"OW2 is a joke" - Twitch community expresses displeasure as Overwatch 2 developers announce scrapping of much-awaited PvE mode

On May 17, 2023, Overwatch 2's developers hosted a Dev Chat livestream to share updates on various aspects of the competitive game. The title's executive producer, Jared Neuss, made a major announcement, revealing that the much-anticipated PvE mode has now been scrapped. This news was shared on the r/LivestreamFail subreddit and quickly became a hot topic of discussion.

With over 205 Twitch community members chiming in, Redditor u/hyqvr stated that Overwatch 2 is a "joke." They added that after four years of waiting, the title had only delivered "some patch notes" and now decided to drop one of the most important features. They wondered if the Blizzard Entertainment-developed game could potentially face false advertising lawsuits:

"OW2 is a joke, lol. Four years of waiting for a scrapped PvE and some patch notes? Yikes. Does anyone know how false advertising lawsuits work? Would be interesting for OW2."

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"We can't deliver on that original vision" - Overwatch 2's developers explain why they chose to abandon PvE mode

At the 44-minute mark of the Overwatch 2 Dev Chat livestream earlier today, Jared Neuss, shared an update regarding the PvE mode, claiming that the developers had to make a "difficult choice." He elaborated:

"With everything we've learned about what it takes to operate this game, at the level you deserve, it's clear that we can't deliver on that original vision for PvE, that was shown in 2019. What that means is that, we won't be delivering the dedicated Hero Mode and the Talent Trees. That long-term power progression. Those things just aren't in our plans anymore."

Timestamp: 00:44:45

Neuss added:

"We know that this is going to disappoint many of you. Which is why we wanted to bring it up before we talk about the Roadmap. And, to be perfectly honest, it's been really difficult for many of us and a lot of folks at the team, who have worked their heart and soul into that stuff."

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Twitch community voices criticism at recent update regarding PvE mode, with some claiming to have gotten "scammed"

As mentioned earlier, the contentious update regarding Overwatch 2 went viral on the streamer-focused forum. Some users claimed to have gotten "scammed":

Others were curious as to what the developers had been up to since the base game had only received a "couple of patch notes":

Redditor u/peeps6255 expressed satisfaction with their decision not to "buy" Overwatch 2:

Here are some more relevant reactions:

According to Aaron Keller (game director), instead of releasing a "one-time" PvE update, the live roadmap will now feature "co-op gameplay" and "co-op experiences."