Overwatch - It's Finally Here, And It's Awesome

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18 Years later...

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2016, the year when Blizzard released a new game. Not just a new sequel or a new game based on old lore but rather a completely new game with something nobody had seen before. The last time Blizzard did this was in 1998 when they released Starcraft. Now, 18 years later a new title has emerged and the name is Overwatch.

It's been a tense wait since Overwatch was announced on Blizzcon during 2014. Like it was not enough that we get a completely new online action-game - but they would also include some of the left-overs from the abandoned giant game project "Project Titan", a non-developed online-RPG game that was meant to fill the shoes of World of Warcraft itself.

Long before Overwatch was even released gamers have been getting hyped up about this game and it's characters for about 2 years, playing the beta and just anxiously waiting for the final-release. There is also always the possibility that the project ends in a disappointment for it's fans. Instead Overwatch makes it abundantly clear that this is another game of the ages by Blizzard. A bit repetitive but in the same time it's extremely well polished and sports tight controls.

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The large cast of characters include everything from a large shiny knight with a rocket hammer and rocket-pack on his back to a cyber-ninja that are able to call the help of a mystical dragon power.

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The characters are the key

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Like the card game Heartstone, online-based Heroes of the Storm and, in some aspects, World of Warcraft, Blizzard takes Overwatch to once again set the standards and define a genre, this time the team-based family friendly first-person shooter and adapts it to a even larger audience. Financially this is a genius move from Blizzards side that has already served it's purpose and beyond in the past and the future is looking pretty bright with Overwatch peeking in the horizon.

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The diversity in characters is awesome. Play everything from a sinister french evil sniper to a quick-draw smartass outlaw cowboy.

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Whats interesting about Overwatch is that the setting and characters seem to be more important then the actual playing. Since Blizzard announced OW they have worked hard to show each and every one of the original 21 playable characters in the spotlight and their different abilities. If we compare to other games it's easy to understand why, because Blizzard has succeeded into getting a homerun regarding just the characters. They are absolutely oozing of personality, variety and are filled with smart and creative ideas.

Yes, many of the characters are revamped versions of archetypes from our modern pop-culture. For example we have anxious samurais, cyborg soldiers, cowboys ,mutants and dwarfs that build stuff.
However Blizzard have done a good job in giving all the characters a twist to make them feel more modern and fresh.
Surprisingly enough they manage to do this with simple things like not letting gender or nationality stand in the way for what a character can be or do, a welcomed addition in my opinion.

A sprawling selection of personalities

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In some cases Blizzard really nails the characters, like the games mascot Tracer, she feels new and smart in every aspect of her character design - she reminds me of an awesome combination of an speed-crazy war-pilot mixed with a time-traveling su8perhero. I don't think we have ever seen a "reverse-time" ability working so seamlessly in an online game as it does with Tracer. When rewinding time she will regain any health to what she had at that time and flips locations to where she was 3 seconds ago. Tracer is one of many examples of character design at it's finest.

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Tracer, the time-traveling speed-crazy British character.

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Then of course we have characters like Bastion, a nature-loving killing machine, looking like Wall-E on steroids almost. Bastion is equipped with a camp-friendly minigun. Something that makes him extremely powerful in dishing out damage, sometimes it feels like "Play of The Game" should just be called "Bastion of The Game". The character does not break the game in any way, but he is a force to be reckoned with if you are a bad character to face him.

The heroes are what makes this game great and Blizzard is talking a lot about continuing to expand on the world and universe that Overwatch offers. Giving you reasons to continue to come back for more.

Timeless graphics - with a different layout

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A special shout-out to the animators of OW that has done an impressive job in giving each of the characters as much personality as possible and picked out an multifaceted esthetics that without pause can handle everything from gorillas in glasses to floating omnic robot monks. And like that's not enough the graphics holds a timeless quality and makes the game available for an array of different computers and the multi-platform addition to consoles is a welcomed "bonus".

If you review the matches in OW more closely you will notice that there is not really much there to keep hooking in gamers. In Overwatch you don't unlock any new material that affects the gameplay in anyway. There are no extra characters, no perks, weapons or new abilities to collect. You have everything you need right from the moment you start the game where the focus is having fun and advancing your pure game skills. The rewards that you can get come in the form of different emotes, voice-lines, victory-poses and skins. These rewards can be bought with the in-game currency, which you get from the so called "lootboxes" that you earn trough playing the game. You can also buy "lootboxes" with real money if you choose to do so.

