Overwatch, Esports, and going mainstream

You sick of Overwatch yet?

Well, don't be. This game is so far my GOTY for 2016, the most fun I've had with a game in, well, forever, and might be one of the most important games ever made if it's handled well. Oh, you heard me right. Overwatch might be the game that could easily catapult esports into the mainstream in a big way. I'm not being hyperbolic here, not at all. Blizzard might even have some sort of responsibility here. Opportunities like this don't come often.

The Tone

Gaming has always been a rather tricky sell to observers, because it all looks rather... extreme. Complex, fast paced games with a very serious tone aren't the most welcoming products. Call of Duty has gritty and ultra fast combat flying at a crazy pace. League of Legends has numbers everywhere and strategies that one can't even comprehend without prior knowledge of the game. It looks like a brick wall of info and attitude that isn't even worth trying to understand to many.

Overwatch is almost the polar opposite of all this. It's bright, cheery, easy to understand (I'll get to that in a bit), no complex systems, no incomprehensible strategies, and above all is just pleasant to watch. No clutter, just a character doing what they do best.

This is a bigger deal than most think it is, because we can see how accessibility makes games more popular every time. Look at how Pokemon Go absolutely exploded. I can guarantee you it's because it was a free app with easy to understand mechanics. No teams or the 4 move limit or IV's or anything. Just catching and battling Pokemon. Overwatch is simple and easy to understand, much like it.

The Barrier to Entry

And this is a point I am going to rag on and emphasis - to the fullest extent. Overwatch makes so, so much sense. The fact that I basically had each character's kit memorized after one game with them is a good sign of this. The simpler a game is, the better it is as an esport. It lets non-players understand it much faster, and as a result get engaged faster. As an example, let's compare a moveset from League of Legends to a moveset from Overwatch.

I'll start with a character from LOL, Garen. First off, basic statistics about his character's health, damage, speed, that sort of stuff:

Then his abilities. His passive lets him regen health if he has not been hit by other player attacks for a period of time.

His 1^st ability gets rid of slows affecting him, lets him charge forward, and strikes an enemy, also silencing them. The movement speed lasts for 1.5/2/2.5/3/3.5 seconds depending on the level. The attack deals 30/55/80/105/130 damage depending on level plus 140% of his attack damage.

His 2^nd ability gives him more armour as he defeats enemies. He can activate this ability to reduce incoming damage by 30% for 2/3/4/5/6 seconds depending on level.

His 3^rd ability lets him preform a spin attack, dealing damage all around him.It deals 14/18/22/26/30 damage depending on level plus 34/35/36/37/38% of his attack power also depending on level. If you only hit 1 enemy it deals 33% more damage, and you can cancel it to refund cooldown.

His ultimate allows him to deal more damage to the enemy with the most kills. He can activate it to finish a weak enemy, dealing 175/350/525 damage plus 28/33/40% of the target's current health. This damage is true damage if it hits the enemy with the most kills.

Holy hell, that was a lot of stuff for one single champion, and League has over 100! Now, that works fine if you want to play the game at at least a semi competent level, as you will naturally pick up this info. However, imagine someone trying to watch a game of LOL while not knowing much about it. It would be maddeningly difficult to even figure out what's going on in most circumstances.

Now, on the other hand, I'll compare an Overwatch character, Tracer:

Tracer shoots using pulse pistols that deal heavy damage with a low clip count. Hitting shift lets her blink forward a small amount, and she may have 3 charges of blink at once. She can teleport back to where she was 8 seconds ago by hitting E, and her ultimate has her throw out a small yet deadly stick bomb.

I mean, you can see the difference there purely by the length of time needed to explain both characters. Garen took 4 paragraphs, Tracer took only 1. Overwatch has no exact stats, just simple, uncomplicated moves. The only slightly complex thing is health, and even that is rather simple. 3 kinds of health, normal health isn't special, shields will recharge, armour reduces incoming damage. You can explain how the game works really easily as well.

In an average MOBA, each team tries to destroy the other team's base. But to do that, they have to take down towers, jungle monsters, win various distinct phases of the game, and so on. In Overwatch, the goals are more clear. You attack/defend a control point, push/stop a payload, or try to win a king of the hill mode.

Again, this isn't calling Overwatch better, this is moreso calling it better for spectators. Overwatch is clear, friendly, simple, easy to explain, unobtuse, direct, and most importantly, there isn't crazy jargon being thrown around. Try to use “gank”, “CDR”, or “ADC” around non-MOBA players and they won't know what the hell you mean. Overwatch uses terms like “Capture”, “flank”, and “tank”, much more universal terms.

In many ways, esports have a severe language barrier of sorts separating them from those not familiar with them. Overwatch may be the perfect tool to bust through that. At the very least, it's worth a shot. I'd hate for esports to forever be this alien thing that not everyone can enjoy.