Overwatch 2 patch update arrived on May 20, debuting the much anticipated Street Fighter collaboration alongside numerous changes to the meta. The update added Freya to Overwatch’s stadium mode alongside implementing numerous item balancing. 

The Street Fighter x Overwatch collaboration event is from May 20 to June 2, and debuts eight new skins. The following heroes are receiving Street Fighter skins: Hanzo, Juno, Sigma, Soldier 76, Kiriko, Winston, Widowmaker, and Zenyatta.

Here are the full official Overwatch 2 patch notes: 

HERO UPDATES

TANK

HAZARD

• Vault – Passive
  • Ledge climb animation time reduced from 0.6 to 0.4 seconds.
• Anarchic Zeal – Major Perk
  • Spike Guard’s Lifesteal is increased from 25% to 40%.

REINHARDT

• Fire Strike – Ability 2
  • Projectile speed increased from 25 to 30 meters per second.
  • Recovery time reduced from 0.63 to 0.45 seconds.

DAMAGE

FREJA

• Quick Dash
  • Cooldown increased from 3.5 to 4 seconds.

GENJI

• Shuriken – Primary and Secondary Fire
  • Ammo reduced from 30 to 24.
  • Projectile speed increased from 60 to 75.

HANZO

• Storm Bow – Primary Fire
  • Draw time reduced from 0.8 to 0.72 seconds.
• Sonic Disruption – Minor Perk
  • Health pack hack time increased from 12 to 30 seconds.

PHARAH

• Drift Thrusters – Minor Perk
  • Movement speed while using Barrage reduced by 20%.
• Concussive Implosion – Major Perk
  • Distance pulled reduced by 50%.

REAPER

• Dire Triggers – Major Perk
  • Recovery reduced from 0.7 to 0.5 seconds.

SOLDIER: 76

• Stim Pack – Major Perk
  • Anti-heal removed. Now deals 75 self-damage on use.
  • Is now activated by using Weapon Swap.

SOMBRA

• Translocator – Ability 2
  • Fade in time increased from 0.15 to 0.3 seconds.
  • Stealth reveal duration on taking damage increased from 1 to 1.3 seconds.

WIDOWMAKER

• Widow’s Kiss – Primary Fire
  • Maximum spread reduced from 3 to 2 degrees.
  • Damage increased from 13 to 14.
• Deadly Deux
  • Venom Mine’s bonus damage increased from 50% to 100%.

SUPPORT

ILLARI

• Solar Rifle – Secondary Fire
  • Range increased from 15 to 20 meters.

LIFEWEAVER

• Healing Blossom – Primary Fire
  • Auto-Charge rate increased by 25%.
• Superbloom – Major Perk
  • The number of hits to trigger reduced from 20 to 16.

STADIUM UPDATES

Mercy Rule

• Now triggers when the cash disparity between the teams is at 10,000 or more (down from 15,000).

Round Completion Cash

• We’ve added a system where players are granted an additional boost to their Round Completion Cash in rounds that end with players on both teams having lower than intended amounts of cash. This additional cash will be equivalent for every player.

TANK

REINHARDT

• Smashing – Power
  • Reduced Move Speed per stack to 1% (down from 2%).
  • Reduced Life Steal per stack to 3% (down from 5%).
  • Increased maximum stacks to 10 (up from 5).
  • Reduced duration to 2s (down from 3s).
• To Me, My Friends! – Power
  • Increased healing based on Max Life to 4% (up from 3%).
• Wilhelmwagen – Power
  • Decreased healing from damage mitigated to 5% (down from 15%).
• Rocket Strike – Epic Hero Ability Item
  • Decreased Fire Strike Projectile Speed to 25% (down from 50%).
  • Decreased Ability Power to 10% (down from 20%).
• Chimera’s Maw – Rare Hero Ability Item
  • Decreased Ability Power to 5% (down from 10%).

