Deathmatch Heads To 'Overwatch' Alongside New Map, Hero Changes

Deathmatch is finally coming to Overwatch.

Initially, Blizzard opposed the idea of putting the classic game mode in its first-person shooter, but it seems that it’s had a change of heart. Specifically, there will be two Deathmatch modes available when it comes out of the PTR. There’s the traditional Deathmatch mode, which will feature eight players in a free-for-all brawl, where the first player to secure 20 kills wins the game. For those who prefer team-based play, there’s Team Deathmatch, which will feature two teams of six players, and the winning team is the first group to reach 30 kills. It sounds straightforward at first, but there’s one crucial change to Team Deathmatch: revives by Mercy will take away a kill from your opponent’s score, so it’s best to have someone play as the healer for the match.

You’ll also notice that Blizzard made some changes to current maps from the Assault, Hybrid, and Escort game modes to suit Deathmatch, and it also revealed a completely new map called Chateau Guillard, which is the home of Amelie Lacroix, aka Widowmaker. Chateau Guillard was built specifically for Deathmatch; game director Jeff Kaplan said that it’s not suitable for Team Deathmatch. Instead, the team-based mode works well in other stages such as Necropolis and Black Forest.

When it comes out of testing, Deathmatch will make its way to the Arcade mode due to its focus on taking out opposing players rather can competing for specific objectives on the map. This means that you can play either Deathmatch game to gain two of your three weekly loot boxes. For Team Deathmatch, all you need to do is be on the winning team. To get a loot box for Deathmatch, you will need to finish in the top four slots.

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As far as character tweaks are concerned, Blizzard made some changes to Junkrat, Orisa, Roadhog, and Widowmaker. Junkrat can now hold two concussion mines for added mobility, and his RIP-Tire Ultimate ability now has a 30% speed boost, which means that you can effectively steer the tire into position before destroying it. Orisa’s Fusion Driver has a 20% increase in projectile speed to make her more effective at medium and long distances, and her barrier is also 20% larger, which makes her more effective in terms of defending her teammates. Roadhog can now move while healing, and the damage he takes during the restorative process is reduced by 50 percent. As for Widowmaker, she can now see enemies through walls when they activate her Venom Mine, and her grappling hook has a reduced cooldown of eight seconds, which means  you can use it more often to escape dangerous situations.

You can read the full notes on the PTR changes, which include numerous bug fixes, on the Overwatch website. You can also experience them  before they head to the live game by joining the Public Test Region (PTR) on PC.  Even if you don’t have access to the PTR, you can still enjoy some new content within Overwatch. This week marked the return of the Overwatch Summer Games, where you can compete for new cosmetic items and play some Lucioball, a time-limited game mode that got a new competitive option for its second season..