A new "Director's Take" blog discusses the upcoming playtests for two possible 6v6 modes in Overwatch 2 that'll be tested in the client.
While it was discussed previously that 6v6 gameplay may return to Overwatch 2 in the future, it seems like the devs are still wondering what that means for the game. This post emphasizes that the upcoming playtests’ feedback and results will determine exactly what that looks like in the long term once Season 14 wraps up.
The first 6v6 format to be tested will be an Open Queue with a format tentatively called “Min 1, Max 3.” Each team will require at least one respectively of each role of healer, tank and damage, with a maximum of three, and players are free to swap out roles and characters mid-game so long as those requirements are maintained.
“Besides experimenting with a format that could be seen as a middle ground to Role Queue and Open Queue, this will also give us a look at how Overwatch 2 heroes, abilities, and updates work in a 6v6 environment before we expand to other types of tests,” the post explains.
During the mid-cycle tests, the more classic 2-2-2 playstyle will return while incorporating both the quirks of Overwatch 2 and some mode-specific tweaks that’ll make it viable alongside those quirks.
Throughout Season 13, they’ll also be testing a “Limit 2” 5v5 mode with similar philosophies to the “Min 1, Max 3” mode. The mid-season update will then bring a “Kingmaker” mode, which has Limit 2 requirements with the addition of boosts for the one “lone” role.
All of the tested modes will have their own "cards" to access within the Overwatch 2 client. While these will probably have a lot of eyes on them, the team assures that these tests will not take the place of seasonal events such as the ongoing Halloween event, nor of Quick Play: Hacked.