Overwatch Is Blizzard’s Biggest Open Beta Ever

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According to this press release more than 9.7 million players took part in the Overwatch open beta, playing an astounding 81 million hours. The game hits store shelves and Steam on May 24th. How many of you guys will be playing?

Blizzard Entertainment today announced that more than 9.7 million players around the world played its upcoming team-based shooter Overwatch® during the Open Beta for PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One, and Windows® PC, making it Blizzard’s biggest open beta ever. By the time the Open Beta came to a close on May 10, participants had joined forces for more than 4.9 billion minutes (over 81 million hours) across more than 37 million matches of intense competitive action, incredible teamwork, and all-out fun.
 
That may be but I'm sure most are like me, played for half a day and then got bored of it and never played again. If you chopped off people who played less than 2-4 hours (somewhere in there) I bet 95% of that drops off. Really think this game is overhyped and under delivering.
 
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Vercinaigh said:
That may be but I'm sure most are like me, played for half a day and then got bored of it and never played again. If you chopped off people who played less than 2-4 hours (somewhere in there) I bet 95% of that drops off. Really think this game is overhyped and under delivering.
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Funny how the opposite is true. Just look at the subreddit.

189,332 readers
4,276 users here now

For a game that's currently not out and at 9AM EST? You don't see that many active people on a game related subreddit if it was dead.
 
It's funny how the older I get, the less excited I get about these games. I guess it's just more of the same. The only game that has my interest is DOOM, if they slow the movement down, that demo made me think of rocket jumping kids. Annoying.

Sometimes MMO's aren't so bad, you can join a raid, go take a shower, eat dinner, work out, and if you are still logged in when you get back, continue playing. Nobody says they like players like me, but who cares. lol.
 
It was definitely over-hyped but I think it delivers and is quite good.
I was not interested at all when I heard about this game, I was all like, "hell Bliz where my new MMO at?"
But I have to say I had more fun playing OW than I have with any FPS in many many years.

It does remind me of TF2, which I stopped playing for the same reason I will ultimately stop playing this. Too many twitch players who make playing impossible.
When it gets to the spawn die spawn die spawn die shit I check out.
 
The game was great, well polished and fun to play (with a group, solo'ing created some horrible experiences) I can't wait for the 24th.
 
HardUp4HardWare said:
When it gets to the spawn die spawn die spawn die shit I check out.
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Funny you should mention that; brings me back to the Quakeworld DM days. A lot of people are saying TF3...I'm sitting here thinking Mega-TF 2.
I already preordered. I will play the hell out of the game. It's a lot of fun.
 
I played the mess out of beta and that's saying a lot coming from me. Once I learned it's only $40 on Blizzard's website I had to jump on it. Can't wait!
 
Cyraxx said:
OMG I LOVE Team Fortress 3! It's my favorite!
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But....there are no hats! That's what makes TF2 TF2!

In all seriousness Overwatch plays (in typical Blizzard style) like a very tweaked out and refined version of today's TF2 (which itself is a game that has been endlessly refined since its release). Which is to say it's a lot of fun and a lot of "been there, played that". I can't be bothered to put the time into it to get good with any of the characters which means I probably won't pay any serious money for it or ever get into the game in a serious way. There are too many other games asking for my time (plus that pesky "real life" thing that is endlessly draining the time I have to actually play).
 
Kinsaras said:
I played the mess out of beta and that's saying a lot coming from me. Once I learned it's only $40 on Blizzard's website I had to jump on it. Can't wait!
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You mean $60? Or was there some special pricing earlier on?
 
HardUp4HardWare said:
Let's chat.

Who was you favorite character?
What map did you like?

You played on PC right?
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Yes, I played PC.

I can't say I played enough to have a 'Favorite' Character. I primarily bounced between Tracer/Zarya/Blackwidow and Mercy when no one else would support. It seemed like the character balance was good, but it's more in depth than 'oh his attack is powerful' There seemed to be an emphasis on character speed as a factor of their damage as well. Like Tracer is weak at anything beyond mid-range, but in a close up fight on a tight map, she is very deadly. Particularly against a slower character that may have a more powerful gun.

I do think some of the ultimates need to be tweaked, as some are incredibly OP, and others are almost useless given how people adapted to the game (think the Pharah Ult being countered by a Blackwidow)

Maps, I enjoyed the Hybrid maps the most, which are Hollywood, Kings Road, and Numbani. I liked that the objective could change mid game, it was an unexpected twist the first time it happened, but it broke up the monotonous game types.
 
Standard Edition is $40 on PC.
I had a few bucks in my Battle.net balance, so i thought what the heck.

Even if its for only 10hrs. I'll get my monies worth.

My problem is it feels similar to TF2, but extremely not at the same time.
This is the first PC game in years that has got me craving more.