The way the game is set-up gives me a respect for Blizzards decision to release a good and finished game from the beginning, but what the future holds for Overwatch is where the real excitement comes in. Not to say the least that Blizzard has announced that new characters will be released (to date we currently got 3 new heroes, Sombra, Orisa and Doomfist) and new maps, all without the player having to pay a penny for the new content. Even though the gaming is very fun and enjoyable there is sometimes just not enough to keep you there for any real long time as story games does. Overwatch is better to be played just a match or two at a time when you wanna kill some time, and for that it works wonders.

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Doomfist is the newest character to enter the Overwatch arena. He uses a giant electrified rocket-gauntlet to smash his foes to little bits, he is not yet released but is coming to the game July 24th.

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There is no I in TEAM

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Currently you can choose from 23 characters, with 21 being the original ones to then take part in firefights where two team of 6 players in each team clash together. The gameplay is all about switching between attack and defense to either claim a point or defend an area. Not that complicated right? There is even an arcade offering some alternative game-modes like Total Mayhem, where you can use you special abilities much more often then in normal mode, giving some crazy situations and gaming experiences. Overwatch is not very deep and it's crystal clear what this game is all about. This is a game with emphasis on team-play in the true meaning of the word.

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Healers are always an welcomed sight in a team composition and the healers in Overwatch are often quite action-ready, not just being meek healers making them so much more fun to play.

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There is an enormous difference between a team where players casually are playing action-heroes and a team that carefully coordinates their attacks and abilities with each other, whereby the latter always wins. Overwatch absolute goldmine is in the fun variation of team-setups that can occur with the characters and how a mix of different abilities sometimes can switch the tide of a game. There is also the possibility to switch character mid-game as long as your in the home spawn point. Just remember to end the relationship with any friend playing Bastion as main.

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Roadhog, the ruthless Aussie killer only want one thing, mayhem. He will hook his enemies in close to blast their face with his homemade scrap gun, one-shooting squishier heroes to death.

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Everything about Overwatch is easy to learn and adapt to. All the characters are one of 4 classes, namely attack, tank, support or defensive. Blizzard has even graded each character depending upon their difficulty level to play. Before any game begins, the game will also give tips on what may be lacking in the current team set-up, for example it will prompt you to take a healer if nobody other in your team has chosen a healer.
When going trough the in-game hero gallery menu you can see every hero more detailed. By pressing on the details of an hero you will get an overview of their abilities and how to best use them (this is also where you can buy in-game rewards). Every character has different amount of abilities, ranging between 2 - 3 which are on PC activated either by right mouse-clicking, pressing SHIFT or pressing E, after building up some points while playing the game you will be able to use your Ultimate ability on Q, easy enough right?

Overwatch - A Blizzard megahit with a bright future.

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As in all Blizzard games Overwatch is designed to cater for many different types of players. Still it misses the true high points with the lack of depth and encouragement to keep playing. There is plenty of good and creative ideas in this game, but mostly they are remixes of tried gaming elements polished to perfection.

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Help out your friends as a support character. Symmetra can create a portal so your team can quickly return to battle.

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The future is showing promise with more and more characters and maps getting released continuously. The Blizzard support team is easy to reach in case of any problems and there are plenty of in-game guides to help you get started if you choose to buy this game. It is clear that blizzard has made an attempt to reach as many players as possible, so hardcore Blizzard fans looking for something deep and revolutionary will have to wait longer (hopefully not 18 years).

• Timeless and polished graphics.

• Excellent teamplay.

• Incredible diversity in the playable heroes aspect.

• Epic, but repeatable orchestral soundtrack.

• Could be much more deeper, not much to discover in the game and keep you hooked in

• Not very fun unlockables.

Want to game with me The GamingViking? I main Reinhardt in the game and my Battletag is Reinweedt#2309 just add me if you wanna go for a game, I'm on the PC. Peace fellow steemians.

If you like my writing check out some of my other reviews & previews:
Bloodborne - Hunt Your Nightmares
Horizon: Zero Dawn - A lush post-apocalyptic world
Conan Exiles - Survive, Build & Dominate The Hyborian Age
Agony - A Hellish Trip Into Madness
Skull & Bones - Become The Ultimate Pirate

Sources

1. All images