a currency called Competitive Points. When the season concludes, you’ll also receive a number of Competitive Points based on the highest Skill Tier you obtained during the season per role to spend on golden versions of your favorite heroes’ weapons. This also applies to your highest Skill Tier reached within the Open Queue.
Here’s the Skill Rating (SR) to Competitive Point (CP) breakdown:
| Bronze | 25 | 65 | 140 |
| Silver | 50 | 125 | 275 |
| Gold | 100 | 250 | 550 |
| Platinum | 200 | 500 | 1100 |
| Diamond | 300 | 750 | 1650 |
| Master | 450 | 1200 | 2550 |
| Grandmaster | 650 | 1750 | 3700 |
The best of the best players compete across five separate Top 500 Leaderboards. Within Role Queue, one for each role, along with an additional combined average leaderboard. The combined Role Queue Top 500 Leaderboard will be based on the player’s average skill rating across all three roles. To be eligible for a role-specific leaderboard, players must complete at least 25 games in that role. To qualify for the combined Top 500 Leaderboard, players must be eligible for all three role-specific leaderboards. Open Queue will have its own Leaderboard that will require at least 50 games played within the game mode for qualification. At the end of the season, players who earn a spot within the Top 500 players for any of these leaderboards on their platform and region will receive an additional player icon and animated spray.
Season 26 is live RIGHT NOW on Windows PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, so power up your favorite gaming machine and join the fight. We’ll see you in-game!
All hope is not frost. ❄️ There is still time to earn thaw-some rewards – Overwatch Winter Wonderland ends Jan 5! https://t.co/k0yW8jyhbj
"Start over, at the beginning." Happy New Year from all of us on the Overwatch team. https://t.co/SOYbnNu0cv
Snow pain, snow gain. ☃️ Play. Win. Earn. Unlock Frosty Roadhog (Epic) by winning 9 games in Quick Play, Competi… https://t.co/WlouT7rLtn
Installing updates. The Hero of Numbani, written by @nickydrayden, is now available via audiobook! Listen to the e… https://t.co/Pz8Hycavkv
The world could always use more heroes. Tap to find out which hero you’ll be perfecting in 2021. https://t.co/2YLGV4ctYm
Happy Holidays from all of us on the Overwatch team.🎄❤️ https://t.co/UDIYq2eYZs
Don't you just love surprises? Log in before January 5 to collect five winter-themed loot boxes! Happy Holidays f… https://t.co/MVs8A597WO
