Netizens and Overwatch 2 players expressed their disappointment online following Blizzard's confirmation that it would scrap the game's much-anticipated PvE Hero Mode.
Blizzard Gets Flak Online After Scrapping Overwatch 2 PvE Hero Mode
OW2 Players Demand Refunds, Chide Blizzard for Canceling Game's PvE Mode
Overwatch 2 players and social media players railed against Blizzard on Wednesday, following the game developer's announcement that it would scrap OW2's Hero Mode
to shift its focus to the game's PvP aspect instead.
Online users accused Blizzard of doing a 'bait and switch' by supposedly promising PvE content for Overwatch 2 before shifting its priorities toward PvP instead. Others meanwhile demanded refunds for their purchase of OW2's paid mode, saying that the Hero Mode PvE was their chief reason for buying in the first place.
These statements all made in response to a tweet by OW2 Executive Producer Jared Neuss, who assured players that the company was still coming out with PvE content for the game's upcoming seasons.
Earlier on Tuesday, Neuss announced in a developer livestream that Blizzard was scrapping the Hero Mode feature and Talent Trees due to what he said was the difficulty of making them a 'Blizzard-quality experience'.
Hero Mode and its associated Talent Tree level progression system were both supposed to come out with Overwatch 2, but Blizzard made the decision last year to split apart the releases of the game's PvP and PvE modes. This allowed the company to get the game into early access back in October.
OW2 Road Map Promises Upcoming PvE Event, Other PvE Content
OW2 Director Says Blizzard 'Still Committed' to OW2 PvE
Shortly before the developer livestream where Neuss announced the scrapping of OW2's hero mode, the official Overwatch Twitter account released the roadmap for the game's fifth, sixth, and seventh seasons.
Season 6, in particular, would supposedly see the release of Story Missions, which were already available in Overwatch 1. In this game mode, players would fight AI-controlled enemies and uncover Overwatch 2's main story through seasonal events.
In contrast, Hero Mode would've had players fight in replayable missions, which would reward them with buffs for their chosen hero through a talent tree progression system.
Meanwhile, OW2 Director Aaron Keller told Gamespot that Blizzard was still committed to PvE in Overwatch 2, saying that the game would have 'Hero Mastery' missions in Season 7, along with a new lore codex.
