Blizzard have been leading the way in gaming since the release of one of their first games, Blackthorne, all the way up through the Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo series’. Now with the release of Overwatch, Blizzard can add yet another notch of success to their four stam, four strength leather belt. Read the rest of our Overwatch review below!

Platform Used For Overwatch Review: Gigabyte P35, Intel i7-4720HQ 2.60GHz, 16GB Ram, GeForce GT 965M
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Genre: Action, Online Team-Based Shooter
Recommended If You Liked: Battleborn, Team Fortress 2, DOOM 2016
Price: $89.95AUD
Rating:

This is the big one! What all Blizzard fans have been waiting for! Overwatch; the next big thing from the geniuses at Blizzard Entertainment.

For those of you used to what Blizzard have provided us in the past such as real-time strategies like Warcraft and Starcraft; MMO’s like World of Warcraft; or isometric RPGs like the Diablo series, you might find the thought of a first-person, online, team-based shooter to be a bit daunting.

There’s already a heap of games like this available, and more keep coming. I hear some of you thinking, “It looks very pretty and all, but won’t we get our arses handed to us on a plate by the hardened, team-based shooter veterans waiting around every corner?”. Well to begin with, you might. But that’s only because everyone will be finding their place in the game.

Players who are very used to playing these kinds of games will probably find it a cinch to pick up and shoot heads, and newcomers might be the ones who lose their heads. But within a few hours of the game being released, players will be levelling up their accounts and being grouped up with other players around the same level.

Overwatch uses a complex matchmaking system that puts together the most equal team possible based on players currently queuing for a game. If the system finds a more skilled player has been assigned to one team, another skilled player will be found for the opposing team. It’s a system that a lot of games have used in the past, and something us less skilled gamers rely on to enjoy the game to it’s fullest extent.

That being said, you have to remember you’re always up against human players (unless you prefer to play against the A.I.), so chances are you’ll often come across people who are better than you. But that’s the joy of playing anything online. You need to have a thick skin so you don’t get too disheartened.

The Gameplay

Overwatch follows the same style as most first-person shooters, but the aesthetics are much nicer. Attack animations have multiple variations, so as to take away a bit of predictability and also inject some extra personality into each character.

There are twenty-one characters to choose from and each provides such a unique experience that you’ll find it difficult to settle on a favourite. My favourite from the Open Beta was Torbjörn; a bearded, dwarf-like man who excels at setting up gun-turrets, providing the team with extra armour and melting faces with his aptly named “Molten Core” ultimate ability.

Ultimate abilities allow a character to gain a massive advantage for a short period of time. They become available after the Ultimate meter has filled up by dealing damage or killing enemies. Some characters fill their meters up by doing different things, like when Mercy uses her healing Caduceus Staff.

Once the meter is fully charged, Ultimate abilities can be used. Torbjörn’s “Molten Core” ability provides him with a massive amount of armour, allows him to attack and build turrets faster, and also upgrades his currently built turret to become a powerful killing machine for the duration of the ability.

Be wary of when other players have unleashed their ultimates and also be careful with deciding when you think it’s the best time to unleash your own.

After a match, you’ll get the usual rundown of how well you and others did. But you’ll also get shown a couple of statistics showing which players did the best in certain aspects. I.e. Best kill participation, most damage blocked etc. From these players, you can choose to commend one of them. Commendations don’t seem to provide anything as of yet, but it’s nice to see you’re appreciated!

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[schema type=”review” url=”https://us.battle.net/shop/en/product/overwatch-origins” name=”Buy Overwatch” description=”Blizzard have been leading the way in gaming since the release of one of their first games, Blackthorne, all the way up through the Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo series’. Now with the release of Overwatch, Blizzard can add yet another notch of success to their four stam, four strength leather belt.” rev_name=”Overwatch Review” rev_body=”Despite all of this, Overwatch is definitely a team-based shooter that you should be looking at adding to your collection of 2016 releases. With so many players participating in the Open Beta, it certainly looks like there will be a loyal fan-base for a very long time to come.” author=”GameReviews AU” pubdate=”2016-05-24″ user_review=”5″ min_review=”1″ max_review=”5″ ]