This collaboration comes on the heels of the shutdown of the Overwatch League, the premier franchised esports league for the game.

The OWCS will feature open tournament circuits in North America, Europe, and Asia, with LAN tournaments held at DreamHack events.

The new competitive circuit is designed to be more traditional, open, always-on, and global, in contrast to the Overwatch League’s slot-based franchise model.

Unlike the Overwatch League, which was primarily North America-focused, the OWCS aims for a more international circuit.

The tournament will have open qualifiers and tournaments for players in North America, EMEA, and Asia, with the Asian operations organized by Korean tournament organizer WDG.

In 2024, the OWCS will include two major tournaments, the DreamHack Dallas Major in late May and June and the OWCS World Finals at DreamHack Stockholm.

These LAN events will showcase the top eight OWCS teams from around the world.

To enhance path-to-pro opportunities, Overwatch 2 esports will be integrated into the FACEIT platform.

FACEIT plans to provide a consistent schedule of events and content for aspiring OWCS players and support third-party competitions and experiences.

Craig Levine, Co-CEO of ESL FACEIT Group, emphasized the global experience the partnership aims to create, stating, “OWCS introduces a new era of Overwatch esports while honoring the traditions and passion built by Overwatch esports.”

Blizzard’s plans for OWCS represent a shift from the exclusive franchised model of the Overwatch League, focusing on creating more opportunities for players and fostering community engagement.

The circuit will be operated by EFG in North America and EMEA, while WDG will handle operations in Asia.

The OWCS structure aims to promote consistent, always-on events, providing a structured environment for teams to grow and develop.

The season will conclude with a finals tournament in Sweden in November, marking the return of tier-one Overwatch gameplay in Europe.

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As a result of this, the Overwatch developer is set to exit the China domain if it does not find a new publisher before January 23, which is the stipulated time for its existing contract with NetEase to expire.

“We approached NetEase again last week for assistance in exploring a six-month extension of our existing agreement … to allow everyone to continue playing without disruption and for Blizzard to continue exploring a reasonable and long-term path forward in the China region,” it said in a press release.

“Unfortunately, NetEase did not accept our proposal to extend the existing game service agreement following last week’s extension negotiations. We will therefore have to comply with NetEase’s offer. Therefore, we will have to follow NetEase’s suspension announcement to discontinue the game service in China on January 23.”

NetEase also released a statement, explaining what prompted its denial of the six-month extension. According to them, the agreement that was proposed by Blizzard was unfavourable and “unfair”, hence they could not come to an agreement to extend their partnership.

“Considering the unequal, unfair, and other conditions attached to the cooperation, the two parties failed to reach an agreement in the end,” a NetEase statement read. “We believe that Blizzard’s proposal–including today’s sudden statement–is outrageous, inappropriate, and not in line with business logic.”

Blizzard is the developer of games such as Overwatch, World of Warcraft, Starcraft, and a couple others. This news has definitely plagued Chinese gamers, as in a few days they will not have access to these titles.

However, with the hope and motive that it will find a new publisher in China, Blizzard has advised its Chinese gamers to archive their gaming history and items so that when they get a new partnership, they will be able to continue gaming from where they left off.

“It’s important for everyone at Blizzard to properly save your game progress, items and memories – we create these worlds so that you can feel you are a part of them. We want you to be able to move on from where you left off. We hope that NetEase will follow its previous end of service announcement and properly seal all players’ game data. To give CN World of Warcraft players an additional peace of mind, in addition to the game data sealing provided by NetEase; Blizzard will also launch a feature tomorrow (January 18, Beijing time) that will allow CN World of Warcraft players to download their game progress for the future,” Blizzard stated.

“When the game comes back online in the future, you will be able to upload your saved game history in order to continue playing. This feature will continue to be available until the game ends service in China. We will share more information about the World of Warcraft progress archive with you on Weibo.”

The Blizzard game titles for China users will cease to be available; this does not include Diablo Immortal, as this game was born out of a different long-term partnership agreement with both parties.

The Overwatch developer also briefed the public on its progress towards finding a new partner in China. It said it is already in talks with some potential partners and is hoping that its goals align so it can commence a partnership as soon as possible. Blizzard also promised to keep its Chinese players abreast of its plight in finding a new partner.

“We have started talks with a number of potential partners who share our player-first values. We continue to prioritize potential partners that can provide high quality and consistent game play, create a positive gaming environment both inside and outside of the game, and work with us to bring our games back to our players in China,” Blizzard revealed.

“We will share new developments with you in the future. Unfortunately, NetEase is unwilling to extend the service for six months based on the terms of the existing partnership while we look for a new partner. However, we will not give up and will still do our best for everyone. We want you to understand that it’s not over yet. We will still try to find a national partner who shares our beliefs.”

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This partnership came into being in 2008; hence, by January 23, 2023, all of Blizzard’s actions and new sales will cease to be granted to gamers in China.

The game titles that will be put on hold because of the suspension are Overwatch, World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Diablo III, the StarCraft series, and Heroes of the Storm.

Although the newly released Diablo Immortal, which was co-developed by NetEase and Blizzard, will remain available in China as part of a standalone long-term deal.

According to reports, the two companies could not reach an agreement to extend their partnership. NetEase has made claims that the release of Blizzard’s services will have little or no impact on its profit margin. The company noted that the revenue generated from the game amounted to almost nothing.

The Chief Executive Officer of NetEase, William Ding, stated that the company had made every attempt to strike a deal with the Overwatch developer.

“We have put in a great deal of effort and tried with our utmost sincerity to negotiate with Activision Blizzard so that we could continue our collaboration and serve the many dedicated players in China,” said Ding.