DAMAGE

FREJA

• Added to the Stadium Hero Roster
• Cyclone – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • When you use Updraft, fire a Take Aim bolt at your crosshair.
• Seekerpoint – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • When Take Aim bolt sticks an enemy, automatically fire 3 additional crossbow shots at them that deal 66% reduced damage.
• Seismic Shot – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • Take Aim explosion radius is increased by 33%. Double this if the bolt is stuck to a target.
• Thread the Needle – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • Take Aim bolts pierce enemies. Additional explosions deal 66% reduced damage.
• Deep Pockets – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • When you use an ability, restore 50% of your Max Ammo.
• Forager – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • For 2 seconds after using Quick Dash. Revdraw Crossbow hits heal you for 3% of your Max Life.
• Peak Performance – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • While firing Revdraw Crossbow your fall speed is decreased by 80%.
• Redux – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • Revdraw Crossbow hits against targets stuck by a Take Aim bolt or Bola Shot reduce the cooldown of your abilities by 5% and refunds 1 ammo.
• Volley à Deux – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • Every fifth Revdraw Crossbow shot fires an additional 2 bolts in a spread that deal 50% reduced damage.
• Lille Fælde – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • After using Updraft, your next Take Aim while airborne fires a Bola Shot that deals 60% reduced damage instead of an explosive bolt.
• So Cooked – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • Bola Shot’s damaging zone deals 50% more damage and lingers for 3 seconds. Bola shot eliminations count toward Bounty Hunting.
• Mighty Gust – Power
  • New Stadium Power.
  • Updraft launches a wind blast toward your crosshair, knocking back enemies and dealing 40 ability damage.
• Tracker Tag – Rare Hero Weapon Item
  • New Rare Hero Weapon Item.
  • 30% Max Ammo.
  • When Take Aim bolt sticks to an enemy, increase your Attack Speed by 20% for 3 seconds.
• Slipstream Scarf – Rare Hero Weapon Item
  • New Rare Hero Weapon Item.
  • 25 Health.
  • 5% Weapon Power.
  • 25% Quick Dash Distance.
• Portable Zipline – Epic Hero Weapon Item
  • New Epic Hero Weapon Item.
  • 15% Weapon Power.
  • Eliminations reset both charges of Quick Dash cooldown.
• Windwalker Boots – Rare Hero Ability Item
  • New Rare Hero Ability Item.
  • 25 Health.
  • 5% Cooldown Reduction.
  • 20% Updraft Height.
• Magnetic Maelstrom – Epic Hero Ability Item
  • New Epic Hero Ability Item.
  • 15% Ability Power.
  • Bola Shot pulls in nearby enemies even when it misses.
• Hunter’s Mark – Rare Hero Survival Item
  • New Rare Hero Survival Item.
  • 25 Health.
  • Enemies with a Bounty of 75- or more are revealed to you within 40 meters. Eliminating them grants 250 additional Stadium Cash.
• Aeroweave Cloak – Rare Hero Survival Item
  • New Rare Hero Survival Item.
  • 25 Health.
  • 100% Take Aim Slowed Momentum Duration.
• Tourniquet – Rare Hero Survival Item
  • New Rare Hero Survival Item.
  • 25 Health.
  • After using Updraft, reset Quick Dash and gain 50 Overhealth for 5 seconds.
• Toxin Tips – Epic Hero Survival Item
  • New Epic Hero Survival Item.
  • 50 Health.
  • Take Aim bolts sticks and explosions slow enemies by 30% but takes 1 second longer to explode.

SOLDIER: 76

• Cratered – Power
  • Reduced increased Explosion Damage to 15% (down from 25%)

GENERAL ITEMS

ITEMS

• Champion’s Kit – Epic Ability Item
  • Increased cost to 14000 (up from 13500).
  • Decreased Ability Power to 35% (down from 40%).
• The Closer – Epic Weapon Item
  • Increased cost to 14500 (up from 13000).
• Eye of the Spider – Epic Weapon Item
  • Increased cost to 14000 (up from 13500).
• Nano Cola – Rare Ability Item
  • Increased cost to 6000 (up from 5500).
• Talon Modification Module – Rare General Weapon Item
  • Increased cost to 6000 (up from 5500).
• Gloomgauntlet – Epic Survival Item
  • Increased cost to 10000 (up from 9500).
• Icy Coolant – Rare Weapon Item
  • Increased cost to 5500 (up from 5000).
• Multi-Tool – Rare Ability Item
  • Decreased cost to 4500 (down from 5000).
  • Decreased Cooldown Reduction to 5% (down from 10%).
  • Increased Ability Power to 10% (up from 5%).
• Bloodbound – Epic Survival Item
  • Decreased cost to 9000 (down from 9500).
• Geneticist’s Vial – Epic Survival Item
  • Increased Life after reviving to 250 (up from 200).
• Electrolytes – Common Survival Item
  • Now gives 100 Overhealth every time you respawn (instead of just at the start of the round).
  • Increased cost to 1500 (up from 1000).
• Adrenaline Shot – Common Survival Item
  • Increased Health to 25 (up from 10).
  • Increased cost to 1500 (up from 1000).

BUG FIXES

General

• Fixed an issue where challenges were not progressing when queued as a specific role.
• Fixed a graphical error that caused flashing for certain heroes on consoles.

Heroes

• Doomfist
  • Fixed an issue where Doomfist was able to continue charging his punch through Sigma’s Accretion stun.
• Illari
  • Fixed an issue where Illari’s Captive Sub Ultimate would not explode after a deflect.
• Mercy
  • Fixed an issue where Mercy’s resurrect could complete in spawn if spawn timer was reached.

Stadium

• Fixed a visual issue causing the Rank Progress bar to show incorrect Stadium Points after a match.
• Fixed an issue with Competitive title rewards displaying the wrong role in stadium.
• Fixed an issue with Zarya not working with Codebreaker item.
• Fixed and issue where the mercy rule would activate inconsistently.
• Fixed an issue with Mercy’s First Responder power.
• Fixed an issue where the armory could load in an incomplete state.
• Fixed an issue where the Better Together challenge was not tracking for D.VA players under certain conditions.
• Fixed an issue where the Better Together challenge was not counting towards MVP or Star of the Show challenges.
• Fixed an issue that occurs when Soldier uses the On Me power with both Vishkar Condenser and Vital-E-Tee mods together.
• Fixed an issue that occurs when Junker Queen uses both the Reckoner’s Roar power and Cybervenom mod.
• Fixed an issue that occurs when Ana uses both Comfy Cloud and Dreamy powers.
• Fixed an issue that occurs when Mei uses both the Coulder power and Cybervenom mod.
• Fixed an issue with Freja’s animation while holding down her secondary fire.
• Fixed an issue with Mercy’s Equivalent Exchange mod and this has now been re-enabled.
• Fixed an issue with Genji’s Deflect-O-Bot power and this has now been re-enabled.
• Fixed an issue where Moira’s Empowering You power would not play hit markers when the buffed ally dealt damage.
• Fixed an issue where Zarya’s Hybrid Battery item wouldn’t reset energy to 0 when sold.

