Overwatch 2 Reveals More Details About Stadium

Summary

Overwatch 2 introduces Stadium mode with an Armory, permanent character Power selections, and customizable UI.
The 17 heroes available at the Stadium launch include tanks, damage, and support categories for strategic team building.
Stadium features nine maps with unique gameplay variations and a competitive ranking system for players.

Overwatch 2 revealed a new blog post that goes into detail about the upcoming Stadium game mode, including how the Armory works, the heroes and maps available at launch, and even how the user interface can be customized. Using this information, fans can prepare themselves for the new Overwatch 2 game mode once it releases on April 22.

During the Overwatch 2 spotlight event in February, Blizzard revealed Stadium, a highly customizable new game mode where two teams battle it out over the course of up to seven rounds, upgrading their abilities between each bout. With just about a week before it arrives in Season 16, Overwatch 2 has begun hyping up Stadium, starting with a brand-new gameplay trailer.

Why Overwatch 2 Players Should Mark April 22 on Their Calendars

April 22 is primed to be a massive day for fans of Blizzard’s hero-shooter, Overwatch 2, and this entails everything they won’t want to miss.

Now, Overwatch 2 has revealed tons of information about Stadium. Between each round, players will go to the Armory to buy up to six Items, which supplement a hero’s abilities, weapons, or stats. Additionally, before the first, third, fifth, and seventh rounds, each hero will select a Power – permanent, transformative modifiers to character kits, such as Moira’s Biotic Orb Multiball or Reinhardt’s lava trail Firestrike. Heroes can buy Items with their starting 3500 Stadium Cash, though more can earn more via gameplay, by selling old Items, and when claiming special Bounties on high-priority targets on the enemy team.

How Does Stadium Work in Overwatch 2?

At launch, 17 heroes will be available, with more planned for release in the future. Fans can choose from D.Va, Junker Queen, Orisa, Reinhardt, and Zarya for tanks; Ashe, Cassidy, Genji, Mei, Reaper, and Soldier: 76 for damage; and Ana, Juno, Kiriko, Lucio, Mercy, and Moira for support heroes. Characters cannot be changed after the game begins, so players should be sure to select carefully during the first round.

Overwatch 2 Stadium Heroes Available at Launch

Tank	Damage	Support
D.Va	Ashe	Ana
Junker Queen	Cassidy	Juno
Orisa	Genji	Kiriko
Reinhardt	Mei	Lucio
Zarya	Reaper	Mercy
–	Soldier: 76	Moira

There will be nine maps launched with Stadium, including locations like Colosseo, Hanaoka, and the Throne of Anubis that already exist in Overwatch 2, reworked existing maps like the Redwood Dam in Watchpoint: Gibraltar, Place Lacroix in Paris, and Gogadora in Busan, and even a brand-new map called Arena Victoriae. These maps will play a little differently in the best-of-seven Stadium mode, with a shorter distance in Push, singular objectives in Control that are captured much faster, and a take on Clash that ends after a team wins two objective points.

The game mode also features a default, customizable third-person camera view with optional UI elements to show reloading times or line-of-sight blockage, as well as its own Competitive ranking system. Fans can climb to higher divisions, earn Competitive Points to unlock Weapon Variants in Overwatch 2, and even earn the special All-Stars Juno Epic skin by reaching the All-Star league. Players can expect to learn even more about these aspects and more in the days leading up to Stadium’s release.