However i can't imagine being interesting to TF2 / TFC veterans for more than a week or two.

They HAVE to announce something big on the horizon or players are gonna drop.
 
Inu said:
Standard Edition is $40 on PC.
I had a few bucks in my Battle.net balance, so i thought what the heck.

Even if its for only 10hrs. I'll get my monies worth.

My problem is it feels similar to TF2, but extremely not at the same time.
This is the first PC game in years that has got me craving more.

However i can't imagine being interesting to TF2 / TFC veterans for more than a week or two.

They HAVE to announce something big on the horizon or players are gonna drop.
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Well I think it is pretty obvious that Bliz is going to use this as a "E-Sports" title. So they will carefully groom and tune the crap out of it.
Therein lies the problem. At some point the game will become too hard to enjoy. for me. cause I suck.
 
I Closed beta tested and then logged about 20 hours into the open beta. I think Overwatch is an excellent game. Very well polished and loads of fun.
 
Dekar12 said:
You mean $60? Or was there some special pricing earlier on?
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No the basic package starts at $39.99. The one Blizzard is pimping is Overwatch Origins Edition which is a full $60. Comes with some skins and stuff I could care less about.
 
To be honest I had low expectations for this game, but was pleasantly surprised and logged way too many hours into it. It is just fun, no need of a deep story or progressing, just something to have fun passing time. The kind of game I needed where I can just jump in an play without worrying about being months behind in progress from other players. It is fun to heal because you become the most irritating player to the other team haha
 
It is a ton of fun. My problem is that there isn't a lot there for my money. I need like another mode, a co-op single player or something. I will wait and see if my friends get it. If so than I am in for TF3 ... I mean Overwatch.
 
I enjoyed the time I played during the open-beta. Certainly after 2-4 hours of play time, playing alone, it was getting boring. Though after a few friends started as well, playing as a group with some strategy to class-selection and play tactics yielded a far more exciting game - one which I will probably purchase.
 
I think it was smart to make it a long open beta, since this is Blizzard's first go at an FPS. A lot of their target market doesn't yet have a Battle.net account :D

It's good, but not noticeably a better experience for me than TF2. I don't think it's worth 40 bucks, but I'm sure there will be enough takers.
 
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Hell, if a third of the people who play buy it, won't that probably make it have a bigger player base than current WoW? :whistle:

I really enjoyed it, was definitely a "I mean... I have time for one more game before bed.... okay two more!"
 
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Not a better experience than TF2? Guess that depends on what you mean.
Does TF2 have more content... yes.
Does TF2 have more unique gameplay variables. Not really imho.

Blizz put a lot of effort in differentiating the characters from each other
so that every character is not just another toon with a gun.

Another thing i love about this game is the 6v6 nature. I mean i loved 64 / 64 games in
Battlefield way back in the day. However i find myself more methodical a thinker in my
more senior gaming age (29).

Also having 6v6 allows you to give characters a fuller arsenal.

If it were 24 vs 24, crap would be all over the place, and flying everywhere.

Blizz has just hit sooo many points, just right, with this game its really given
me a love for gaming again that i thought i lost years ago.

1. Voice-comms standard. With a lot of mute options.

2. Death-Cam. I loved this in CoD, but couldn't stand CoD.

3. Solid, clean feeling gameplay mechanics.

4. Colorful palettes.

5. An FPS game that doesn't have Warfare direct / undertones.

6. A game that doesn't feel like it needs to make gore the punchline / draw for the game.
 
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The one thing I didn't like about it was the lack of 21:9 support. After checking out their forums, it seems like it just provides an unfair advantage to those with 16:9 or 16:10 displays.

Fucking A



I did have a blast playing it though. Put over 23 hours into the game.
 
Inu said:
Not a better experience than TF2? Guess that depends on what you mean.
Does TF2 have more content... yes.
Does TF2 have more unique gameplay variables. Not really imho.

Blizz put a lot of effort in differentiating the characters from each other
so that every character is not just another toon with a gun.

Another thing i love about this game is the 6v6 nature. I mean i loved 64 / 64 games in
Battlefield way back in the day. However i find myself more methodical a thinker in my
more senior gaming age (29).

Also having 6v6 allows you to give characters a fuller arsenal.

If it were 24 vs 24, crap would be all over the place, and flying everywhere.

Blizz has just hit sooo many points, just right, with this game its really given
me a love for gaming again that i thought i lost years ago.

1. Voice-comms standard.

2. Death-Cam. I loved this in CoD, but couldn't stand CoD.

3. Solid, clean feeling gameplay mechanics.

4. Colorful palettes.

5. An FPS game that doesn't have Warfare direct / undertones.

6. A game that doesn't feel like it needs to make gore the punchline / draw for the game.
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And funny, TF2 already hits every single number on that list. That's because Overwatch is a TF2 clone and not much more :D

I specifically meant in the fact that Overwatch is 40 bucks, and TF2 is free. And the idiots who invaded after TF2 first went free have left (they got bored of trolling), so they have similarly comparable serious gaming communities.

