As an Overwatch fan with over 1,500 hours of playtime, I'm really dreading April 14th

Every year, Monitoring absolutely nails its April Fools' Day celebration, and every year I dread the day it ends. It has long been a tradition for Monitoring releasing deliberately silly updates – now labeled Underwatch – with developer commentary for every silly change. Sometimes developers will play on community discussions when creating the wacky abilities they give the heroes, while other times it feels like the changes are completely random. Updates are always great though, and Underwatch 2026 is no different. Notable changes include:

Reinhardt's pin can be sped up and slowed down while trapping multiple enemies at once, making him a threat in the mode
D.Vas micromissiles are ridiculously large
Domina makes random shapes instead of her usual barrier
Winston is unplayable
Sombra has become a mimic instead of teleporting via translocator
Cassidy's bullets can cause bleeding if he says hello and waves at the target
A second Torbjorn is stacked on top of the Torbjorn and mimics every action the player takes
Ana's sleep arrow sleeps by itself and wakes her up with Nano Boost
Lifeweaver is hilariously small
Jetpack Cat uses a wrecking ball via his lifeline that can hit targets

These are just a handful of the amazing abilities available through the April Fools mode, and combined with developer jokes like Team 4 settling for their “third-ever first melee DPS,” the mode is a must-play. On top of all that, there are silly voice lines for every single hero. These include classics like Winston just saying his name, or Hanzo and Genji making dragon and sword sounds respectively, while some new gems are there like Emre's dialed internet noise when he uses his ultimate. There is so much to appreciate in Underwatch, and it really is my favorite LTM of the year. So for that reason I'm obviously very pissed off Monitoringnext update on April 14th.

overwatch reign of talon season 2 hero sierra abilities reveal

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Overwatch Reveals New Hero Sierra Gameplay and Abilities

Overwatch reveals the game model, gameplay and abilities of Sierra, the new Damage hero coming in Reign of Talon Season 2.

Overwatch's Underwatch Mode is leaving soon, and I'm devastated

Sometimes you grind through Monitoring Event challenges can be a chore, but I've had so much fun on my Cardboard Tank title that I really wish the mode was a permanent choice within the arcade. It's not just the fun new abilities or the silly voice lines that make me smile when I play, it's the little touches too. Take Microsoft's Clippy paperclip used on the hero selection screen to sneak in a few more jokes about each character, which is a gag I only noticed after several matches. Or the return of Reinspeak, which sees every message sent in text chat by a Reinhardt player changed to be in all caps and have a quote from the massive German hero. Underwatch is just tons of fun all around, and while it's a great way to end the brilliant Season 1 relaunch of MonitoringI'm already mourning it.

Catspeak is also now available, as a Jetpack Cat's messages in text chat come out as random letters similar to a pasted-on keyboard.

Fit the 9 games into the grid.

What makes Underwatch even sadder to lose is that some heroes are better off in the situation. Take Wuyang, for example, whose Guardian Wave ability can be charged up to increase its size, damage, healing and knockback. This not only makes the waterbender feel more fun to play, but also makes him more accurate, as he's shown sending a huge wave at his sister and comrade Monitoring the hero Anran in his story trailer. While many abilities are on the dumb side – Mercy's insta-killing revival and Zenyatta becoming a beyblade don't feel like they were ever going to be added to their kit – Blizzard tends to stumble over changes in Underwatch that would actually be cool to see in the game's core modes. Participating in these experiments for what could eventually become real abilities one day is a lot of fun, and that's another reason why I'm a little bummed about Tuesday's update.

Overwatch Season 2's launch is Silver Lining on April 14th

While I'm preparing to endure another year of waiting until I can get a few more weeks of Underwatch's googly-eyed heroes, at least there will be some cool content following up this LTM. Sure, Underwatch leaves on April 14th, but Season 2 starts on the same day. This means that the new Damage hero Sierra will be playable next week, and there will be new ones Monitoring battle pass skins to grind for. This definitely softens the blow, as it would have been a lot more boring if Underwatch had ended mid-season and there was nothing new to do for a while. Still, the last few hours I've spent with the latest iteration of the mode have been some of my favorites after years of regular play Monitoringso I'm patiently waiting for it to come back in 2027.