![]() Blizzard’s most controversial tactic: loot boxes.At $40, Overwatch still sold tens of millions of copies Blizzard has never disclosed the exact amount, though it counted a lifetime total of 60 million players last year. Blizzard’s most traditional tactic, though it probably seemed like the smarter business move at the time, was slapping a price tag on Overwatch.Loot boxes were also rampant, damaging the relationship between developers and players. Fortnite hadn’t yet launched, and the idea of distributing free-to-play games on console still felt like a risky maneuver for even the most beloved of game studios. In 2016, the video game industry looked drastically different. Overwatch has always had one foot in the past. Now, six years and a long-awaited pivot to free-to-play later, we’re starting to see why Overwatch needed a reboot of everything from its business model to its platform distribution strategy, and how that speaks to the changing economics of video games. It’s always been a bit of a mystery, then, why Blizzard felt it needed a sequel when it could have simply adopted the strategy of more forward-looking contemporaries like Riot Games and updated Overwatch in perpetuity. ![]() The game combined the tight, coordinated team play featured in the fast-growing MOBA genre with classic shooter mechanics, bundling the package with excellent art direction, Pixar-quality character design and an esports-ready level of competitive depth. ![]() When Blizzard Entertainment’s hero shooter Overwatch launched in 2016, it was a revelation.
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