Overwatch 2 returning Competitive Stadium to its original seven-round format starting on October 30. This change is made in response to negative fan feedback to changes Overwatch 2 implemented with the launch of Season 19.
Stadium is the latest permanent game mode in Overwatch 2 with special powers, items and gadgets that can be selected between rounds to modify the builds of selected heroes in wild and exciting ways. Originally, however, Stadium was a best-of-seven game mode Overwatch 2 changed it to best-of-five starting in season 19 to prevent matches from becoming a bore.
Overwatch 2 Competitive Stadium goes back to Best of Seven
Now, Overwatch 2 has announced its intention to revert this change. In a thread on Twitter, Overwatch 2 Game director Aaron Keller confirmed that Competitive Stadium would go back to seven innings starting on October 30. Players can expect a brief one-hour outage for Ranking Stadium while the change is implemented, but they will otherwise be able to play the game as normal.
According to Keller, this return is being made because the best-of-five format “hasn't felt right.” These two extra potential rounds provide more wiggle room for adaptive strategies and big comebacks that will help make games feel less one-sided, even if they are longer because of it. Fans can expect a deeper dive into the reasoning behind this decision in the next Director's Take blog in early November.
While some players preferred the five-round format, the majority of fans seem happy to see this change made, especially with Overwatch 2 Stadium stuff now in the mix. Luckily, those looking to play best-of-five Stadium can still do so in Unranked Quick Play, which also includes backfill and cross-play between all platforms.
There may be some other minor hotfixes and changes before that, but the next big update too Overwatch 2 expected to be mid season 19 patch around November 11th. Not much is known about this update so far, although it will be the debut of the Cyber Fuel Junkrat, the first instance of a second Mythic hero skin to be released in the same season. In addition, the hero trial weekend for Overwatch 2 Hero 45 is coming sometime around this time, meaning players will likely finally see 2025's final new character within the next few weeks. No heroes or maps have been revealed for Stadium yet, though Overwatch 2 can still surprise fans – and if not, Season 20 on December 9 will definitely add some more stuff to the game mode.
- Released
-
August 10, 2023
- ESRB
-
T for Teens // Blood, mild language, tobacco use, violence
