Blizzard's widely beloved FPS Overwatch is about to turn two years old - so to celebrate, it's bringing back all your old favorites (and some new goodies) for its Anniversary 2018 event. Starting May 22 and running through June 11 on all platforms (that's PC, PS4, and Xbox One), you'll be able to score skins and play brawls from past seasonal events like Halloween Terror and Winter Wonderland. There's also plenty of new stuff to enjoy, including Competitive Mode for Deathmatch, a fresh Deathmatch map called Petra, and dance emotes for the three heroes who didn't exist this time last year.
You’ll have a brawl! Past brawls and cosmetics are back for Overwatch Anniversary 2018. The celebration begins May 22! pic.twitter.com/C58AFSvfOsMay 14, 2018
Once you're done replaying the above Junkrat and Roadhog dance-off in a hypnotizing loop, you can check out the full list of planned bonuses for the Anniversary event below. For anyone with Vietnam-like flashbacks to buying oodles of loot boxes only to miss out on the Legendary skin they're looking for, it's interesting to note that simply logging in will award you a Legendary Anniversary Loot Box with, you guessed it, a guaranteed Legendary item inside. Those with deeper pockets and an all-consuming need for a full skin collection can acquire an additional Legendary Anniversary Loot Box by ponying up for the 50 Loot Box bundle.
To top it all off, Overwatch will be getting a free weekend from May 25 through May 28, to woo the roughly 0.1% of people who still haven't joined the fight. Those prospective players can pick up the new Overwatch Legendary Edition for a total of 15 slick skins out of the gate. While the Anniversary 2018 event might not pack the same punch as a wave of all-new content, I'm excited to rediscover some old favorite skins from events past, and maybe purchase the ones I missed the first - and second - time around.
- 50 new items, including 8 new Legendary skins, 3 Epic skins, and new dance emotes for Doomfist, Moira, and Brigitte
- Past seasonal brawls are returning to the Arcade and will be rotated daily, including those found in Overwatch: Archives
- A new Deathmatch map, Petra.
- A new Competitive Mode for Deathmatch which will include placement matches, skill rating tiers, and leaderboards
- Players who login for the Anniversary event will receive one bonus Legendary Anniversary Loot Box, which will guarantee one Legendary item; players who purchase the 50 Loot Box Bundle will receive one bonus Legendary Anniversary Loot Box
- All previous Seasonal Event loot will be included in loot boxes during the duration of the event
- Overwatch and the Anniversary event will be playable during our Free Weekend event, which will run from May 25 through May 28
- A new version of Overwatch, Legendary Edition, will be released digitally on May 22, and will include sets of Legendary, Epic and Origin skins for a total of 15 skins with purchase
In other uplifting Overwatch news, Overwatch introduced a new type of skin with Pink Mercy - a standalone purchase that benefits charity.
