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Newcomers to Overwatch 2 will not be able to employ traditional Overwatch characters straight away.
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Recent players will need to grind through about 100 matches to unlock the whole pool of original Overwatch 1 characters, according to a new blog post on the Overwatch website.
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"New players begin with a restricted selection of game modes, heroes, and other constraints in order to progressively onboard them," they stated.
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"The first part of our unique [First Time User Experience] instantly unlocks all game modes and the ability to speak in-game, while the second phase gradually unlocks more game modes and the ability to chat in-game.
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Over the course of about 100 matches, the second phase unlocks all of the original Overwatch heroes."
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The idea is to keep newcomers from being overwhelmed. This is a systematic approach to play because each hero has distinct skills and counters.
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This concentrated experience educates new players to the modes, regulations, and other high-level components of Overwatch.
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In a group, these limits do not apply, thus novice players can still test out heroes (and game types) with their friends.
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The exception is competitive, where new players must complete a task.
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While this is a contentious move, the Overwatch community appears to be happy.
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"100 games for 32 heroes, that's a new hero every three matchups," one Reddit member said. "That seems like a nice approach to keep gamers coming back for 'just one more game.'"
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