Jason Schreier’s original article is here
For those who encounter a paywall, an archived version is here
The important bit in his article:
Last year, Overwatch 2 received a paid pack of three PvE story missions that sold poorly, according to people familiar with the business, which was a major reason for the cratering bonuses. In January, as part of a company-wide reduction in its work force, the majority of the team behind Overwatch 2’s PvE was laid off.
Overwatch 2 developers were informed that the company does not plan to finish any of the remaining planned PvE content and will instead double down on competitive player vs. player gameplay, according to the people familiar.
No shit it’s gonna fail. If you half ass something you obviously didn’t wanna do, in an already fucked up development situation, it’s not going well. No shit Sherlock.
I’m so pissed. I was so hyped for pve. I love the overwatch character design and universe but hate pvp.
The only reason I stomached all the bs of Overwatch 2 was for the promise of PvE. As soon as they announced they weren’t doing that anymore I uninstalled the game. The fact they squeezed out some half-assed story missions for a price was just the final nail in the coffin. It’s sad bc I loved OW1, but this game has become nothing more than a soulless money vaccuum.
OW1 was so much better, and I can guarantee they would’ve made more money from that model over OW2’s BS. The change to 5v5 unbalanced the entire game and required significant map changes.
It boils down to greed; some MBAs in the company were absolutely convinced that they’d make more money from this new model. Their greed sunk the whole game. Classic Blizzard.
MBA-ism strikes again
I never played either game, but I’m kinda with you on this. I don’t give a shit about LoL or Valorant, but those get their own spin-off media even though they’re not as popular as Overwatch.
I kinda love the design of the characters, and I’d love for there to be some possibly animated show or something about it all. Oh well.
I really enjoyed the base pvp game but I was also very hyped for PvE. Loved the seasonal missions and it seemed like they were really honing in on it…but I called it quits in the first month or two of OW2 when they first announced they overpromised.
The overwatch character design is amazing. The latest heroes not so much, but overall the world is so well done. The short clips were Disney like and I always dreamed about a full movie or extended series. it never happened.
It’s frustrating when you’ve been part of this universe for many years, thousands of thousands of hours and then have to witness what Blizzard does with this IP. I’ve probably played more Overwatch than all my other games combined. Also there’s an “enjoyment vacuum” in my heart now, as nothing comes close to the charm of these heroes.