Overwatch 1's in-game farewell consisted of just two chat messages

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See you on the other side

Overwatch final menu screen
(Image credit: Blizzard)

Overwatch 1 has officially shut down, though Blizzard did not offer much fanfare for the game's final moments.

In-game, Overwatch 1's final moments were marked by two official system messages. One said "Even the best journeys end, but a new one is right around the corner. Thank you, heroes! See you October 4th!" Another said, more succinctly, simply "see you on the other side."

The game reverted to the original Overwatch hero screen, though you'd get the bonus of a dramatic close-up of Roadhog's belly when you hit the 'play' button. Of course, any attempt to connect to the servers now simply results in a connection error.

While it's not a big send-off for a game that's been running over six years, players are still taking the opportunity to say goodbye to Overwatch and, of course, share clips of their final moments in the game.

the_last_clip_i_got_on_ow1_worth_it from r/Overwatch

Fans have been paying tribute to their memories of the original Overwatch even before it officially shut down, and that includes our own resident shooter expert Alyssa Mercante, who penned an extensive eulogy for Overwatch 1 as we prepare for the launch of Overwatch 2.

We're living in an Overwatch-free world for a bit as we count down to the Overwatch 2 launch time and, of course, there's been plenty of trepidation about the sequel. Veteran players will now have to work through the battle pass to unlock new heroes, and new players will also have to put in some time to get at the full Overwatch 2 hero list.

For more of the best FPS games to take aim at, you can follow that link.

Dustin Bailey
Dustin Bailey
Staff Writer

Dustin Bailey joined the GamesRadar team as a Staff Writer in May 2022, and is currently based in Missouri. He's been covering games (with occasional dalliances in the worlds of anime and pro wrestling) since 2015, first as a freelancer, then as a news writer at PCGamesN for nearly five years. His love for games was sparked somewhere between Metal Gear Solid 2 and Knights of the Old Republic, and these days you can usually find him splitting his entertainment time between retro gaming, the latest big action-adventure title, or a long haul in American Truck Simulator.