“We are transitioning from the Overwatch League and evolving aggressive Overwatch in a brand new path. We are grateful to everybody who made OWL attainable and stay targeted on constructing our imaginative and prescient of a revitalized esports program,” Activision Blizzard instructed GGRecon, who notes that a number of groups have already dropped out of the league. “We are excited to share particulars with you all within the close to future.”
As talked about by GamesIndustry.biz, an Activision Blizzard SEC submitting earlier this 12 months revealed the writer’s doubts concerning the longevity of Overwatch and Call of Duty leagues. “Our collaborative preparations for our skilled esports leagues […] proceed to face headwinds that are negatively impacting the operations and, doubtlessly, the longevity of the leagues underneath the present enterprise mannequin,” the submitting stated. “We proceed to work to deal with these challenges, which might lead to important prices, and such efforts could show unsuccessful.”
The Jacob Wolf Report says that talks are being held with ESL FACEIT Group, a Saudi Arabian state-owned firm, to run the 2024 Overwatch season.
For followers of the Overwatch League, this closure most likely would not come as a lot of a shock. Activision Blizzard had lofty ambitions for the eSports league when it first arrived in 2017 for the unique Overwatch, which was imagined to see city-based groups construct their very own stadiums and compete in home-and-away-style competitions much like different mainstream sports activities.
Unfortunately, it is reported that franchise beginning charges for groups had been set at $20 million (thanks, PC Gamer), and with the worldwide pandemic that got here within the following years, the in-person spectator plans Activision Blizzard initially had had been quashed. Although the league itself goes away, it seems to be like there may be nonetheless some hope for gamers seeking to proceed competing in Overwatch eSports competitions, however we’ll want to attend to see what the corporate is cooking up.
It’s been a tumultuous 12 months for Overwatch 2, which has seen a decline in its participant depend. Activision Blizzard misplaced the belief of a giant chunk of the sport’s group after it introduced that the Overwatch 2 PvE mode had been canceled, which was then adopted by the launch of story missions priced at $15.