Overwatch 2 Stadium has become the title’s most played mode with 7.8 million hours of play logged, as according to Blizzard’s official developer blog. The mode surpassed both Quick Play and Competitive — which were Overwatch’s previous top played modes. Blizzard saw 900 billion Stadium Cash earned in a single week. 

Blizzard implemented a patch update catered toward stabilizing the meta in Overwatch 2’s Stadium mode, the newest competitive mode for the team-based hero shooter. The developers increased bounty caps from 2,000 to 3,000, thereby widening opportunities for comebacks in a game mode that rewards steamrolling the opponent. 

In addition to the buff for the comeback mechanic, heroes received balancing as well. Overpowered picks, such as Zarya, were nerfed, while underperforming heroes, such as Ana, received minor buffs to their kit.

Here are all the full Overwatch 2 Retail Patch Notes: 

Economy

• Increased bounty cap to 3,000 (up from 2,000).

Armory

• Reduced timer from 100 seconds to 75 seconds in rounds 1 and 3.
• Reduced timer from 75 seconds to 60 seconds in round 2.

Tank

Zarya

• Reduced cash income from damage and healing by 12.5%.

Damage

Cassidy

• Reduced income from damage and healing by 12.5%.

Reaper

• Revolving Ruin – Power
  • Reduced Attack Speed per stack to 4% (down from 5%).
  • Increased maximum stacks to 10 (up from 8).
• Wraith Renewal – Power
  • Fixed an issue where Wraith Renewal healing was always being doubled, regardless of what your current Life was.
• Spirited to Slay – Power
  • Fixed an issue that caused Reaper’s cooldowns to be reset without getting an Elimination.

Support

Ana

• Home Remedy – Power
  • Increased Overhealth gain to 200% (up from 100%).
• Dreamy – Power
  • Decreased heal to 80% (down from 100%).
  • Decreased duration to 4s (down from 8s).
• Venomous – Power
  • Increased damage to 50 (up from 30).
• Quick Scope – Rare Hero Weapon Item
  • Increased Weapon Power to +10% (up from 5%).
• I.V. Drip – Rare Hero Survival Item
  • Increased Overhealth to 150 (up from 100).

Overwatch 2’s Stadium mode incorporates shop and build elements reminiscent of a MOBA. The game mode has its own ranked system and hero pool, thereby requiring its own unique balancing. Blizzard introduced the game mode on April 22, 2025.

Nearly 200 developers on the Overwatch 2 team at Blizzard joined the CWA, according to a CWA press release. The cause of unionization is largely attributed to the massive layoffs affecting the video game industry. 

“The massive layoffs in the video game industry, and at my own studio, became one of the first reasons I started to learn about how to organize to create a healthier workplace for everyone,” shared Frank Le Cocq, VFX artist at Blizzard. He is also an organizing committee member.

The sentiment was shared by the vast majority of Blizzard developers who joined the CWA. Union members are fighting for a seat at the table, where they can work with leadership to build better, more sustainable working conditions.

“Ultimately, when we’re supported and thriving, we can deliver the best possible experiences to our players, which is what brought all of us here in the first place,” said Jess Castillo, senior test analyst II and organizing committee member.

The CWA reportedly includes over 2,600 workers at Microsoft-owned studios; the union includes ZeniMax workers, who stand ready to strike in case contract negotiations with Microsoft go unfavorably. 

Overwatch 2 Stadium mode received a hotfix update to its gameplay balance on May 8. The patch largely prioritizes balancing the Tank class. Overbearing picks, such as Junker Queen and Reinhardt, saw flat nerfs, while D.Va, a pick that struggled in specific matchups, received rebalancing to her kit.

Blizzard’s official blog provides developer comments and unique insight into the balance changes. Here are the full Overwatch 2 Stadium patch notes: 

Tank

D.Va

Countermeasures – Power

• Decreased mitigation requirement to 100 (down from 150).

Mastermind’s Mitigator – Rare Ability Hero Item

• Decreased damage mitigation requirement to 200 (down from 300).

Stat Boost – Power

• Increased Defense Matrix recovery rate to 125% (up from 100%).

Ultrawide Matrix – Power

• Defense Matrix duration increased to 25% (up from 20%).

Multi-Task Mod – Epic Weapon Hero Item

• Increased Weapon Power to 20% (up from 10%).

Singijeon’s Pulse Plating – Epic Survival Hero Item

• Increased Ultimate Charge gain to 10% (up from 5%).

Plot Armor – Rare Survival Hero Item

• Damage reduced now gets counted as damage mitigated by Defense Matrix.

Junker Queen

Booming Voice – Epic Ability Item

• Reduced Ability Power to 15% (down from 25%).

Slicing Spree – Rare Hero Survival Item

• Reduced Move Speed stat to 5% (down from 10%).
• Reduced Move Speed while near an enemy with a Wound to 5% (down from 10%).
• Increased Attack Speed while near an enemy with a Wound to 10% (up from 5%).

