Review: This article goes in depth about a game and opens a dialogue about the positive and negative aspects that compose that game. At the end of the review, the author notes whether he or she feels this game was worth playing. Keep in mind that this review reflects the author’s opinion; you may have a different experience with this game!
Time Spent: About 20 hours
Version Played: PC
Available For: PC ($39.99 or $59.99 version), Xbox One and PS4 ($59.99)
I have found that writing a review about a video game can become incredibly difficult; sometimes I simply enjoy playing the loving creation of hundreds of hours of hard work from a team of men and women who express their passion through this medium. I’m not one to rush things. When it comes to life and even the video games I play, I always take my time and delve into the very fabric of the game. What makes it tick? Why do the characters have these particular motivations? What drives them? Reviewing games can sometimes complicate this process. Instead of launching myself forward into a brand new world, I set up my notebook so I can take notes and as soon as I have a thought, I write it down for further refinement. Rarely may I simply experience a game.
That problem becomes increasingly difficult when reviewing a game that technically has no story or single-player mode. In a world where multi-player only games grow with each passing year, how does a game reviewer fully immerse him- or herself into the lore and background?
Developed by Blizzard Entertainment, the same minds behind the wildly successful World of Warcraft and Starcraft, Overwatch has taken the gaming community by storm. Set up in a similar style akin to Team Fortress 2 with some elements of a MOBA, this first person shooter provides gamers with 21 unique and dynamic heroes all with his or her own abilities that can radically impact how an individual plays the game. Let’s get the first point out of the way before we go into the mechanics and balance of Overwatch.
There is no story. Ok, that’s not technically true. Blizzard has provided some background lore about the fictional Earth set within Overwatch’s universe. In the not-so-distant future, sentient robots known as Omnics have taken over a majority of the intensive labor which has allowed humanity to undergo a “golden age.” Space exploration begins and technological progress skyrockets. Some of the Omnics, however, begin to go rogue and this triggers the event known as the “First Omnic Crisis”. The factories producing these Omnics (and namely the primary combat version known as “Bastions”) somehow manufactured hostile AI and the world was thrown into war. To combat this threat, the nations of Earth formed a division of elite and specialized soldiers under the leadership of Jack Morrison and Gabriel Reyes. Called “Overwatch”, these two men recruited some of the brightest minds and toughest soldiers from around the world. Destroying all but one of the last hostile Omnics, the soldiers of Overwatch ushered in another era of peace.
Unfortunately, peace never lasts and after several high-profile mission failures and growing disagreements between Jack Morrison and Gabriel Reyes, the two founders of Overwatch eventually entered into a heated argument which developed into outright conflict. The Swiss headquarters of Overwatch collapsed due to Morrison and Reyes’ own personal battle and both were never seen again. The United Nations eventually called for an end to Overwatch’s actions and forbade any further vigilante missions by the now defunct organization, lest anyone associated with it be deemed felons. As predicted, the world now suffers from terrorist actions, Russia struggles with a second Omnic crisis, and giant corporations exploit the common man and woman. Will Overwatch return?
That’s a cool story, right? Sure it has a few cliches, but the rich animation and incredible depth to the characters involved give Overwatch a breath of life I would have never expected in a multi-player only game. I remain disappointed that Blizzard did not include some type of single-player campaign, yet surprisingly this seems to work for Overwatch’s benefit. Blizzard has begun publishing comic and video shorts detailing the adventures and lore of some of the characters which not only serves to feed the hype behind the game, it allows fans to further develop his or her favorite hero to an even greater extent. Blizzard made a brilliant move and even I have found myself looking up more lore about the world and those phenomenal heroes who swear to protect or destroy it!
The world could always use more heroes.
Overwatch is a competitive team-based shooter. You and up to five other players join a randomly selected match with randomly determined objectives. Sometimes you might find yourself tasked with guarding two checkpoints. If the attacking team secures the first, then you and your allies must retreat to the second and form a last ditch defense until either the attacking team runs out of time or they take the point from you. Other times you might play a king of the hill style match. While the game modes certainly don’t offer much in terms of innovation, it’s the heroes and the way gamers play them that truly differentiates every match.
Take your pick. There’s 21 different men and women to choose from and each one has a variety of skills and one ultimate ability that can turn the tide of combat. Do you like fast-paced action? Try Tracer, Overwatch’s youthful and engaging mascot. She can teleport around the battlefield, recall herself to an earlier point in time to restore health and ammo, shred enemies with her pulse sub-machine guns, or use her ultimate sticky bomb to potentially crush a tightly grouped cluster of players. Or perhaps you prefer to soak up all of the damage and protect your team? Reinhardt is a superb choice as he can use his arm shield to defend his teammates from the opposing team’s wrath. Not only that, but he can swing his rocket hammer to deal excellent melee damage, fire a flaming burst at range, charge and ram an opponent into a wall, or use his ultimate hammer slam which knocks over enemies and stuns them. It’s also incredibly useful for disrupting the ultimate abilities of the enemy! Each hero has a wide range of powers that you will find yourself spending hours experimenting with the best way to utilize your character.
I think that’s another impressive feat on Blizzard’s part. Despite some odd damage discrepancies with characters such as McCree, the heroes of Overwatch have incredible balance. Some characters perfectly counter another and switching mid-game is a completely viable and recommended tactic. This is not to say that a good player cannot overcome his or her direct counter; truly, I have witnessed some impressive feats by men and women in this game. It’s just that some heroes have abilities that hamper another hero’s performance. All of it has a commendable level of detail and Blizzard presents it masterfully.
A point of contention stands with the microtransaction system. With every level, players gain a loot box that contains four unlockable items (voice lines, character skins, emotes, etc.) of varying rarity. Leveling up takes significantly longer as your rank increases and these loot boxes seem to provide duplicate or common items with aggravating frequency. When you receive a duplicate, you earn some in-game currency for the purchase of items you may want, but often the amount you earn is paltry at best. Still, this does not have an effect on the mechanics of the game and remains an annoyance that many players may ignore.
Unlock flavorful tags, character skins, victory poses, and more!
Despite all of the fun I had with Overwatch, I couldn’t help but wonder how much entertainment I could have with it. Eventually, the maps and game modes became repetitious and while I still found myself laughing with joy or shouting with frustration, the back of my mind still felt clouded. A few questions came to mind:
Was this worth the $39.99 I paid for this game? What about my friends on the Xbox or Playstation? At least I could play Overwatch for a reduced price. They simply did not have a choice and had to pay $59.99 if they wanted to engage in the experience. I struggle to justify this and as I mentioned earlier, companies continue to cut single-player content in favor of multi-player. While we have intriguing lore and a series of videos (with probably more on the way) from the developer, what are we actually paying for? A series of skirmishes with no real meaning and no impact on the world of Overwatch? Or is this the beginning of something bigger and will Overwatch grow into a franchise that may carry on into the foreseeable future?
I honestly can’t say. In the meantime, I’ll be patching people up as Mercy while I think more on this dilemma.
Happy gaming!
-Valiant
Love this review big time!
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Thank you! It was a difficult review to write. I love playing Overwatch, but it just raised so many questions as to where the games industry is going. Regardless, thank you for the comment.
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