the original Surveillancethe days are numbered. Last week, Blizzard revealed in a Reddit AMA that when Monitor 2 launches on October 4, it will crush Surveillance first, ending the six-year game.
“When OW2 launches October 4, it will replace the current live service,” game director Aaron Keller wrote.
While the change will add a slew of new content – new heroes, new maps, and more – classic Surveillance will cease to be, ending the 6v6 format and banishing the assault type of game to the relative obscurity of the custom gaming nook. The news is a little surprising since, originally, Surveillance first and Monitor 2 were supposed to coexist. During the Monitor 2 panel at BlizzCon 2019, Aaron Keller, the current Game Director, and Jeff Kaplan, the former Game Director who left Blizzard over a year ago, described a scenario in which players who moved on at OW2 would still be able to play with those who didn’t.
With unlocked player skins and other transferred cosmetics, and with Monitor 2 by switching to a free-to-play model, it seemed like there was no longer any reason to keep the two games in silos. In a comment to The edgethe Overwatch development team said:
“Our goal is not to split our player base and transition to Monitor 2 as transparent as possible. To this end, when Monitor 2 will be launched as a free live service game on October 4, it will replace the current To watchh build. Content players have unlocked in Surveillance will be automatically transferred to players in Overwatch 2.”
For players worried about the Surveillance main features being the sunset with the arrival of Monitor 2 (i.e. loot boxes), the AMA has revealed that all unopened loot boxes will have their contents automatically added to your inventory, and any unused coins (a currency you earn through loot boxes to loot) will also be transferred. However, Blizzard intends to create a new currency with OW2and old coins will not be able to buy everything on offer.
There will also be no matchmaking rating reset with the arrival of Monitor 2. For fans who hope OW2 would bring with it mass competitive scale equalization, lead system designer Scott Mercer wrote that “a full reset would mean games would be completely unbalanced for weeks or more across the service, and we don’t think it will be a great experience for everyone.” Mercer however revealed that OW2 will feature a new decay system that will reduce the MMR of accounts that haven’t played in a while to ensure that matches at all levels of the ladder are as even as possible.
While I’m excited for Monitor 2, I’m a little sad that all the new comes at the expense of the old. I’m one of the extremely rare fans of Assault, and relegating the game mode to custom matches basically means I won’t be playing it again, not to mention the many fine tweaks, like UI and game changes. sound design, which will fundamentally change the way I play.
Monitor 2 launches October 4, so Assault fans (yes, all 10 of us), it’s time for our final licks.
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