Overwatch 2 will return to 6v6 in 2 test modes next season, but Blizzard won’t keep them around if they don’t attract 'a surge of players’

A decent chunk of Overwatch 2 players have been ranting and raving about the good ol’ days of 6v6 ever since the sequel opted for the new 5v5 format. Players are incredibly passionate about this issue, so much so that they managed to make Blizzard flinch and announce upcoming 6v6 playtests, which we now know more about.

In a blog post today, game director Aaron Keller said there will be “two different 6v6 tests” in Overwatch 2’s next season, season 14. The first of these tests will be a variation of the flexible Open Queue ruleset, where each team of six must have at least one of each role and no more than three. So you can make a team that's comprised of three supports, one DPS, and two tanks, or any variation on that format.

The next 6v6 test will take place mid-season 14 and will force the original 2-2-2 team composition (two tanks, two healers, and two damage dealers), but it will still retain Overwatch 2 changes, such as less crowd control and the reworked heroes. But in both of these cases, the tanks won't be as strong as they currently are. "The power and survivability of tanks will go down in these 6v6 formats, and we'll be taking a look at whether we need many of the passives that we've added in Overwatch 2," Keller says.

Season 13 will also see some new modes added, but these will be for 5v5 and will be aimed at "testing the flexibility within this format," according to Keller. A new Quick Play: Hacked event, named "Limit 2," will be like Open Queue, except the maximum in each role will be limited to two. "This includes Tanks, but they will be tuned to Open Queue balance, meaning they will have less health," Keller says. "You can freely switch heroes and roles as long as the new role doesn’t already have two players."

The next 5v5 test is codenamed "Kingmaker" and will be like "Limit 2," except this time, the role that just has one player will get some bonuses. "Quick Play: Hacked, “Limit 2”, and “Kingmaker” will provide an excellent benchmark and framework for us going into the 6v6 tests," Keller says. "We’re looking forward to seeing what statistics we can gather as you dive into these modes, alongside your feedback, which is one of our strongest data points!"

"Part of this series of tests is to not only judge our player's appetite for larger team sizes, but for us to explore different ways that we might implement a change without running into the same problems we had previously," Keller says. One of the biggest issues that Keller previously mentioned in the first 6v6 blog post was that this format negatively affected queue times. Very few players queue for tank compared to other roles, meaning that it was harder to fill this role, and most DPS and support players would have disproportionately long wait times between matches.

It will be interesting to see if these tests fall into the same pitfalls or even if they negatively affect queue times for regular Role and Open Queues, as it'll effectively split the playerbase in half. With that in mind, it's important to understand that when these tests are taking place, you're effectively a guinea pig for Blizzard to experiment on, and any number of things you do in them, or say online, could shape what these potential new modes might look like.

"In a world where a surge of players is in this mode and continuously play it, then we have the signal we need to do more with it," Keller says. "I think what that 'more' is depends on the level of excitement. Is there a world where both 5v5 and 6v6 exist permanently in Overwatch 2? If you had asked me a few months ago, I would have said no. As we've discussed Overwatch 2's future in light of making the game that our players want to play, we know our players can want more than one experience, and it would be something we'd need to consider moving forward."

Try out the different modes so you can form an opinion on what you prefer, and once you come to that decision, try to make that known, either by spreading the word or just playing more of that specific mode. It sounds like Blizzard will make an informed decision based on popularity, player count, and whatever other analytics it tracks internally for balance and player behaviour.

I'm excited to see what both of these tests will be like, although that does mean digging out my team's second tank and sixth member, who we sent into exile back in 2022. But Overwatch 2 can only have so many different versions of the game running at one time, and I was really hoping that Junkenstein's Lab would stick around because that's the closest thing we'll probably ever get to the intended PvE experience.

That being said, I'd love the 6v6 tests to work out if they're genuinely good and benefit the community, but I'm not convinced that enough players actually want 6v6 for this to benefit anyone. I could just be living under a 5v5 rock, but over the last couple of years, it's increasingly felt like most of the 6v6 discourse exists as a way to focus everyone's frustration at Overwatch 2's failings and disappointments.

At Overwatch 2's release, it felt like there was too much to be angry about for everyone to rally around one war cry—players were frustrated with increased shop prices, no loot boxes, a new battle pass, no PvE, and the change to 5v5 just to name a few. Players were on so many different crusades that none of them ended up amounting to anything, and the anger just kind of fizzled out as fans settled for the new reality of Overwatch 2, except for the 6v6 vs. 5v5 debate.

This has managed to live on well past any of the other grievances and is often brought up as the frontrunner when players are asked what's so wrong with Overwatch 2. It sticks out like a sore thumb and is something simple enough for a lot of people to rally around. So it'll be interesting to see how much of the community ends up playing the upcoming 6v6 tests and if this is something that players genuinely want and not just an easy punching bag.