“However, there were material differences on key terms and we could not reach an agreement.”

The President of Blizzard Entertainment, Mike Ybarra, expressed his gratitude to the Chinese community for their unwavering enthusiasm over the years. He also noted that the company was exploring different avenues to restore its games to Chinese players in the long run.

“We’re immensely grateful for the passion our Chinese community has shown throughout the nearly 20 years we’ve been bringing our games to China through NetEase and other partners,” said Ybarra.

“Their enthusiasm and creativity inspire us, and we are looking for alternatives to bring our games back to players in the future.”

Users from all over China, as well as users outside of China who sympathize with fans from the region, have left thousands of comments since the news of the suspension broke.

“My youth was heavily marked by playing Hearthstone,” one user said, while another said: “I’m so sad. I started playing Blizzard games from 2008… how do I say good bye?”

It is currently unknown what will become of the Chinese teams in Overwatch 2 and the Overwatch League.

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Goodman’s history with Overwatch dates back to the beginning, when the game was known as Blizzard’s Project Titan. He was Blizzard’s principal game designer and oversaw the balancing of every hero included in the two Overwatch titles.? ?

For Overwatch, Goodman designed new heroes like the Junker Queen and Sojourn. He also reworked old characters like Orisa and Doomfist. The designer also notably worked as the boss battle designer for Blizzard’s World of Warcraft.?

?Fans first speculated about Goodman’s departure in late August, when the game developer released an ad for a lead hero designer. At the time, Goodman still had his position as the lead hero designer, so the ad stood out from the rest of the job postings.?

?Blizzard confirmed the news of Goodman’s departure via a brief statement which revealed that his decision to leave the company was made earlier this year.? ?

“We thank Geoff for his many years of service at Blizzard and wish him all the best,” Blizzard wrote. ? ?

“His ability to bring to life Overwatch’s diverse hero roster through gameplay has been incredible, and the mark he’s left on the Warcraft and Overwatch teams will be felt for years to come.”?

?While the company did not mention the reason behind Goodman’s decision to leave, his move aligns with the current trend of high-profile employees at Blizzard leaving the company. Just this past year, Overwatch executive producer Chacko Sunny announced his departure, as well as the company’s producer, Tracy Kennedy.?

?The Overwatch game developer is reportedly in the process of being bought out by Microsoft in a USD $68.7 billion deal. Blizzard is currently under intense scrutiny as a result of a number of lawsuits. The higher-ups in the organization, including Blizzard’s CEO, Bobby Kotick, were accused of workplace discrimination and harassment.?

?Blizzard was also accused of conducting insider trading and several other workplace-related issues. The US-based company is currently carrying out a series of internal investigations. The game developer has faced a number of issues before the launch of Overwatch 2, including the controversy surrounding the introduction of a battle pass.?

?After the launch of Overwatch 2, the original version of the game will shut down and existing players will receive the new version as an update. New players, on the other hand, will be offered the second version as an entirely new download.? ?

The last unveiled character for Overwatch 2 was Kiriko, who had Goodman as the lead designer. The new battle pass system in the game will have new heroes which will become unlockable at level 50.?

?In a statement, Blizzard talked about the new heroes, explaining that while each was strong, some were more effective than others.?

?”While Overwatch 2 heroes will each have their own clear strengths and weakness, and some heroes will be more effective against others, we believe our game plays better and is more fun with fewer hard counters and a broader range of effective hero picks,” the game developer said.

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Viewers can also earn eligibility for the beta drop, but they are required to first watch for four hours on any approved streams. The viewer is expected to have an Overwatch license on their battle.net account and then link the account to their Twitch account to be eligible for the drop. ??

Upon reward, the player is required to access the game via the battle.net account. They will be expected to download and play by clicking the Overwatch icon at the top of the homepage. At the bottom left, the player will find the game version drop-down menu and will need to click the Overwatch 2 Technical Beta to commence.??

For the players who won’t be fortunate to get the beta via the drops program or otherwise, Blizzard reassures that they are still opportunities to be exploited in getting a front seat at the table. In their release, they revealed that there will be future betas and that everyone will be able to stream the beta and it will be on-hand for everyone who wants to watch. ??

“If you don’t get into the PvP Beta initially or via the drops program, don’t worry,” Blizzard stated.

“You haven’t missed all your chances to get into the action. There will be Overwatch 2 beta streams and content available for everyone to watch, and we will have more information on how to gain access to future betas.”??

The selected Twitch streamers to gain access to the Overwatch 2 beta include Pokimane, A_Seagull, Surefour, AnneMunition, xDc, Stylosa, and Mendo, to name a few. While more betas are scheduled to go live in the future, the initial Overwatch 2 beta for the streamers will commence on April 26 and run through to May 17.???

About Blizzard Entertainment

?Blizzard Entertainment is a video game developer and publisher. The organization is in the business of the development and deployment of entertainment software. They are famous for having created some of the most popular titles, including but not limited to Overwatch, World of Warcraft, StarCraft, Doable, and Hearthstone.

?The company was founded on February 8, 1991, and has always been based in Irvine, California. The organization was formerly known as Silicon & Synapse, Inc from inception through to 1993. Right after Silicon & Synapse had run its course, the company became Chaos Studios Inc, before being renamed Blizzard Entertainment and has over 4,700 people under its employ.

?It was founded by Allen Adham, Frank Pearce, and Michael Morhaime and is a subsidiary of the parent company, Activision Blizzard. Since its inception, the organization has developed and released 19 games, with the Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft series being a large chunk of its portfolio.

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