Reinhardt

Impact Burst – Power

• Reduced bonus damage to 15% (down from 20%).

Smashing – Power

• Reduced Move Speed per stack to 2% (down from 3%).

Zarya

Lifelift – Power

• Reduced Particle Barrier health scaling to 25% of your bonus Max Life (down from 50%).

Pre-Workout – Power

• Reduced Lifesteal to 15% of your Energy (down from 20%).

Damage

Ashe

Head Honcho – Power

• Increased damage increase per unscoped shot landed to 5% (up from 3%).

B.O.B. Jr. – Power

• Reduced Attack Speed reduction to 20% (down from 50%).

Infrared Lenses – Epic Ability Hero Item

• Fixed an issue where the increased damage against Burning targets was only applying to The Viper and B.O.B. Now increases all damage dealt by Ashe to Burning targets.
• Reduced increased damage to Burning targets to 20% (down from 25%).

Support

Lúcio

Crowd Pleaser – Power

• Healing reduced to 100% of Crossfade healing (down from 150%).

Let’s Bounce – Power

• Reduced Wall Slam damage to 25 (down from 40).
• Reduced Knockback Increase to 25% (down from 30%).

Sonic Boom – Power

• Increased Healing to 30% of damage dealt (up from 20%).

Fast Forward – Power

• Increased damage increase to 30% (up from 25%).

#1 Single – Rare Ability Hero Item

• Reduced Ability Power to 5% (down from 10%).

All Out Auditiva – Epic Ability Hero Item

• Reduced Ability Power to 15% (down from 20%).
• Reduced Amp It Up Duration to 25% (down from 33%).

Moira

Precarious Potency – Power

• Increased healing to 25% of Biotic Grasp’s healing (up from 20%).

Destruction’s Divide – Power

• Increased Coalescence effectiveness when toggled to 30% (up from 25%).

General

General Items

Booster Jets – Epic Weapon Item

• Reduced Move Speed when using an ability to 10% (down from 20%).

Nebula Conduit – Epic Survival Item

• Reduced Weapon Power to 5% (down from 10%).

Overwatch 2’s Stadium Mode incorporates shop and build elements reminiscent of a MOBA. The game mode has its own ranked system and hero pool, thereby requiring its own unique balancing. Blizzard introduced the game mode on April 22, 2025.

Blizzard announced “1 Gorilla vs 100 Soldiers,” a livestream event occurring on May 6 at 12 pm PT, or 3 pm ET. The event features one Winston fighting against 100 Solider: 76s, a reference to the popular internet discussion topic that has spawned countless memes.

The livestream is exclusively on Twitch, broadcasting on PlayOverwatch’s official channel. The matchup will feature “surprise content creators,” according to Blizzard. Within the social media post where the livestream was marketed, Blizzard held a poll where players could vote for who they thought would win. 

Here are the results of the poll, which has since been closed and saw 15,729 total votes:

•  1 Winston (57.1% or 8,981 voters)
• 100 Soldiers (42.9% or 6,748 voters)

The livestream event is a play on a popular meme: “1 Gorilla vs 100 men.” This now viral topic originated from a Reddit thread in the subreddit r/whowouldwin in 2020. The internet then resurfaced the conversation when MrBeast referenced the topic on X. The post has 51 million views and 616,000 likes. Even major news outlets such as ABC and CBS News began weighing in on the hot topic. 

Overwatch 2 is a competitive team-based shooter available on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and PC. Blizzard recently added a new game mode, Stadium, where Overwatch 2 adopted customizable builds and item mechanics. 

The prize pool for the Overwatch Champions Series Champions Clash 2025 was officially unveiled on April 30, 2025, via a post on the Overwatch Esports X (formerly Twitter) account.

Crazy Raccoon claimed $104,000 in prize money for defeating Team Falcons 4-1 in the Grand Finals, while the total prize pool, including proceeds from the Ember Juno bundle, was finalized as $260,000.

The Ember Juno bundle, priced at 2,500 Overwatch Coins ($24.99), was made available for in-game purchase to help promote the tournament and support its participating teams. The skin was released as part of the second collaboration between Overwatch and Le Sserafim, a South Korean K-pop girl group formed by Source Music, a sub-label of Hybe.

The bundle was available via the in-game store during the period of April 1 – 22, 2025, with 25% of revenue made from Ember Juno purchases directly contributing toward the OWCS Champions Clash 2025 prize pool.

The official prize fund distribution amounted to the following:

• 1st: Crazy raccoons – $104,000
• 2nd: Team Falcons – $52,000
• 3rd: NTMR – $26,000
• 4th: Once Again – $20,800
• 5th/6th: Virtus.pro – $15,600
• 5th/6th: Spacestation Gaming – $15,600
• 7th/8th: Al Qadsiah – $13,000
• 7th/8th: Team CC – $13,000

Overwatch 2 x Gundam Wing collaboration skins are officially releasing on April 29 – revealed via PlayOverwatch’s official YouTube channel a day before the skin’s release. The trailer for the new Overwatch 2 Gundam also showcased the exact heroes and Gundam models being added: Tallgeese Soldier: 76, Deathscythe Reaper, Wing Mercy, and Epyon Ramattra.

Bundles for each skin will cost 2,800 Overwatch Coins; a mega bundle that contains all the skins will cost 5,900 Overwatch coins, as according to Gamespot.

