Overwatch 2’s premium battle pass can be had for free – if you play for 17 weeks
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Overwatch 2’s new premium battle pass can be unlocked for free, but you’ll need to dive into the game for 17 weeks to do so.
Overwatch 2’s new seasonal battle pass system launches next month and will include a free progress track and a paid premium path. Access to that premium number can be purchased for $10 – roughly £8.60 / AU$14.80 – or 1,000 Overwatch Coins (the game’s new premium currency). You can buy coins directly with real money or earn them in-game by completing weekly challenges.
However, those weekly challenges will only reward the most committed players. If you complete all 11 in a week, you will get a total of 60 coins. If you completed all the challenges, it would take you 17 weeks to collect enough coins to buy a premium battle pass without spending any money.
The game’s milestone system further rewards consistent playtime. You’ll earn 30 coins for completing four weekly challenges, an extra 20 for checking off another eight, and a final 10 coins for completing all 11 of them. You get nothing if you only complete one or two of the tasks, which encourages you to make piles of them at a time.
The long road to premium
Completing the weekly challenges seems to be a matter of time rather than skill. Most can be completed by playing Overwatch 2 and successfully winning matches. The weekly challenges we were presented with included:
- Win 10 games
- Win 10 games in the queue as All Reels
- Win 20 games in Unranked or Competitive Play
- Win 7 games in any Arcade mode
- Win 10 games with 2 different roles each in fast play or competitive play
- Deal or increase a total of 125,000 damage (total chaos does not count)
- Limit 40,000 total damage (Total Mayhem does not count)
Speaking about the weekly challenges in a recent press conference, Overwatch commercial leader and VP Jon Spector told TechRadar Gaming that the development team wanted to avoid overly detailed tasks. Players should not feel obliged to change their playstyle or use tactics that would undermine their team just to earn Overwatch Coins.
But Blizzard is confident that players will recognize the value of Overwatch 2’s new premium battle pass. It expects fans to be happy to pay for entry rather than grind for free entry.
“Our design goal and philosophy for the battle pass was [to provide] overwhelming, obvious value to players,” said Spector.
“If you go ahead and look at all the stuff you can earn, both for free and on the battle pass’s premium track, there’s no response other than ‘Oh my gosh, this stuff is all great and there’s so much of it — I can’t believe it’s all only $10.”
Overwatch 2’s battle pass system is similar to that of other live service games. Fortnite, Warzone, Destiny 2, and Fall Guys all include season passes that sell for a similar price. Most also offer ways to unlock a paid battle pass by gradually accumulating premium currency over several months.
Blizzard’s approach to Overwatch 2’s monetization system is nothing new. But fans will probably be glad it’s not as aggressive as Diablo Immortal’s, which came under fire for punishing free-to-play fans.