"What's Next" displays Overwatch 2's PvP system, showing off new maps and Hero changes

The "What's Next" event streamed on May 20, and displayed plenty of Overwatch 2 features especially when it comes to PvP.

One of the first things announced in the stream was the fact that the game was changing its system to a 5v5, something that received a range of response from the community. The hope for this is to make the game more fun to play, as a Tank is removed from each side, as well as streamline players roles.

On top of the Tank's removal. is slight changes to all Heroes to better match them to their role, without any blurred lines. This can include less crowd control generally, especially for Supports, while DPS Heros are likely to lose any healing or utility.

Each Hero Class will also be gaining a 'passive' to help better streamline their role and help them perform better, as well as making them make more sense. Examples given are Support's gaining a passive self-heal, so no more Ana's wasting the Biotic Grenade on herself, and Tank's being less affected by pushes, such as Lucio's Soundwave will now boop a Roadhog a decreased distance compared to a Tracer.

Tank's will also give less Ultimate generation, so their big bodies don't become free charge for their opponents. DPS Heroes will also gain movement speed, allowing them to easily chase down opponents.

Overall, these types of changes are supposedly ones that the Overwatch team felt were needed, but it was tough to implement on the live game due to them being such large changes. They're easier to put into a new game where they can seemingly start fresh.

Coming with these Class changes are some Hero changes, such as Mei doing additional damage but no longer freezing enemies, while Winston can now use an Alternate Fire to charge his weapon and fire a charged blast; allowing him to be effective at longer range.

The visual changes to the Heroes are not just updated models, but also to show the passage of time.

Overwatch 2 is set later, after the original Overwatch. The Heroes are not only older, but their story is now represented in the skins. Multiple Heroes have now officially joined Overwatch, meaning their armour has been upgraded and given a more Overwatch-y theme.

In the example above, Torbjörn has opened Ironclad Industry, which is now reflected on his skin. New tech has been applied too, such as new shaders for Torbjörn's beard.

We then had a variety of maps, all of which were played on during the stream.

Monte Carlo, Rio, New York, Toronto and Rome all join the roster. It is worth noting that maps from Overwatch will be moved over to Overwatch 2, but with changes. It looks like the majority will have the same setting but new areas, with previously blocked avenues and doors opened or just simply new areas which could only be viewed previously.

The best example is Havana seems to be on another road which is just on the other side of the buildings which border the current Overwatch map.

Monte Carlo, Rio, and New York are Escort maps which we're used to seeing. Each has its own theme, such as pushing a parade float through Lucio's club in Rio or a race car through the streets of Monte Carlo.

New York holds plenty of references, including a Pizza shop with a throwback to Jeff Kaplan; including his coffee cup on the counter.

The new Push game mode is featured on Toronto and Rome, and acts as a hybrid between Control and Escort.

Teams will each have an object to push towards the opposing team's spawn, but will need to control a robot to do so. This acts as an essentially moving control point which both teams are fighting over. Push it all the way and you win automatically, otherwise it is whoever pushed the furthest when the time runs out.

As is similar with a lot of Control maps, the Push maps will have a lot of symmetry. This is to make sure teams don't have an advantage depending on which side they're on. While they won't necessarily be mirrored exactly, you can expect objects of similar shapes and sizes to be in similar positions on either side of the map.

As always, each map will have its own identity, with Rome running through the Colosseum and sporting a lot of curves which will cut line of sights, while Toronto has a more open and close middle, allowing for more skirmishes in the centre of the map.

That is the major tl;dr of the more major changes we've seen. There are plenty of more subtle changes, such as to UI's and noises too.

The hub for players has changes, especially in regards to Supports, as the icons of who is being healed/who is healing you is shown in a nicer way than in Overwatch, as well as a better hub for Zenyatta to show who has his orbs.

Noises have also been upgraded with new tech, to make the weapons feel nicer as well as to better interact with the surroundings. Some weapons have a nicer blast to them, some are more explosive, and firing from closed corridors will give more of an echo.