The collaboration helps celebrate Gundam Wing’s 30th anniversary; the anime’s first episode launched in April of 1995. Gundam Wing aired for 49 total episodes.

Overwatch 2 has been collaborating with quite a few anime series recently, with its latest one being My Hero Academia. Tracer, Juno, Reinhardt, Reaper and Kiriko were the heroes who received collaboration skins at that time.

Before that, a Cowboy Bebop collaboration also happened in March 2024. Sombra, Wrecking Ball, Mauga, Ashe and Cassidy received collaboration skins. There was even a video recreating the opening of the anime.

Blizzard’s newest retail patch notes for Overwatch 2 are here – debuting Freja, the newest DPS hero to join the ever-growing roster of characters. The update also adds a brand new game mode: Stadium, which will serve as a new core game mode that features a 5v5 format across multiple rounds and maps. 

Bounty Hunter Freja excels at using her tracking skills to hunt down targets – she is known for being agile, aggressive, and lethal. As for the playable mechanics, Freja “rewards players who think fast, reposition smart, and strike with precision.” 

In addition to the new game mode and new character releasing, this patch implements a long list of hero balancing. All the hero balancing are listed in the full Overwatch 2 retail patch notes. 

Here are the full Overwatch 2 Retail Patch Notes: 

Introducing Stadium

• Stadium is a new core game mode listed alongside the Unranked, Competitive Play, and Arcade cards in the main menu.
• Two teams of five compete across multiple rounds and maps.
• First to four round wins will win the match.
• Available only in Role Queue.
• Custom Game modes are not yet available for Stadium.
• Players may group up with other players regardless of skill or Competitive rank in Stadium.

Stadium Maps

• Nine new or modified maps on three different map types are added.
• Control maps play one round only and capture progress is faster.
• Clash maps play on three objective points only.
• Push maps play with distance to the objective at approximately half the distance as full Push maps.

Heroes

• Heroes selected are locked in for the entire match.
• Tank Heroes: D.Va, Junker Queen, Orisa, Reinhardt, and Zarya.
• Damage Heroes: Ashe, Cassidy, Genji, Mei, Reaper, and Soldier: 76.
• Support Heroes: Ana, Juno, Kiriko, Lucio, Mercy, and Moira.
• Perks are not enabled in Stadium.

Stadium Cash

• Spend Stadium Cash to buy Items for your Hero and gain additional max health.

Earning Stadium Cash

• Each player starts with 3,500 at the beginning of the match.
• Players earn more Stadium Cash by dealing damage, providing healing, and getting eliminations or assists.
• Players can earn bounties by eliminating or assisting with eliminating an opponent that has been performing well.
• The player on each team with the most Stadium Cash earned for the round receives a 1,000 cash bonus.
• A team that is significantly behind at the start of a round will have a bonus multiplier added to their earnings throughout that round.

Bounties

• Every player starts with a value of 300 at the start of the match.
• Every time a player gets an elimination or assist their bounty value increases by 75 and can have a maximum value of 2,000.
• Every time a player with more than 300 is eliminated their bounty is reset to 300.
• Every time a player with 300 or less is eliminated their bounty value drops by 100.
• Any player with a bounty of 750 or more is displayed in the gameplay HUD.

Increase Max Health

• For Damage and Support players every 500 total cash earned adds 1 additional max health at the end of the round and for the remainder of the match.
• For Tank players every 750 total cash earned adds 1 additional max health for the remainder of the match.
• Up to 300 additional health can be added on from Stadium Cash earnings.
• The initial 3,500 cash at the start of the round does not provide additional max health.

Armory

• At the start of each round, players will enter the Armory and have a limited time to browse.
• Players can use Stadium Cash to buy Items that modifies their weapons, abilities, and more.
• On round 1, 3, 5 and 7, players can equip Powers for transformative modifiers that enhances and changes that Hero’s playstyle.
• Example Builds are available for every Hero. These are great places to start!

Items

• Players can have up to six Items equipped at any time.
• Players can sell previously obtained Items for equal value to the purchase price.
• Items are organized into three categories, Weapon, Ability, and Survival.
• Weapon Items typically modify the stats of weapons that have no cooldowns to use.
• Ability Items typically modify the stats of abilities that are limited by a cooldown or ultimate charge.
• Survival Items typically modify the stats of the Hero’s survival capabilities including max health, movement speed, and more.
• Items are organized into Common, Rare, and Epic tiers. Common Items are the most affordable with Epic ones being the most exclusive.
• Many Items are available to equip for all Heroes.
• Each Hero will have exclusive Hero Items that specifically change the attributes of that Hero’s weapons, abilities, or passives.

Powers

• At the start of the 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th round players will equip a Power for their Hero.
• Powers cannot be removed once they are equipped.

Leagues

• Stadium is a competitive mode with its own ranking system.
• There is a total of seven Leagues, Rookie, Novice, Contender, Elite, Pro, All-Star, Legend
• Each League has five divisions with 5 being the lowest rank and 1 being the highest.
• Players start in the Rookie Division 5 League every season.
• Players gain Stadium Points for every match win along with progress to advancing into the next League.
• In the Rookie and Novice Leagues, players do not lose Stadium Points for a loss.
• Players lose small amounts of Stadium Points after a match loss in the Contender or Elite Leagues.
• Players lose similar amounts of Stadium Points to what they win after a match loss in Pro, All-Star, and Legend Leagues.

