Overwatch 2 players demand old feature returns after controversial season 5 changes

Overwatch 2 players have responded to experimental balance changes at the start of Season 5, and are now asking for the return of a feature that was left behind in Overwatch 1.

Overwatch 2’s Season 5 balance changes are proving to be one of the most controversial since the launch of the sequel last year. Cassidy’s grenade has sparked a lot of conversation, both in its ability to shut down movement, as well as track players exceedingly aggressively. 

Cassidy isn’t the only character proving to be controversial though. Mei also saw big changes to her freeze, making the slow more aggressive, but her damage less potent. These changes have seen crowd control seep its way back into Overwatch 2, despite the developers attempting to significantly reduce it at the launch of the sequel. 

If you take a trip to the Overwatch Reddit, you will find no shortage of talk about the changes and the wild interactions players have been finding. CC in Overwatch 2 is obviously a topic many players are passionate about. They’d have loved to have a voice prior to these changes.

It’s no surprise then that a post asking for the PTR (Public Test Realm) or Experimental playlist to return has gotten a lot of traction. As of writing, a post by user Deathcraft2299 suggesting the return of the Experimental playlist has over 4.2k upvotes. In the title, the user teased, “these Overwatch Season 5 changes have been incredibly controversial, unnecessary, and frustrating with annoying and possibly unforeseen interactions.”

“If only there was a way to test these risky changes without affecting the play experience of all players 0 days in advance.” they wrote before sharing the old icon of the Experimental playlist. 

Overwatch players are begging for a return of the PTR

The PTR and Experimental playlists were both different versions of the same idea. Essentially, players would get early access to new maps and characters, as well as balance changes, to help test out how they felt, and find any major bugs before the content went live. 

However, since the launch of Overwatch 2, neither has returned. It seems Blizzard is opting to keep new content under wraps ahead of a season launch. 

Blizzard Entertainment

Others voiced agreement in the Reddit thread, with one saying, “It really sucks to basically have the first patch of every season be an experiment.”

Another added, “Bring them back. After this balance patch, it’s on the top of my wishlist.”

“This should have been a PTR build for at least 2 weeks beforehand.” another suggested. 

It’s clear players want Blizzard to contemplate the return of these testing realms, especially as these changes at the start of the season affect competitive play. Players don’t get a lot of time to readjust before being thrown into that environment. That seems to be the biggest crux of the issue. Hopefully, the developers at Team 4 can find a way of mitigating that, especially if it’s going to make balancing swings as big as this.