Overwatch 2game director Aaron Keller recently said that, whileMarvel Rivalshas provided healthy competition for it, none of the recent features it has launched were developed in response to it. The superhero shooter lit a fire underOverwatch 2in many ways, but it has not forced Blizzard to develop anything it wasn’t already working on.
WhenMarvel Rivalsofficially launched on July 15, 2025, all eyes were onOverwatch 2. NetEase’s take on the hero genre shooter borrowed heavily from the Blizzard classic, allowingMarvel Rivalsto innovate on things thatOverwatch 2still struggles with. In the following months,Overwatch 2proceeded to release a series of successful seasons that introduced major features, such as Perks, Stadium, Hero Bans, and Map Voting.
However,Overwatch 2has now asserted that its recent successes are not because ofMarvel Rivals. Several developers and voice actors recently appeared on Jay3’s stream to play Stadium and chat. Near the end of their discussions,Hazard voice actor Conor McLeod askedOverwatch 2game director Aaron Keller ifMarvel Rivalshas pushed it to find success. “I’ve got a no-yes to that,” Keller said. “I think competition is healthy. It does force people to innovate more, to always put your best foot forward,” he admitted, “But I don’t think what you’re seeing inOverwatchright now is a response toRivals. So much of what we were doing this year, from Perks to Stadium to Map Voting… that’s been in the works for over a year as a new strategy for the game.”
Competition Between Overwatch 2 and Marvel Rivals
That said,Keller did admit thatMarvel Rivalslit a fire underOverwatch 2that was hot enough to affect its release schedule. According to his testimony, Hero Bans were moved up by “a season or two,” ostensibly becauseMarvel Rivalshas it for high-ranking competitive matches. Even so, Hero Bans were always in the works;Marvel Rivalscoming out did not spark their development otherwise.
Some fans are skeptical of Keller’s words, saying the timing ofOverwatch 2’s big swings is too convenient for it to not be a response toMarvel Rivals. That said, game development cycles take much longer than a few months. Complex systems like Perks and Stadium simply must have been cooking for over a year, making it nearly impossible to attribute them toMarvel Rivals’ successful release, even if it influenced aspects or release schedules. Still, it is obvious that the competition has been good for both games, and has spurred them both on to continue making innovations. “It’s maybe not always the most comfortable for the game team,” Keller agreed, “but I can see how the competition is healthy.”
I think competition is healthy. It does force people to innovate more, to always put your best foot forward. But I don’t think what you’re seeing inOverwatchright now is a response toRivals. So much of what we were doing this year, from Perks to Stadium to Map Voting… that’s been in the works for over a year as a new strategy for the game.
Nevertheless, it is clearOverwatch 2is gearing up for some big stuff for the rest of this year and into 2026. Earlier in the play session, Keller said the team was “ramping up” from Season 18 onwards, and hinted at somebig things for both the game and universe ofOverwatch 2. “It could be,” Keller teased, “that as we start getting further and further that maybe people see even bigger things out of the team in order for us to be competing.”