Rewards

• Players earn 10 Competitive Points for every match win in Stadium.
• Players earn additional rewards including Name Cards, Weapon Charms, and Titles based on which League they reached the highest throughout the season and these rewards are only useable for the duration of the next season.
• Players can earn the Epic Orisa Elite Skin by reaching the Elite League in the Tank Role in Season 16.
• Players can earn the Epic Genji Elite Skin by reaching the Elite League in the Damage Role in Season 16.
• Players can earn the Epic Moira Elite Skin by reaching the Elite League in the Support Role in Season 16.
• Players can earn the Legendary Juno All-Star Skin by reaching the All-Star League in any Role in Season 16.

Competitive Leaver Penalties

• The same leaver penalties for Competitive Play also apply for Stadium.
• Players who disconnect or leave will only have a few minutes to return without penalty.
• Players who abandon a match entirely will be given the same penalties as if leaving a Competitive Play match up and including a season ban.
• Players who are suspended or banned in either Stadium or Competitive play cannot play both modes while that suspension is in effect.

New Hero: Freja

• Once Overwatch’s top search-and-rescue operative, Freja now uses her elite tracking skills to hunt targets as a merciless bounty hunter.
• Agile, aggressive, and lethal, Freja rewards players who think fast, reposition smart, and strike with precision.
• Armed with her Revdraw Crossbow and a deadly set of movement abilities, Freja excels in high-pressure combat.
• Her Bola Shot Ultimate tangles enemies together, setting up devastating team plays.
• With a dynamic, strategy-driven kit, she’s built for players who thrive on precision—and she never misses her mark.
• Freja is added to the Hero Roster
• Freja is now playable in Competitive Play

New Mythic Skin: Heart of Hope Juno Hero Skin

• Juno, the newest Hero of Heart, steps into the fight against Woe with her Mythic Heart of Hope skin, featuring four brilliant stages of customization that evolve as her radiance grows.
• From a bright-eyed protector to an unstoppable warrior, and even a corrupted version lost to Woe In between, her progression tells a story of resilience and destiny.
• With dynamic ability VFX, shifting colorways, new hairstyles, and the Sharks of Dreams by her side, Juno’s transformation is more than just cosmetic—it’s a magical journey, yours to shape.

New Mythic Aspect: Iridescent Aspects

• Introducing the new Iridescent Aspects, a prismatic upgrade that lets you bring even more personality to your fully leveled Mythic Hero Skins.
• This dazzling new customization option adds a vibrant, high-energy finish, making your Hero stand out like never before.
• Mythic Heart of Hope Juno’s Iridescent Aspect debuts at launch on April 22, with all previous Mythic Hero Skins gaining their Iridescent Aspects starting May 20.

General Updates

• Streamer Protect
  • New Option: Hide Player Icon from Others – Displays the default player icon instead.
  • New Option: Hide Name Card from Others – Hides the Name Card, as if no Name Card were equipped.
  • New Option: Hide Player Title from Others – Hides the Player Title, as if no Player Title were equipped.
• Reporting Features
  • Players can now receive an instant notification if a player is already actioned.
  • Prior to this feature, reporting a player that had already been banned or suspended would not result in any additional information. The Instant Reporting Feedback feature will immediately inform the player of the fact that banned or suspended players have been actioned when they are reported.
  • Players can now Report from Replays.
  • This new feature benefits from Instant Reporting Feedback described above.
  • Since Replays can be shared, a new set of measures has been developed that will always prevent organized mass reports from taking actions against players.

Competitive Play Updates

• Hero Bans
  • Hero Bans have been added to Competitive Play modes.
  • Before the Ban Phase, players will be able to select their Preferred Hero.
  • Selecting a Preferred Hero does not prevent it from being banned, it just communicates which Hero the player would like to play.
  • This selection is optional.
  • Players will enter the Ban Phase before the Versus Screen is displayed.
  • Players can communicate with their own team during this phase but can’t see or communicate with the enemy team.
  • Bans are simultaneous, with each team banning 2 Heroes with a Ranked Choice system.
  • Each player’s first choice carries the most weight, while their second and third choices contribute proportionally fewer votes.
  • Players aren’t required to choose any Heroes to ban; they can pass by pressing the Ready button.
  • Players can reset all their ban choices with the Reset button, or they can select any current choice and then swap that choice individually.
  • Players can see which Heroes their allies are choosing to ban and which Hero they prefer to play on the left side of the screen during the bans phase.
  • Allied choices are ordered from left to right, with the leftmost choice being their highest priority to ban.
  • Ban Results are calculated when the Ban Phase ends.
  • Only 2 Heroes can be banned per role.
  • If a Hero is tied for votes, ties are broken by the number of players that voted for that Hero.
  • If Heroes are still tied, ties are broken randomly.
• Developer Comments: The battlefield just got more dynamic. With Hero Bans, you can influence matchups in Competitive Play through team-based voting to remove key counters from the game, leading to fresh strategies. You can remove up to two Heroes per match per team, so coordinate with your team, adapt your plans, and shape the meta your way.
• In 6v6 Game modes, wave respawn threshold reduced from 6 to 3 seconds.
• Developer Comments: At the start of Season 15 we introduced perks, and it’s been amazing to see how you’ve embraced and experimented with them. Our goal is to make sure there’s always a meaningful choice when it comes to both Minor and Major perks, with decisions influenced by the state of the game and your preferred playstyle. We’re constantly iterating on perks, which is why we’re making some changes across the Hero roster. There will be new perks for 9 Heroes, aiming to give those Heroes fresh and exciting ways to fight on the battlefield. We’re also fine-tuning several perks to improve the gameplay experience for both players who use them and those who face them. It’s been incredible to watch the community embrace this new system, and we’re constantly reviewing your feedback to make Perks as great as they can possibly be!

