In the latest Overwatch developer update with Jeff Kaplan his main topic is the server browser.
The Overwatch server browser lets you find custom games by region along with filtering for modes, maps, and options to find a server that suits you. It’s hard to believe that a server browser is now a “feature” when it used to be standard for all shooters.
Custom games are getting “huge updates” with new functionality such as gaining experience and loot boxes while in a custom game.
The other big news is that the CTF is a game mode that can be enabled in custom games and nine new CTF map conversions have been added. This is great news because the team did a great job with the Year of the Rooster CTF event.
The CTF mode can also be tweaked so you have to have the enemy flag to make a capture if you prefer to play a more traditional CTF mode. Hero abilities can even be turned off, flag pick up time adjusted, and much more.
Tweaking the custom modes extends beyond CTF, everything can be tweaked and changed for just about everything in a custom game. It all sounds rather good.
Blizzard appears to be giving Overwatch players the tools to come up with modes that work and they will be watching carefully to see what is popular. In the future, Blizzard may take some of the ideas for official modes. After all, Blizzard are the masters of taking an idea and iterating on it to make it even better.
All of this is live now on the PTR which comes with changes to Bastion, D.Va, Mercy and more. Check the notes for all the changes.
