Why Overwatch 2 Stadium Mode is a good example for game development

Hello,

I have been playing Overwatch 2 Stadium mode a lot as of late. It seems to give me everything I need. It's a fun shooter and I think probably still one of the best shooters ever made up until today. The reason for this is because the strategic layer on top of the shooter elements just works perfectly with them. It seems like both were designed around each other, not just to be extra elements, but to work together and create a seemless design, where one can't be without the other.

The same feeling doesn't really come up yet, with many of the elements of Path of Exile 2.

The strategic layer of the endgame doesn't seem to interact with the ARPG elements in a way that would make them seem inseperable. Rather, it does seem like the strategic map in the endgame could as well just be removed and nothing would be lost.

In Overwatch 2 you have the hero swapping and in stadium specifically the choice of hero that defines a strategic choice you make in regards to your own setup and the setup of the enemy team. If for example I have Orisa in my team, I might pick Reaper as a damage dealer, because I maybe expect Reinhardt on the enemy team and Reaper can support Orisa very well against Reinhardt, and any other tank in that matter. Meta-Gaming decisionmaking and elements of harmony from music theory come into play here, I believe. But if they don't pick Reinhardt, quick play allows me to switch heroes immediately or, if I play stadium, I can just pick a different build, maybe instead of a tank killing build rather something that goes into their backline and tries to pick off their own damage dealers or something else entirely.

The strategy map in the endgame of Path of Exile 2 does not affect my gameplay choices in a similar way.

Also, with Overwatch 2 Stadium mode I do have the feeling that the builds I can create are not predefined. I can pick up what I feel suits the situation best and these decisions are based on experience, rather than a predefined meta, which many people will probably tell you is the predefining factor for what to choose, as they probably also try to tell you in Path of Exile 2. But I don't think this is the case and I don't think this should be the case.

I think the cognitive challenge in these kinds of modes should be to analyse the situation as you play and base your decisions on top of that.

I have sometimes had the same feeling in Path of Exile 2, which honestly made me very excited. Sometimes I would play the game, progress and then get the feeling: "This doesn't seem to work that well, this seems to work, maybe change something here and there". It kind of felt similar to Overwatch 2 decisionmaking and I was very pleasantly surprised, because like I said, I see Overwatch 2 and the original Overwatch as some of the best designed games up until today.

I can see a future for Path of Exile 2 where you can have many different viable builds like in Overwatch 2 Stadium mode, maybe just in a way more complex system, as Path of Exile 2 apparently promises to offer, making decisions on the way while you progress through the game, analysing problems that you encounter and adapting, maybe differently every time, via cognitive challenges that try not to impose specific builds onto you through a predefined meta, but through different challenges you encounter and adapt to.

Maybe something to think about. I believe this might be incredibly hard to achieve with a game this complex, but maybe it just takes more time and effort to do.

EDIT: Also it does feel like Overwatch 2 gives each hero a feeling of "identity", maybe especially in the stadium mode, where for example as Freya I am playing a bounty hunter and even get an item choice that makes me see enemies with a high bounty through walls. It makes me have to answer the question of what "identity" I want to play this time and serves replayability of the game. This is probably the goal of any RPG, but I think Overwatch 2 did it very well, and like I said, especially in stadium mode.



In kind regards