Overwatch 2 Season 8 kicks off Tuesday, December 5 and brings some major Monster Hunter vibes with its battle pass skins, a brand new game mode, and the official release of new tank hero Mauga, who players got to spend a weekend with in November. Season 8 of Overwatch 2 also introduces new levels of customization, with all-new weapon skins.
There's a lot happening in Season 8, including the return of seasonal events Winter Wonderland 2023 and Lunar New Year 2024. These limited-time events will see the return of their respective game modes: May's Snowball Offensive, Yeti Hunt, Capture the Flag, and Bounty. Hunter Deathmatch. Overwatch 2's version of Prop Hunt, known as Mischief and Magic, also returns in Season 8, this time at Lijiang Night Market.
But before any of these limited-time game modes return, Overwatch 2 players get something new: The Battle of the Beasts, a PvPvE mode where two teams of four compete against each other And two gigantic Orisas. The Battle of the Beasts will also be an opportunity for everyone Overwatch 2 players can try Mauga for free.
Here's a sneak peek at Season 8's Call of the Hunt-themed cosmetics, for characters like Junker Queen, Wrecking Ball, Moira and Orisa, and a look at The Battle of the Beasts game mode:
Overwatch 2 players will finally be able to customize their weapons – beyond making them glittering gold – with new weapon skins. The first wave of weapon skins will be based on Hard Light, the forcefield-like technology used by Symmetra. Three characters have been confirmed to have Hard Light weapon skins: Mercy, Reaper, and Reinhardt, which you can see in the gallery below.
Season 8 of Overwatch 2 also brings new Hero Mastery courses to the game. Starting January 2, Blizzard will add courses for Lucio, Mei, D.Va, Echo, and Genji over the course of five weeks.
Blizzard is also making a number of major and minor changes to the heroes, including a substantial update to the way mid-match hero swaps function. Read on for Blizzard's patch notes for Overwatch 2December update.
Overwatch 2 Retail Patch Notes
Hero Updates
- Maximum ultimate charge retained when switching heroes reduced from 25 to 15%.
- Added hero-specific options to each character to adjust the rumble strength of each of their skills.
Fist of Doom
Meteor impact
- Now regenerates 75 health per second while in the air.
- Final costs increased by 16%.
Junker Queen
Scatter Rifle
Mauga
- Basic health reduced from 500 to 350.
- Base armor increased from 0 to 150.
- The volume of the main hits has been reduced by 15%.
Incendiary and volatile Chainguns
- The spread for firing both guns has been reduced by 15%.
- The fire rate multiplier for firing both guns has been reduced from 25% to 0%.
- Damage per shot increased from 4.5 to 5.
- The damage reduction range has been increased from 25 to 30 meters.
- The maximum ammo has been increased from 300 to 350.
- Movement speed penalty reduced from 20% to 15% per gun.
Flooded
- Can no longer be interrupted by Hack.
- Damage reduction increased from 30 to 50%.
Cardiac overdrive
- Lifesteal increased from 60 to 70%.
Berserker (passive)
- The conversion rate for overhealth increased from 40% to 50%.
Ramattra
- Basic health reduced from 300 to 200.
- Base armor increased from 0 to 100.
Invalid accelerator
- The projectile size increased from 0.075 to 0.1 meters.
- The damage increased from 4.5 to 5.
Sigma
Experimental barrier
- Regeneration rate has been reduced from 100 to 85 health per second.
Winston
Tesla cannon
- Now ignores armor damage reduction.
May
Endothermic blaster
- Maximum ammo reduced from 150 to 120.
Soldier: 76
Biotic field
- The cooldown has been increased from 15 to 18 seconds.
Sombra
EMP
- The ability lock duration has been increased from 1.5 to 3 seconds.
- Damage reduced from 30 to 25% of current health.
Torbjorn
Overloading
- Overhealth increased from 75 to 100.
Tracer
Pulse guns
- The damage increased from 5.5 to 6.
Baptiste
Biotic launcher
- Primary fire ammunition reduced from 45 to 36.
Brigitte
Whip shot
- Damage reduced from 80 to 70.
Kiriko
Healing Ofuda
- The projectile speed increased from 14 to 18 meters per second.
Protection Suzu
- The duration of invulnerability has been reduced from 0.85 to 0.65 seconds.
- Healing blast increased from 40 to 80 health.
Grace
Valkyrie
- Activating Valkyrie no longer disconnects Caduceus Staff from its target.