Overwatch 2 community baffled by devs’ shocking 6v6 update

In Overwatch 2, they’ve opted to include 6v6 gameplay, but there’s an unusual choice that appears to be affecting the overall quality of matches and wait times for queues.

The test play of Overwatch 2 received great feedback as it moved back to a team-based format of six versus six players. Many gamers have expressed enjoyment, saying that the return to this format made the game feel more like the original Overwatch and generally improved the overall experience.

In response to the excitement within the community, Blizzard has decided to extend the trial period for the 6v6 role queue system all the way up to the midpoint of the current season. After this, they plan to introduce a new 6v6 format with modified team composition rules.

On the other hand, this addition appears to have its price, as Blizzard has taken an unusual step that has puzzled the community.

Overwatch 6v6 is now an arcade mode

It came as a surprise when Blizzard decided to prolong the playtest, but what really took everyone by shock was their additional move to place it in the Arcade playlist. The Arcade playlist usually houses less competitive and more entertaining game modes like Total Mayhem or Deathmatch, which often have longer wait times compared to other modes.

6v6, extended or not, Arcade instantly kills it.
byu/u-r-silly inOverwatch

On average, wait times for 6v6 matches were remarkably swift and stable, but one Reddit user pointed out that wait times appeared to spike significantly when it came to joining support games. In fact, the estimated wait time for support games reached up to 16 minutes. (During our own testing, it took slightly over six minutes to join a game as a support player, which is a noticeable increase compared to previous queues that typically took one to two minutes on average.)

Some gamers have observed a drop in the overall caliber of matches for this particular game mode. Previously, when it was governed by Quick Play regulations, quitters were penalized and encouraged to see the game through even if they were expected to lose. Now that it’s an Arcade mode, there seems to be more instances of players leaving early, which naturally impacts the quality of the matches.

Essentially, Blizzard hasn’t given a specific reason for removing the mode from the Arcade playlist, but it seems plausible that they’re streamlining things for the upcoming 6v6 test, which will allow a team to field a maximum of three characters per role and a minimum of one per role, making the transition smoother.

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2025-01-09 16:24