14 DAY TRIAL // Video game developer Blizzard might have surprised a lot of gamers when it announced that it plans to launch Overwatch as a full retail game, but the company plans to make sure that it keeps the community satisfied by getting ready to deliver a stream of both heroes and maps once the title is out that will be entirely free.
The information comes from a video from Jeff Kaplan, the game development director, who explains that his studio wants to make sure that it offers plenty of quality for fans and that they stay engaged with the title for as long as possible.
The developer says that he does not know how many new heroes can be introduced but says that hints about some of them are already present in Overwatch.
He also explains that there are plans to make sure that the coming characters will respond to the demands of the community regarding the gameplay experience they deliver.
There are 21 heroes part of Overwatch at the moment, and they will be included in the release version of the title, available to all those who get the title to try out.
Blizzard also plans to introduce more options linked to music and a kill feed will probably be implemented in the next major update, allowing gamers to mute it or to have it playing even when the game is minimized.
The card system is also under balancing at the moment and will give gamers contributing towards team objectives the recognition they deserve.
To eliminate frustration, the development team is also planning to introduce an option to always skip the kill cam, although the feature does offer some important information for players who want to improve their performance.
Overwatch will encourage teamwork
The game is designed to be accessible, allowing newcomers to quickly pick up the shooter mechanics and then find a hero they are comfortable with.
The heroes are different enough that permanent cooperation between members of a team is required for those who want to get a constant stream of victories.
Overwatch is set to arrive on June 21 of next year and can be played on the PC, the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony, although no cross-platform play is planned.
Blizzard says that it wants to continue to test the game with an increasing number of players, but that it will first take down the beta on December 10 to make some tweaks to both the core mechanics and the server infrastructure.
The studio plans to use both data obtained by tracking player behavior during matches and feedback offered on social media and via other channels to make changes.
Overwatch will return during the second part of January 2016, and until then those interested gamers can continue to deliver their impressions of the game via the forums until December 18.
The title will use a classic business model rather than free-to-play because Blizzard is aiming to attract a different type of audience than for the recently launched Heroes of the Storm.
