Overwatch 2’s latest patch introduces a limited-time deathmatch mode that makes the game’s most absurd possibilities even more absurd.
Available as an arcade mode with unique challenges to complete, Battle for Olympus is a free deathmatch for everyone with seven heroes to choose from. Every hero has his skills adapted (opens in new tab) and their ultimates have been completely reworked to match the Greek Mythology theme of the season. Reinhardt gains a buff when using his ult and can attack and pin up to three targets at once. When Roadhog lashes out, it grows even bigger and shoots giant rocks. And if you look at Widowmaker with her Infra-Sight ult up, you’ll turn to stone.
The eight-player deathmatch plays out like the Total Mayhem arcade mode, as heroes zoom across the map throwing ultimates and abilities at each other. It’s complete chaos and a stark departure from the tactics in the game’s regular team-based modes. I’m not a fan of deathmatch in Overwatch 2, but I can see why the absurdity of Battle for Olympus could be a lot of fun for those looking for a vacation from ranked or quick play. Wall riding like Lucio and hitting enemies against walls with a boop like you’re Doomfist is just plain funny, I can’t deny that.
There are a series of challenges to complete in the mode, most of which require you to get boatloads of kills on each hero, so many that players already are anticipating the rut (opens in new tab) for the unique titles you can earn. Completing six of the challenges will earn you the Winged Victory Mercy skin originally released in 2017.
Outside of the new mode, Junker Queen received a list of buffs, including a major accidental buff to her axe ability that players found almost immediately. The raw fighter has the unique ability to cleave enemies with her massive axe, inflicting a ton of damage and life-stealing wounds on them. In the new patch, the ax’s cooldown is “reduced by 2 seconds for each enemy it hits,” according to the notes on the website (opens in new tab).
In testing, players found that the buff is a lot better than that. Almost every breakable object, turret, or shield in the game activates the cooldown reduction as long as the ability counts as colliding with it, which doesn’t match the “hostile” part of the notes.
Given the amount of breakable objects on the map and the potential for shields and turrets in the mix, Junker Queen’s ax attack cooldown can be completely removed, allowing her to spam it as Reinhardt’s hammer. One shield with two to three people behind it is all she needs to start swinging. And if she incapacitates someone, she is also healed for the remaining wound duration on the target.
There are certain maps and long-range heroes that can prevent the bug from happening often, but Overwatch 2 often squeezes teams around objectives. Junker Queen can inadvertently become the best tank in the game if you take advantage of the bug. That is, unless she is removed for two weeks, as Blizzard has done other misbehaving heroes (opens in new tab). Junker Queen could stay for now, as Blizzard says it’s “following an issue related to Junker Queen’s Carnage ability cooldown,” in its post known issues (opens in new tab).
Sojourn’s cyberpunk themed Cyber Detective skin was removed in the patch as it made her invisible. Twitch streamer Questron (opens in new tab) shared a clip of an Echo using her ult to copy a Sojourn wearing the skin, which also made her invisible. If it weren’t for the unfair part of the bug, it could have been a nice nod to Cyberpunk 2077’s launch status. Oh, well.