Popular Twitch streamer and former Overwatch League pro Brandon ‘Seagull’ Larned explained why he’s cautiously excited about the Overwatch 2 beta and his biggest concerns with it.
Blizzard stunned gamers on March 10 by finally announcing the Overwatch 2 beta. Currently available for pros and content creators, the general public will get their chance to play the game in April.
The beta will feature new modes, maps, several reworks to existing characters and most controversially – only one new hero, something the devs commented on after player backlash.
Now, Seagull has weighed in on the beta with his thoughts and voiced concerns that there is too little in the way of new content.
It's been about 2 years since Overwatch last released content. very excited.
However, I hope drip feeding OW2 content like this doesn't water down people's first impressions of the game from sequel-level to "balance patch".
can't wait to play and see the full game. https://t.co/AbocQm9hkl
— Brandon Larned (@A_Seagull) March 10, 2022
Seagull concerned Overwatch 2 beta is just a “balance patch”
During a Twitch stream, Seagull watched the developer update featuring Game Director Aaron Keller and chimed in with his opinion on the beta announcement.
“I have very conflicting feelings about this,” he began, saying he was happy that he and others can finally play the game soon. “After two years, you’re showing off one character and four maps. Push and a new ping system. When it’s put this way, it just looks like a balance patch.”
Larned further expressed that he wanted more with the first beta instead of getting new heroes rolled out with each new update, especially considering how deep they are in development.
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“The worst part is you know they have tons of characters that they’re just sitting on. Realistically they’ve been working on everything for years. So, what their plan is is to drip feed content, with one character here and another over there,” he added.
“I’m concerned it kinda waters down the experience. I’m concerned players’ first experience of Overwatch 2 will be, ‘oh yeah, this game is a nice balance patch.’”
According to Seagull, the beta doesn’t feel as good as it could have and lacks the impact he desires with a full new game.
We’ll have to see if Seagull’s thoughts on the beta change and what the general player base thinks once they get their chance to try it out in April.