The Overwatch Summer Games 2019 started early - here are the new skins and weekly challenges

As Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan teased in a recent developer update - which also confirmed that the next hero will be slightly delayed - the hero shooter's latest Summer Games event has arrived a bit ahead of scheduled. The Overwatch Summer Games 2019 are now underway, bringing another round of Lucioball - think Rocket League but as a hero shooter - and a new wave of skins. 

In addition to all the skins from previous years, seven new Summer Games skins are available this time around - four Legendary and three Epic. Here's how they look: 

You can get the Legendary skins from Summer Games loot boxes opened during the event, but the Epic skins can only be obtained by winning games in quick play, competitive play, or the arcade in order to complete rotating weekly challenges. These challenges and rewards will only be available during their respective weeks. Here's the full challenge schedule: 

Week one: July 16 - 22 

  • Win three games - Shark Attack spray
  • Win six games - Punchimari icon
  • Win nine games - American Reaper skin 

Week two: July 23 - 29 

  • Win three games - Snorkeling spray
  • Win six games - Tennismari icon
  • Win nine games - Zhongguo Mei skin

Week three: July 30 - August 5 

  • Win three games - Sand Castle spray
  • Win six games - Footballmari icon
  • Win nine games - Bundesadler Reinhardt skin 

If you're looking for more challenges to face this summer, you can always try your hand at Copa Lucioball, a competitive version of the mode. It's got skill ratings and leaderboards, so if the normal Overwatch comp grind isn't enough for you - that is to say, you're inhuman - you can always try your hand at competitive ball-booping. 

Here's everything you need to know about the San Diego Comic Con 2019 schedule.  

Austin Wood

Austin freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree, and he's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize that his position as a senior writer is just a cover up for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a focus on news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.