Next PS4 Overwatch Update: Eichenwalde, Competitive Season 2

Update:

Blizzard has confirmed that the update is live on PS4. Reportedly a 1GB download, you can see the patch notes below.

Original Story:

Released yesterday on PC and Xbox One, and coming “very soon” to PlayStation 4, the latest Overwatch update includes Competitive Play Season 2, the Eichenwalde map, and more. Here’s the patch notes for the new update on PC/XB1, with Blizzard noting that “many of these changes” will be implemented on PS4:

Patch Highlights

Competitive Play Season 2

We’ve made some big changes to Competitive Play in Season 2. The most noticeable change is the introduction of skill tiers, which we hope will better communicate players’ relative skill levels. Competitive Play will put a greater emphasis on skill tiers over specific ratings, and as such, a player’s tier will be more prominently displayed throughout the game. We’ve also switched the skill rating system to a 1-5000 scale to give players more detailed information about how each match affects their specific rating.

Sudden Death is also going away in Season 2. Instead, matches that are tied when the clock runs out end in a draw—though, it should be a rare occurrence. Because of this, we’ve made some changes to our game modes in Competitive Play to help reduce the chance that a draw can happen.

We’ve also made a few minor adjustments to leaver penalties, the top 500 system, and the competitive point system. Read on below to learn more!

New Assault/Escort Map: Eichenwalde

The forest has slowly begun overtaking the abandoned village of Eichenwalde, but the scars will never completely fade. During the Omnic Crisis, Eichenwalde was the site of a key battle. General Balderich von Adler took a handful of crusaders to the village in an effort to outflank the omnic army. Balderich’s soldiers were able to break down the enemy forces, giving the German military an opportunity to push back, but the Crusaders didn’t make it out of the battle. General Balderich finally collapsed in the castle’s great hall.

General Updates

General

When activating the “Ultimate Status” communication, Symmetra now reports the number of charges left on her teleporter

When activating the “Needs healing” communication while targeting a teammate, Ana, Lúcio, Mercy, and Zenyatta will now tell allies to group up to receive healing. A marker will also appear above the player’s head, allowing teammates to locate the healer more quickly

Added Torbjörn as an AI-controlled hero in Practice vs. AI, Play vs. AI, and Custom Game modes

Sit and laugh emotes are now unlockable for all heroes

New Legendary skins have been added for Reinhardt

Competitive Play

Skill rating is now measured on a 1-5000 scale instead of the former 1-100 scale

Skill Rating Tiers

Players will now be assigned to a tier, depending on their skill rating:

Bronze – 1-1499

Silver – 1500-1999

Gold – 2000-2499

Platinum – 2500-2999

Diamond – 3000-3499

Master – 3500-3999

Grandmaster – 4000-5000

In Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond tiers, a player will not drop out of their tier even if their skill rating falls below the cutoff

In Master and Grandmaster tiers, a player whose skill rating falls below the tier’s minimum will be moved to a lower tier

Players that have reached the Master and Grandmaster tiers must be within 500 Skill Rating of their groupmates

Players that are Diamond-tier and below must be within 1000 Skill Rating of their groupmates

Skill Rating Decay

Players in Diamond, Master, and Grandmaster tiers that haven’t participated in a competitive match for 7 days will lose skill rating

Players with a skill rating above 3000 (Diamond tier or higher) will lose 50 rating points every 24 hours, but their rating will not fall below 3000

Competing in a single match will halt skill rating decay

Players that haven’t participated in a competitive match for 7 days will immediately drop out of the top 500

Map Changes

Several refinements have been made to the time bank system for Hanamura, Temple of Anubis, and Volskaya Industries

The time bank system has been added to Dorado, Hollywood, King’s Row, Numbani, Route 66, and Watchpoint: Gibraltar

Time granted for taking objectives on Dorado, Hanamura, Hollywood, King’s Row, Numbani, Route 66, Temple of Anubis, Volskaya Industries, and Watchpoint: Gibraltar has been reduced from 5 minutes to 4

Competitive Points

Existing competitive points saved from Season 1 will be multiplied by 10

After winning a competitive match, players will now receive 10 competitive points (instead of 1)

Players will now receive 3 competitive points for a draw

The cost of golden weapons has also been multiplied by 10 – from 300 to 3000

A soft cap is being placed on the number of competitive points that can be saved: Players with more than 6000 points at the start of season 2 will no longer accrue points by playing competitive matches; End-of-season rewards will still be granted to players at the soft cap

Instead of going into Sudden Death, tied competitive matches will now result in a draw

Players must now win at least 50 competitive matches to be eligible for a spot in the top 500

Players must now complete more matches to clear their penalty status for leaving a competitive match early

Hero Balance Updates

General

Ultimates that consume the ultimate meter when activated will now drain the meter more quickly (.25 second instead of 1 second)

Reverted a recent change that reduced the size of heroes’ projectiles

Most hero abilities will no longer interrupt quick melee attacks

Ultimate abilities will now interrupt quick melee attacks

User Interface Updates

General

A new “Allied Health Bars” option has been added (Options > Controls)

Contextual menus have been added on the hero selection screen, giving players the ability to report or group up with other players

Matchmaking UI is now purple in the Competitive Play queue

Made several minor adjustments to typography in the Spectator UI

You can see the remaining hero updates and bug fixes by heading over here.

Users on Reddit are also reporting that the console aim assist issue has been fixed.

If you’ve yet to play Overwatch, don’t forget that a free weekend kicks off on September 9.

[Source: Play Overwatch (1), (2), (3), (4), Reddit]

Essential Reading:

10 Games That Are Scary For the Wrong Reasons

10 Games That Are Scary for the Wrong Reasons
Aliens: Colonial Marines

Gearbox was too busy using SEGA's funds on Borderlands 2 to make a solid game in Aliens: Colonial Marines. This train wreck of a game is filled with glitches, poor artificial intelligence, and the terrifying revelation that you spent your money on this garbage.
Assassin's Creed Unity

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Bubsy 3D

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The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct

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Duke Nukem Forever

Duke Nukem Forever was like the time that you realized that your uncle, who you thought was totally cool when you were 12, never grew up, and was actually lame. Both the characters, and the gameplay, found in Duke Nukem Forever should've stayed in the 90s. Some memories are best kept repressed.
Leisure Suit Larry: Box Office Bust

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Ride to Hell: Retribution

Oh, Ride to Hell: Retribution. The Deep Silver published action game is in some ways an avant-garde classic. Few publishers try something as risky as releasing a game that is completely broken, after all. If you do attempt to play through this game, you can look forward to some pretty spectacular jump scares. All of which find you falling through the world as the graphics suddenly disappear in front of your eyes.
Sonic the Hedgehog

I still can't believe that Sega chose to turn a story that was suspiciously similar to my Sonic fan-fiction into a full video game in 2006. While the game was full of glitches, the most scary part of the game ended up being a romantic scene. The interspecies erotica between Sonic and Princess Elise shouldn't be viewed by anyone, and still gives gamers nightmares to this day.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5

The most recent release featured on the list is certainly a sad one. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5 should've been a triumphant moment, instead gamers got to see Lil' Wayne glitch in and out of levels, and other bizarre occurrences that seem straight out of Paranormal Activity.
NBA Elite 11

While all the other games on this list were poorly made, they at least saw a release. NBA Elite 11 on the other hand got cancelled AFTER the game had already been printed onto discs. The shocking cancellation was due to the disturbing glitch where the Lakers' Andrew Bynum would act as if he was crucified at mid-court. Some say that Bynum's ghost still haunts the Staples Center.