Comparisons between Overwatch 2 and Marvel Rivals have been inescapable since the latter came out, probably because they're the only two hero shooters with any kind of staying power, but OW2 game director Aaron Keller is welcoming the new competition.
Earlier this year, Blizzard Entertainment made some pretty drastic changes to the Overwatch 2 formula with upgradeable perks and a massive, third-person Stadium mode that inevitably sparked more OW2 vs Marvel Rivals discourse online.
But speaking to streamer Jay3, Aaron Keller says this year's sweeping new features weren't a response to Marvel Rivals at all. In fact, some of them had been in production well in advance.
"I think that competition is healthy," Keller said on stream. "It does force people to innovate more and to always be putting your best foot forward, but I don't think what you're seeing in Overwatch 2 right now is a response to Marvel Rivals. So much of what we were doing this year - from perks to stadium to map voting, we did full hero bans - so much of what we're doing here and all the heroes we're releasing has been in the works for over a year as part of a new strategy for the game to have a big annual kick off to the year."
Keller previously spoke about how Stadium was first pitched before Overwatch 2 was even out by his own son no less, and when you think about it, a few months is definitely not enough time to build, test, and release a mode that beefed up.
Still, Keller doesn't rule out the possibility that Overwatch 2 might react to Marvel Rivals in the future. "It could be that as we start getting further and further, maybe people will see bigger and bigger things in order for us to be competing," he added.
