14 DAY TRIAL // A set of advertising messages on the IGN site are suggesting that the launch of the Overwatch video game from Blizzard on May 24 of this year and that an open beta for the experience will be introduced on May 3.
The ads have since then been pulled but captured by AllGamesBeta, but the development team will probably deliver an official reveal later today or during the week, offering more details about the kinds of changes players can expect or about the core features that will be offered for testing to a wider number of players.
Overwatch is set to arrive on the PC as well as the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony and the May 24 launch date is probably for all three devices, although Blizzard has said that it has no plans to introduce cross-platform play.
The title has been offered via the Battle.net store for pre-order since November of last year, and the development team has been running a closed beta test that allows the team to test the core mechanics and to see exactly what kind of tweaks are needed before the multiplayer first-person shooter is ready for prime time.
Despite the many ideas it shares with traditional Multiplayer Online Battle Arena experiences, Overwatch will not be free-to-play, with the Blizzard team saying that it wants to sell the title for normal retail price and then offer a wide range of updates, including new heroes, for free.
The emphasis of the title will be on teamwork
Two teams of six players will face each other on maps inspired by real world locations, and gamers can choose from characters that fit into four core roles: tank, offensive, defensive and support.
The big innovations of Overwatch is that players can switch to another hero when they die in battle, which creates an evolving situation and interesting match-ups that should keep all fights interesting.
There are three core modes in the game: Control, Point Capture and Payload.
Over the course of the closed beta, Blizzard has been making changes to the main mechanics and the abilities of heroes and the balancing process will likely be even more intensive once the full version is launched on May 24.
Blizzard says that it wants to create a multiplayer-focused experience that welcomes newcomers and quickly allows them to contribute to a fight while offering a lot of depth for those who spend a lot of time with the title.