Recent news about Overwatch 2‘s supposed release date delay has dampened the spirits of the passionate Overwatch community, but a recent PTR leak suggesting clans could be coming to the game may just be the thing that keeps the game alive.
Overwatch players have unfortunately had to deal with many months of no content updates or patches, with work on Overwatch 2 reportedly ramping up and resources shifting away from the original title. Seasonal events and new skins have done an okay job at boosting engagement, but fans have mostly been crying out for new content and features, especially if Overwatch 2 is delayed to 2023.
The latest news suggesting the introduction of clans or guilds into Overwatch could well be exactly what the doctor ordered.
The August 12 PTR update takes a big step forward for the game in its refinement of the Custom Game Browser, allowing fans to “star” and favourite their most enjoyed custom game modes, while also listing trending and the most popular game modes created by the community.
It’s a fantastic change and one I truly hope does well and is introduced to all versions of Overwatch. What is perhaps most interesting about the latest PTR update, however, is that the “tabs” in the new browser menu say “guilds” in the Russian version of Overwatch.
The prospect of clans first surfaced during BlizzCon 2021 when the Overwatch 2 presentation appeared to inadvertently show them off. It now seems as though Blizzard is working to bring them to Overwatch.
Crafty Overwatch players noticed the term “Clan C9” appeared on the Overwatch 2 ability tree next to the player’s username. This of course is a common feature of games like Call of Duty and Battlefield but is not possible in Overwatch.
The person that posted the image to Reddit says that the appearance of Guilds seems weird in the context of the copy and translation.
“As a localization specialist myself I can say that it’s a very odd mistake,” they said. “You can’t just translate ‘browse’ as ‘guilds’ unless the client provided you with some kind of context.”
Others in the chat suggested it may be merely a “copy-paste” error and that a translator working across both games inadvertently added it to Overwatch‘s files without meaning to.
That would be a shame if that turned out to be the case, as the prospect of clans coming to Overwatch makes the game seem that little bit more appealing, especially with the prospect of another Overwatch 2 delay.
What are your thoughts? Would you like to see Overwatch get a clan-based system prior to the release of Overwatch 2? Sound off in the comments below!
