Overwatch 2: A Complete Guide to Season 10 Gameplay

• Who says adventure says Venture!

Shake the earth with a new damage character: archaeologist Venture, who draws on his passion for history to display breathtaking heroism. With its imposing drill and its seismic capabilities, Venture is bringing a breath of fresh air to the field (and underground). Dig, drill and shake the earth to destroy the opposing forces and their plans to achieve victory.

Using his SMART Excavator, Venture projects seismic energy which explodes, inflicting heavy damage. His Burrow ability allows him to make himself invulnerable by hiding in the ground, but also to gain momentum before emerging from the ground to catch opponents off guard. Then use Rapid Drill to lunge forward, pushing away opposing characters and making room for your team. Finally, when the time comes to annihilate anyone foolish enough to get in your way, unleash a powerful shockwave with Venture's ultimate ability: Earthquake. Elusive underground, capable of emerging in force to engage in combat as close as possible to the opponent, Venture has a versatile playing style that promises to shake up the enemy ranks.

• Rush into battle now with Venture and all Overwatch characters

We want all players to be able to get excited about discovering each new character. This is why from the launch of Venture, all characters, already released or future, will be immediately accessible provided they have completed the experience intended for new players. Finally, since Venture has already been able to gain experience in the field during his trial period, we have made some adjustments to his arsenal and we are pleased to announce that this character will be available in competitive play from season 10 kicks off, scheduled for tomorrow.

This is a big change, but making our new characters available in competitive play at the start of each season in Overwatch 2 has always been part of our aspirations. Previously, we first had to fix any bugs and balance issues, but also give the community time to unlock the new characters in the battle pass. But thanks to the recent trial period that Venture benefited from as well as the immediate unlocking of all characters, we think that the archaeologist can jump right in! Go on an adventure without further delay and shake the earth… and your adversaries!

• Allegiances shift in Inverwatch

Explore a new reality in Inverwatch, a limited-time event that will take you to an alternate universe where virtue becomes infamy, and evil becomes heroism. Change sides and rediscover the characters and their abilities: admire the powerful Parry shield of Operations Commander Doomfist, the detonation of Angel's explosive Soul, or the vengeance and ultimate Antivirus ability of Agent Colomar Sombra. And to transform reality even more radically, fight battle on a revisited version of the Observatory: Gibraltar map in which the Claw has taken control of the place. Discover this alternative universe for a limited time, from April 23 to May 13.

• New ways to earn and unlock rewards

Based on your feedback, we've decided to make it easier to obtain rewards and give you more control over your Overwatch 2 experience. This means that coins will no longer be obtained in weekly challenges, but in the battle pass , which will allow you to earn more easily while playing. And that's not all: we're increasing the number of coins you can earn each season, since the battle pass can now earn you up to 600 coins!

• Choose your legendary model

New for season 10, mythical prisms allow you to acquire the mythical model of your choice. The premium battle pass is the best way to get these prisms. Collect Mythic Prisms to unlock Mythic models, then upgrade them with different customization options. Once the premium battle pass is completed, you will have obtained 80 prisms: enough to unlock a legendary model with all its options! To obtain Mythic Prisms each season, the Premium Battle Pass is unbeatable.

This season, our legendary model is Angel of Vengeance! Under the pseudonym Angel of Vengeance, Dr. Angela Ziegler leads the Claw in her fight for a better world… in which the right of life and death belongs to her. The mythical Angel of Vengeance model features three unlockable color and mask variations, as well as two hairstyles and two versions of the Caduceus.

Ange is not your favorite heroine? No problem. You can spend your mythic prisms to acquire mythical models like Genji Cyberdemon, Kiriko Amaterasu or Sigma Galactic Emperor, or save them to treat yourself to future mythical ornamental items that may appear in the store. We'll go into more detail about Mythic Prisms, unlockables, progression and more tomorrow, with the launch of Season 10.

• The line between good and evil is thin in the new battle pass

Evil has become good and righteous souls have changed sides: unlock over 80 tiers of rewards in the Inverwatch-themed Season 10 Premium Battle Pass. Collect new legendary models like Sombra Agent Colomar, Symmetra Junker, Doomfist Operations Commander Ogundimu, Brigitte the Claw and Fatale Captain Lacroix. Explore this alternate universe further with the Ultimate Battle Pass Bundle, which contains 2,000 Overwatch Coins and 20 Rank Jumps, as well as the Legendary Reinhardt Fallen Knight and Supreme Commander Ana Amari skins.

• Win in Clash mode

Get ready to experience the frenetic Clash mode in a limited-time trial, available at the launch of Season 10. Engage in a fierce battle to control different points arranged along a linear route. To triumph, teams will need to use strategy to capture and defend five cleverly placed points on a mirror map. With dynamic spawn points and simplified routes, it will only take you a few seconds to get back into the action and maximize your time spent in combat.

The Clash Mode Trial will give you the opportunity to explore Hanaoka, a brand new map that will introduce you to new corners of the famous Hanamura and offer you battlefields that are both new and familiar. Quickly try Clash mode, available in the Arcade from April 16 to 29.

• Stunning Character Updates

Bouldozer received some improvements to better roll over his opponents. Hammond can now protect his teammates while pouncing on enemy ranks thanks to Dynamic Shield, which now grants a portion of additional shield points to nearby allied characters. Grapple Claw gives you even more control and mobility: it is now possible to use the main fire button once the grapple is docked to retract Bouldozer. What's more, its cooldown has been adjusted and will be partially canceled if you don't reach high speed while using it.

This season comes with many other balance changes. Sombra and Tracer have been fearsome heroes since last season's gameplay changes, so we're reducing the power of their arsenal. Sombra's Virus deals less damage over time to offset the initial burst of damage, and it's now harder to hit with Tracer's Pulse Bomb, giving her opponents more of a chance. This season, many tanks will be receiving slight boosts so that characters like Reinhardt can make more of an impact with abilities like Seismic Shock. Finally, we reworked the damage and healing balance for some support characters like Moira and Illari, and made some improvements to Vital to balance his arsenal. Find out more about these changes in our patch notes overview on the forums (in English).

• Competitive Match Updates and More

Competitive games are getting some updates! First, you can now unlock any golden weapon using your 2024 competition points. Note, however, that you cannot use your classic competition point balance when you acquire a golden weapon with your points 2024.

Playing competitive matches with your contacts just got easier than ever with the removal of squad restrictions. Squads with disparate levels will be referred to as “permissive squads”. A permissive squad can only play against other permissive squads: your games may be a little more unpredictable, the waiting time will be longer and your rank will fluctuate less after a defeat or a victory. Solo players will never encounter permissive squads, as these cannot consist of more than three people.

The Defensive Matrix is ​​also getting an update: new desertion penalties will be applied in unranked and in competitive games. Finally, the streamer protection system has server-side features that will allow you to hide your name from your team and your opponents during games, instead of hiding your name only on your screen. Learn all about squad restrictions, reducing disruptive behavior, and upcoming improvements in the latest Message from the devs (in English) and in our article on the Defensive Matrix.

Making competitive play a fun and fair experience is a priority for our team, and we will continue to improve our Defensive Matrix to combat disruptive behavior.