Overwatch 2 job listing hints at major overhaul to competitive and ranked play
BlizzardA new Overwatch 2 job listing confirms a “major feature” is in development, with it directly being involved with esports and the more competitive side of Overwatch.
Overwatch 2 has entered its second year and while the hero shooter sequel has suffered some controversies, such as the change to 5v5 gameplay, the cancelation of its PvE story, and monetization methods, it still has a loyal fanbase.
On October 9, fans spotted a very intriguing job listing on Blizzard’s website for a “Product Marketing Consultant” and it details that a “major feature” is on the way.
Normally, job listings can provide some clues into what’s being developed, and the fact that Blizzard is looking to hire someone just to focus on promoting this new feature speaks volumes about how big it could be.
Of note, the listing states that responsibilities include: “Planning and managing multi-channel marketing campaigns to build anticipation and drive engagement for the feature launch”, and “Working closely with brand, social, product, development, community and esports teams to ensure seamless coordination and execution of the launch plan.”
The inclusion of esports teams certainly raises some eyebrows. One competitive feature the devs and Game Director Aaron Keller have touched on is a tournament mode eventually coming in the future.
Prior to the launch of a brief 5-play team queue trial back in 2023, Keller teased that the mode “could open the door for other types of competition in our game that are based on teams” and specifically pinpointed tournaments as a possibility.
Additionally, in a 2024 interview with Dexerto, the game director indicated that the team was looking into a hero pick-ban system as part of a major yearly update.
Such competitive features wouldn’t be aimed at a casual player base, but the job listing suggests that catering to high-ranked players is a priority: “Segment market and identify target audiences that the new feature can appeal to. Craft compelling messaging and positioning for the new feature that resonates with target audiences.”
We’ll have to wait and see exactly what Blizzard has in store, but it’s clear that the devs are going to put a lot of effort into pushing this new OW2 feature – whatever it may be.