(Blizzard)
Overwatch has always been a game that’s a work in progress, as each new update has added new features and adjustments to the core game. Whether it’s for balancing issues with a certain character or to overhaul entire mechanics within a certain game mode, developer Blizzard has taken Overwatch‘s post-launch very seriously. Recently, a post on the official Overwatch forum by user SoNaTaZ asked the status on some fan requested features such as saving highlights and a spectator only mode.
Two hours after the post went live, Game Director Jeff Kaplan responded and confirmed that they are “very excited” to work on the mentioned features. He explains that both are on his team’s schedule, but have been pushed aside so that they can work on more pressing matters to both Season 2 of the Competitive Mode and working on better technology for high bandwidth users.
You can read Jeff Kaplan’s full statement below:
We are very excited to get the opportunity to work on both of the features that you mentioned — a replay system and a spectate only feature.
Both have been on our schedule for some time but have gotten bumped for different reasons. The same people who would work on those features ended up being re-prioritized to working on high bandwith server technology, Season 2 competitive mode changes and matchmaking improvements. We also have another feature request in front of the replay system — the ability to save highlights. Some of the work here is a step towards replays (another top requested feature) so it makes sense for this to come first when the time comes.
We’re as excited as you guys are for these features. We’re really hoping to get time on them.
This is hardly the first time Kaplan has responded to fan suggestions, as he is known for interacting heavily with the Overwatch community. Saving highlights has always been a feature that’s been puzzling left out of the core game since they are records of your best moments when using the various characters of Overwatch. With no direct way to save or even share highlights currently, this would be a very welcomed feature.
Spectator Mode is another addition that could vastly improve the interactivity of Overwatch, as it would allow players to watch high-end matches between skilled players. While you can spectate in Overwatch currently, the only way is to join a friend who is currently playing in a full match. Adding the ability to watch others play freely could help new players gain a better understanding for how characters should be used and what team compositions work.
It will be interesting to see how fast these new concepts are implemented into Overwatch, but rest assured that Blizzard is listening to the community. Now if we could only make Lucio Ball into a custom game mode.
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