Tank

D.Va

• Bunny Stomp
  • Now combined with Ejection Suit.
• Bunny Power
  • New Minor Perk
  • Eject grants 75 temporary overhealth and Call Mech’s damage radius is increased by 50%.
• Extended Boosters
  • New Minor Perk
  • Hitting an enemy with Boosters increases the duration by 0.5 seconds.
• Hazard
  • Off the Top
    • Increase Leap Slash’s damage from 30% to 50%.

Orisa

• Developer Comments: Orisa has been underperforming in comparison to other tanks. Increasing her damage to allow her to be more threatening without boosting her survivability.
• Augmented Fusion Driver
  • Damage increased from 13 to 14.
• Fortify
  • Now prevents Hack’s ability lockout from interrupting abilities.
• Heat Dissipater
  • Increase amount of heat reduced per headshot by 33%.

Reinhardt

• Fiery Uptake
  • Removed.
• Crusader’s Fire
  • New Minor Perk
  • Refund a charge of Fire Strike when you stun an enemy, overfilling up to 3.
• Shield Slam
  • Shield Slam distance increased by 50%.

Roadhog

• Hog Toss
  • Removed.
• Pent Up
  • New Minor Perk
  • When Pig Pen is triggered, refill 50% Take a Breather resource which can overfill.
• Hogdrogen Exposure
  • Increased radius from 8 to 10 meters.

Sigma

• Levitation
  • Jump can now be held down to hover.

Winston

• Developer Comments: With the introduction of perks, Winston has been overperforming. By adjusting his survivability—exchanging some of his armor for health—we aim to bring him in line with other tanks, without significantly impacting his overall gameplay.
• Base health increased from 225 to 275.
• Base armor reduced from 250 to 200.

Wrecking Ball

• In 6v6 game modes, Armor health reduced from 150 to 100.

Damage

Cassidy

• Past Noon
  • Removed.
• Even the Odds
  • New Minor Perk
  • Regenerate 20 health per second for each enemy targeted by Deadeye.

Freja

• Developer Comments: We received positive feedback during Freja’s Hero trial, and it’s exciting to see how much you enjoy experimenting with her kit. However, we’ve noticed that Freja is struggling to keep up with other Damage Heroes, particularly in terms of lethality. So, we’re adjusting the time it takes for her to earn her minor perk, bringing it in line with other Heroes. Additionally, we’re increasing the number of shots before her max spread kicks in, making her Revdraw Crossbow more reliable at all ranges. Finally, while Freja’s Bola Shot was charging quickly, its effectiveness was somewhat lacking. We’re boosting both its damage and radius slightly, ensuring it can better secure eliminations when it lands.
• Time to earn Minor Perk reduced by 18%.
• Revdraw Crossbow
  • Number of shots before max spread increased from 8 to 12.  
• Bola Shot
  • Bola Shot Damage and Explosion radius increased from 5 to 5.5 meters.  
  • Bola Shot damage over time increased from 75 to 90.  

Hanzo

• Developer Comments: Restoring the functionality of Hanzo’s Storm Bow to retain draw progress will enable him to use wall climb more effectively, improving his ability to take space and position himself.
• Storm Bow
  • Arrow draw progress is preserved while wall climbing.  
• Storm Arrows
  • Projectile speed increased from 110 to 140 meters per second.  

Junkrat

• Aluminum Frame
  • Now also reveals trapped enemies to allies.  
• Tick Tock
  • The description has been changed to “Concussive Mine strengthens .5 seconds after landing, increasing damage by 50%, explosion radius by 50%, and health by 200%.”

Mei

• Chilling Reach
  • Removed.
• Biting Cold
  • Moved to Minor perk.
  • Secondary fire hits slow enemies by 20% for 1.5 seconds.
• Deep Freeze
  • New Major Perk.
  • Continuously hitting enemies with primary fire freezes them for a short time.

Sombra

• Viral Efficacy
  • Removed.
• Encrypted Upload
  • New Minor Perk.
  • Hack can be used while invisible, successful hacks increase the duration of stealth by 2 seconds.  
• Stack Overflow
  • Removed.
• Viral Replication
  • New Major Perk.
  • Hitting a hacked enemy with Virus spreads Virus to enemies within 8 meters.  

Soldier: 76

• Field Emergency
  • The description has been changed to “Biotic Field’s healing is increased by 100% on Low health targets.”  

Torbjörn

• Overloaded Turret
  • Now transforms into Level 3 Sentry Turret if Overload was activated before fully constructed.

Tracer

• Flashback
  • Blinks restored reduced from 3 to 2.
• Quantum Entanglement
  • Quantum Entanglement now additionally grants 20 over ammo.

Support

Ana

• Groggy
  • Reduced initial slow from 75% to 50%.
  • Now also deals 50 damage over the duration.
• Biotic Bounce
  • Second bounce damage and healing reduced from 50 to 25.

