Signups for Overwatch beta tests are open; Blizzard previews new fantasy game since Worlds of Warcraft.
It's been almost a decade since Blizzard Entertainment introduced a new fantasy game akin to its World of Warcraft. The dry spell ended at last Friday's Blizzcon Expo, with the unveiling of Overwatch.
Overwatch beta tests are wide open for gamers, with the game's official 2015 release date yet to be determined. The Overwatch trailer confirms it's a first-person shooter, though, with a handful of playable characters revealed at the expo.
The game is reminiscent of Team Fortress 2, with a dynamic that prefers team-based skirmishes over solo melees. Blizzard executive Mike Morhaime puts the game from Blizzard's perspective:
"With every new Blizzard game, we look at our favorite aspects of a genre and put our own spin on things. Our goal with Overwatch is to create an awesome FPS [first-person shooter] experience that's more accessible to a much wider audience while delivering the action and depth that shooter fans love." (yahoo.com)
A dozen characters were previewed at the expo, with enough variety to make even Halo fans salivate. Humans, androids, alien, and humanoid animals are expected to be only a sample of the entire character lineup once the game finally launches.
Players join melees as part of a team of six, fighting in arenas set in different fantasy worlds. The Overwatch beta test kicks off in the coming weeks for select participants.
Blizzard Entertainment had a movie franchise in mind producing the Overwatch trailer. The game's teaser synopsis:
"In a time of global crisis, an international task force of heroes banded together to restore peace to a war-torn world. This organization, known as Overwatch, ended the crisis and helped maintain peace for a generation, inspiring an era of exploration, innovation, and discovery. After many years, Overwatch's influence waned and it was eventually disbanded. Now in the wake of its dismantling, conflict is rising once again. Overwatch may be gone...but the world still needs heroes."
Overwatch will be exclusive to PCs, with console ports yet to be confirmed (bbc.com).
