Overwatch is going through a 90s-Marvel phase, and why turning OW into a "multimedia IP" is necessary

GregorGizeh, 10 months ago

They might be able to turn it around with customer oriented decisions, but truthfully the whole ow2 launch and even its existence is solely a front to remove the old, in comparison almost fair lootbox based shop and economy system established in ow1 in favor of the even more predatory current one. They dropped all pretense making this happen, even cutting the promised pve campaigns that were initially their big argument why they would need to make ow2 instead of adding content to ow1.

Could the game be saved? Yes. Is the corporation interested in that? No. All they want is milking the cash cow for the least amount of investment possible.

loobkoob, 10 months ago

Blizzard's cinematics have always been top-notch (even at times where their games have been poor). But while I think they've always been good for cinematics, I think a mini-series needs more depth than what Blizzard tends to achieve in their cutscenes. Although perhaps I'm not the target audience anyway - I tend to find that sort of thing usually feels a little hollow due to its short runtime. But I wouldn't be at all surprised if it turns out to be great at what it's trying to be, even if it's not something that appeals to me personally.

As for Overwatch needing to go down the Marvel route... I don't think it necessarily needs to become a multimedia franchise, but I do agree that the IP has a lot of potential and I think it needs something. I get the impression that people feel a little "over" Overwatch as a game but, as you say, it's got a fantastic cast of characters, some wonderful, vibrant art, and the game hints at enough depth to the world that I'm sure some people would be interested in checking out a different Overwatch game/an animated series/whatever based on the strength of those things alone. There's a reason people were looking forward to a PvE Overwatch game in Overwatch 2, after all.

That said, I don't think Overwatch's cast of characters or its world are strong enough for it to cruise by without whatever else they feature in being high-quality. People will watch a bad Spider-Man film because Spider-Man is in it, but I don't think people will play a bad Overwatch game or watch a bad Overwatch anime just because Tracer (or whoever) is in it. It's an IP that has the potential for more, and if something's well-made then I'm sure people will be happy to check it out because they're familiar with Overwatch already, but I don't think it has the brand power to sell mediocre products.

nega5, 10 months ago

the last paragraph is true, but tbf Mercy and D.va have enough popularity that people would love a mediocre Mercy movie lol. everyone hated all the skins in OW2 price-wise but Mercy swimsuit one made everyone gush. D.va is so popular she pioneered the e-girl aesthetic in the fashion scene.

I mean, you may immediately think about the "rule 34 scene" lol but Winston, Hammond, Reaper, Moira and Zenyatta are quite iconic. Nowhere near as iconic as spiderman lol but could it get there? maybe?

loobkoob, 10 months ago

That's true, I somehow forgot about all of the D.va obsessions people have! Her popularity has definitely transcended the game itself in some ways.

I think a lot of it depends on how Blizzard decides to flesh out the characters and world going forwards. Marvel characters tend to have a decent amount of nuance and depth to them, and the film versions, especially, have been humanised really well. People connect with the characters on a human level - they empathise, they want know more about them, they care for them. Whereas Overwatch characters, for now at least, are pretty one-dimensional. They have great aesthetics and well-defined character traits but they don't have the depth to them that I think is necessary for long-term engagement and a multimedia IP.

If Blizzard can flesh them out in ways that keep people invested, there's definitely room for Overwatch to grow more!