Overwatch Player Count Breaks 7 Million, And It’s Only Going Up
It should be apparent already, but Blizzard has hit a homerun with Overwatch. Since the game’s debut, Overwatch players have logged some seriously massive amounts of playtime. 119 million hours worth, to be exact. Considering the title’s been out for a little over a week, that’s downright monstrous. The Overwatch player count is insane as well, with a whopping 7 million people already playing the title. Given the game’s popularity, it’s only going to rise at this point.
Blizzard also had some other eyebrow-raising stats indirectly related to the Overwatch player count, such as 326 million hero swaps and 11 million payloads delivered. Considering there are only 21 heroes in the title, it just shows how diverse the game’s roster really is, and even as players log more and more time with the title, the depth of the game is beginning to show. What was initially looking a bit shallower in comparison is actually showing some surprising strategy beneath its layers, and with this many people playing the title for this much time already, it should really be no surprise.
If you’ve been nowhere in the vicinity of planet earth, or just glued to your VR headsets, here’s a brief rundown of what Overwatch is, exactly:
The game features a diverse cast of 21 unique heroes—including Reinhardt, the noble knight from a bygone era; Zenyatta, the robotic monk in search of enlightenment; and Symmetra, the hard-light “architech” striving to build a better world—each armed with extraordinary weapons and incredible abilities. Across a variety of vibrant and intricately designed maps, players must work together to complete various objectives, swapping heroes to adapt to the ever-changing situation and combining their powers to unleash devastating combos.
Overwatch features a variety of game modes for shooter veterans and players new to the genre:
- Quick Play automatically matches players with allies and opponents of a similar skill level—a quick and easy way to jump into the fight.
- Play Vs. AI mode pits a team of human players against computer-controlled opponents, with multiple difficulty settings to choose from.
- Custom Games allow teams of friends to tweak the game’s rules, including damage and healing modifiers and which heroes and maps are in play.
- Weekly Brawl! offers up an unexpected challenge every week, like “Justice Rains from Above” (an aerial extravaganza starring rocket-poweredPharah and Mercy, the high-flying healer) and the intense “Arcade” brawl, which features more health, faster cooldowns, and quick respawns.
- Training modes include a Tutorial that teaches players the ropes, a Practice Range where people can try their hand at heroes in a zero-pressure environment, and a Practice vs. AI mode where heroes can further hone their skills.
- . . . And more to come: sometime after launch, players looking for the ultimate team challenge will be able to test their mettle, earn ranks, and show off their skill in Competitive Play. Blizzard also plans to patch in new heroes and maps in the future at no additional cost.
I’m sure these numbers will only continue to spiral out of control, but it’s refreshing to see something new come from Blizzard. It also just happens to be really, really, really goddamn fun.
Source: Press Release