As of May 16, Overwatch 2 has cancelled its PvE experience, arguably its most anticipated feature, and the game’s entire reason to exist. This single player mode is one of the first things that was advertised about the game. Now, that mode will never see the light of day. Here’s what happened to the cancelled Overwatch 2 PvE mode, and what it means going forward.
Is Overwatch 2 PvE Cancelled?
In a developer livestream, Blizzard Entertainment developers confirmed that the game’s original vision for PvE, Hero Mode, complete with those talent skill trees you probably saw in early trailers and a long-term campaign, is no more. Instead, the game will focus on more individual PvE co-op experiences that will change throughout the game’s season.
Speaking in more detail to GameSpot’s Tamoor Hussain, Overwatch 2 Director Aaron Keller said “we are doing part of what the team set out to do, but not the entirety of what was discussed back at BlizzCon 2019. So the real focus is on the story missions and that experience as opposed to the more open-ended hero mode and that stuff.”
There is a small bright spot in this interview, though. Keller also said that when the decision was made later last year, they made the choice to focus “all of our PvE efforts on this new story arc that we’re launching in Season 6.” Overwatch 2 fans who simply want to experience more story may get some more of that
Despite this, fans planning on playing Overwatch 2 for the new Hero Mode are a bit out of luck. It’s worth noting that the developers seemed just as disappointed as fans that this mode will no longer be coming. However, as an original Overwatch player since the first game’s release, the switch over to Overwatch 2 just seems like a reskin to a worse business model.