Baptiste

• Biotic Launcher
  • Healing explosion increased from 50 to 60.
  • Direct impact healing increased from 20 to 30.
  • Maximum ammo reduced from 13 to 10.
• Assault Burst
  • Will now do instant healing but cannot critically heal low targets.

Juno

• Hyper Boost
  • Removed.
• Re-Boots
  • Moved to Minor Perk.
  • Duration increase removed.
• Locked On
  • New Major Perk.
  • Reduce the cooldown of Pulsar Torpedoes by 1.5 seconds for every enemy hit.

Lifeweaver

• Thorn Volley
  • Projectile speed increased from 80 to 100 meters per second.
• Lifeweaving
  • Bonus healing increased from 30 to 40.

Lúcio

• Groovin
  • Removed.
• Beat Drop
  • New Minor Perk.
  • Amp it Up is active during Sound Barrier.

Mercy

• Angelic Recovery
  • Removed.
• Angelic Resurrection
  • New Minor Perk.
  • Mercy gains 100 overhealth after casting Resurrect.  

Zenyatta

• Orb of Discord
  • In 6v6 game modes, Duration before expiring when target is out of sight reduced from 3 to 1.5 seconds.
• Ascendance
  • Jump can now be held down to hover.
• Duality
  • Increased converted damage from 20% to 30%.

Bug Fixes

• Heroes
  • Juno
    • Fixed an issue with Juno’s Ember skin.  
  • Kiriko
    • Fixed an issue preventing Kiriko’s wall climb animation from playing after swift step.  
  • Ramattra
    • Fixed an issue with Rammatra’s Void Barrier animation.  

Crazy Raccoon claimed victory, winning over Team Falcons on April 20 at the 2025 OWCS Champion Clash, the final stage of the Overwatch Champion Series, a qualifier to the Midseason Championship.

Crazy Raccoon started in the Upper Bracket Quarterfinals, defeating Spacestation Gaming 2:0. However, their momentum was halted in the Upper Bracket Semifinals, where they lost to NTMR 1:3, dropping them into the lower bracket.

In the Lower Bracket Quarterfinals, Crazy Raccoon eliminated Virtus.pro with a 3:1 win. They continued their lower bracket campaign by sweeping Once Again 3:0 in the Semifinals and then repeating the result with a clean 3:0 victory over NTMR in the Lower Bracket Final, the same team that had previously knocked them down. This impressive lower bracket run earned Crazy Raccoon their place in the Grand Final against the Team Falcons, whom they won with a 3:2 score.

Crazy Raccoon’s team roster consists of six players. In the Support role, they have Sung “CH0R0NG” Yoo-min and Kim “Shu” Jin-seo (tournament’s MVP). Chae “HeeSang” Hee-sang and Lee “LIP” Jae-won are taking on the DPS responsibilities. On the frontline, Park “Junbin” Jun-bin and Choi “MAX” Su-min hold down the Tank roles.

As of the time of writing, the exact prize pool for the 2025 Overwatch Champions Series Champions Clash has not been officially disclosed. The tournament’s prize pool is being crowdfunded through the sale of the Ember Juno OWCS bundle, with 25% of Blizzard’s net revenue from these sales contributing to the total amount and yet to be revealed.

OWCS 2025 Champion Clash, the grand finale for stage one of the Overwatch Champion Series, kicked off on April 18 at 6:00 CET/13:00 CST. The event lasts for three days, concluding on April 20. The three day event has various rewards for watching on official platforms. 

OWCS Champion Clash is available to watch on various platforms, detailed on Blizzard’s official blog post. 

How to Get In-Game Rewards

There are various rewards for watching the 2025 OWCS Champion Clash, including free loot boxes, a Jiayou spray, and various other in-game cosmetics.

To earn the rewards, players must connect their battle.net account with their respective streaming platform; different regions have different platforms. Viewers in NA and EMEA can watch on YouTube, Twitch, Instagram, X (/OW_ESPORTS), and Discord (OVERWATCHESPORTS).

Further details are on Blizzard’s official watching guide.

Day 1, Friday April 18

• 30 min: OWCS Hangzhou Day Icon
• 1 hour: 1 Loot Box
• 1.5 hours: Mei Stamp Spray
• 2 hours: OWCS Hangzhou Day Name Card
• 5 hours: OWCS Mei (Away) Skin

Day 2, Saturday April

• 30 min: OWCS Hangzhou Sunset Icon
• 1 hour: 1 Loot Box
• 1.5 hours: Snowball Stamp Spray
• 2 hours: OWCS Hangzhou Sunset Name Card
• 5 hours: OWCS Widowmaker (Away) Skin

Day 3, Sunday April 20

• 30 min: OWCS Hangzhou Night Icon
• 1 hour: 1 Loot Box
• 1.5 hours: OWCS Hangzhou 2025 – Stadium Spray
• 2 hours: OWCS Hangzhou Night Name Card
• 2.5 hours: OWCS Hangzhou 2025 – Biggest Fans Spray
• 4 hours: OWCS Mei (Home) Skin
• 5 hours: OWCS Widowmaker (Home) Skin

The Overwatch Champions Series is the successor to the Overwatch League; it was established in 2024. Overwatch Champions Series pits players from across the world.