You have to gauge if there's really 40 bucks more value in Overwatch for you. For me there is not. IF it were $20 I'd bite, but it's not. If you're bored with TF2 though, maybe it is worth it to put a new coat of paint on .
 
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I played the open beta, and had a blast. Gameplay is fluid, the environments are vibrant and varied, and there is sufficient diversity in the roster to provide some challenge in mastering the game. The AI is also rather good when you turn it up to Hard, and actually presents a challenge.

For me, it will probably be a game I play in a similar fashion to TF2 now...when I'm a bit burnt out on other games, and just want to login and have some fun, I'll gladly load up Overwatch. I'll still play TF2 as well, because it has things like dedicated servers and an amazing mod community, but my time with it will be split with Overwatch.
 
SolidBladez said:
The one thing I didn't like about it was the lack of 21:9 support. After checking out their forums, it seems like it just provides an unfair advantage to those with 16:9 or 16:10 displays.

Fucking A



I did have a blast playing it though. Put over 23 hours into the game.
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I wouldn't be surprised if they add it later, they added it to Heroes of the Storm even though that give a real advantage, seemingly more than an FPS.
 
defaultluser said:
And funny, TF2 already hits every single number on that list. That's because Overwatch is a TF2 clone and not much more :D

I specifically meant in the fact that Overwatch is 40 bucks, and TF2 is free. And the idiots who invaded after TF2 first went free have left (they got bored of trolling), so they have similarly comparable serious gaming communities.

You have to gauge if there's really 40 bucks more value in Overwatch for you. For me there is not. IF it were $20 I'd bite, but it's not. If you're bored with TF2 though, maybe it is worth it to put a new coat of paint on .
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TF2 is pretty stale, you don't really have the hero variety and ability use like you do in Overwatch. I played TF2 for about an hour back on release and disliked it. Played OW during stress and open beta and put easily 20+ hours in those few days I played.
 
Been years since I played and FPS in multiplayer for longer then a couple hours, BF3 iirc played on and of for a bit, think I stopped around the time counterstrike hype hit full throttle (yeah, I'm that old) but this somehow feels right to me, I'm not great in these games, not even good, but I still manage to score some kills and feel useful to the team.
 
HardUp4HardWare said:
Let's chat.

Who was you favorite character?
What map did you like?

You played on PC right?
Click to expand...

I think this was part of a problem.

I saw a lot of people playing the fuck out of only one class - and it starts coming back to bite you when your team composition just ends up not working for a given scenario ...nobody wants to change. Then you lose.

I think the game will be pretty interesting on the competitive side.
 
socK said:
I think this was part of a problem.

I saw a lot of people playing the fuck out of only one class - and it starts coming back to bite you when your team composition just ends up not working for a given scenario ...nobody wants to change. Then you lose.

I think the game will be pretty interesting on the competitive side.
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Well the game tells you how to balance and in pretty much every game I played in people would change as needed. If someone is really good at one toon they should play it and that will help the team.
There is a separate strategy to each character and map so I would rather be on a team where people really know the character they are playing.

Of course the bitching starts early on a game like this.
People bitching about :
Players not being on voice chat
Players playing Bastion
Players sniping
Players zerging
Players bitching
etc etc etc.

This is why I can't play GW2 or WOW. Just a constant 12 year old bitch fest.
 
Overwatch is a game that rewards team-based play and having a bit of knowledge on all the classes. Usually, when I encountered someone who was struggling, I'd toss them a link to this picture...it helps explain alot of the game, and how to react to the composition of your team and the enemy team. http://i.imgur.com/649yyFZ.jpg
649yyFZ.jpg
 
OG gamer check-in many valid points, comes close at times to Quake/TF2 with a bit more, needs more mods/game types but fun. Me and 8+ mates got it already but many of us our blizzard fans. The polish and play are beyond most games that come out now days. Support the PC for 40 and have some fun.
 
danmoody said:
Loved it and I have like 2k hours in tf2
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Pretty crazy. I booted up TF2 for the first time in forever and was amazed at how similar it was to OW.

It is a fun game, fer sure, TF2 is fun. but you have to dedicate yourself to a point. I think OW PC will be a big win for Blizz.
 
Doom2, Quake, Quake2, Unreal Tournament, quake 3 arena, Counter Strike / TF2, Overwatch.
wow is my daily right now and for a while, but this is the first fps that i have enjoyed in a long time. People in the Blizzard community are really liking it. Even people and demographics that have never played fps before. Also lots of women.
 
OP you said Steam but I don't think this is going to be a steam game
 
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