The information that Microsoft is buying Blizzard has become a beautiful excuse for absurd discussions.
Today, one of the hottest topics on the web is whether Overwatch 2 will be an Xbox exclusive. It was to be expected that such things would be discussed, and the topic of the takeover would be discussed as much as possible by all those who would like to make an additional sensation.
This can be seen, among others, on YouTube, where the 723rd revival of Overwatch has already been announced, and all the blame for the current state of the game and its slow decline in popularity since 2016 has been attributed to one person. “That’s all Bobby Kotick,” say YouTubers. How much truth is there in that?
Why has Overwatch 2 been delayed?
Bobby Kotick has been criticized many times, by players and Blizzard employees alike. It is now known that his ideas, among other things, were the reason why the Overwatch 2 release was delayed. At least, this is what Overwatch producer writes:
The CEO was to say what things should be in OW1, to finally cancel many of these new mechanics and functions. In this way, time was wasted on something that players had never seen while delaying the release of the second part of the game.
Was that the only reason? Probably not, but definitely one of the most important ones. Today, however, it is very convenient to write that Bobby Kotick is to blame for the current state of Overwatch and that there is as much about OW2 as it was when it was announced, and in many respects even less.
The takeover is a very important moment, perhaps the most important not only for Overwatch but also for other productions that Activision Blizzard has in its portfolio. However, you have to be aware that any changes will come slowly. Only a dozen or so hours after the announcement of the purchase on YouTube, videos announcing the cancellation of Overwatch 2 and the return to OW1 development are already appearing. Exciting? Yes, but there are no signals to suggest this.
Like the fact that Overwatch 2 would be an Xbox exclusive game. There is also no information about the game pass, switching to Free2Play, crossovers, or changing the direction of OW development.
Microsoft can “save” Overwatch, this is one of the best scenarios that could have happened, but Phil Spencer has a lot of work on years of neglect in all areas.
It is not difficult to guess that in the next days or weeks everyone will be discussing solutions such as:
- switching to Free2Play,
- return to OW1, abandonment of the transition to OW2,
- Overwatch exclusivity,
- mechanics of microtransactions,
- the great revival of Overwatch.
Although, as of today, the takeover means one thing – a chance that Overwatch will become what it was originally intended to be, that it will move forward and the other part will not be botched.