The Arcade is a play mode in Overwatch. It features a rotating variety of exclusive game modes, maps, and rulesets. Players can earn Loot Boxes by winning games, and earn the same amount of experience that is available in Quick Play.
Game Modes
1V1: Mystery Duel
Face off in a series of one on one fights. Both players use the same random hero in every round.
Rules:
- Players: 2
- Maps:
- Random Hero
- Mirrored Hero
- Unavailable heroes: Bastion, D.Va, Lúcio, Mercy, Reinhardt, Symmetra, Torbjörn, Winston and Zarya
- Victory: Defeat your opponent five times
1v1 Limited Duel
Rules:
- Players: 2
- Maps:
- Choice of 3 randomly chosen Heroes per round
- Unavailable heroes: Lúcio, Mercy
- Victory: Defeat your opponent five times
3V3: Elimination
Compete as a team of three players in a series of fights at Ecopoint: Antarctica, Castillo, Necropolis, and the Black Forest.
Rules:
- Players: 6
- Maps:
- Victory: Defeat the enemy team three times
Note: Draw rounds all give 2000 exp each.
3v3 Lockout Elimination
Rules:
- Players: 6
- Maps:
- Limitations: Heroes used in a winning round cannot be used for the rest of the match.
- Victory: Defeat the enemy team three times
6v6 Lockout Elimination
Rules:
- Players: 12
- Maps:
- Limitations: Heroes used in a winning round cannot be used for the rest of the match.
- Victory: Defeat the enemy team three times.
6V6: Mystery Heroes
Defeat the enemy team with every player using heroes that randomly change upon respawn.
Rules:
- Players: 12
- Map: Random
- Random hero
- Victory: Complete standard map objectives
6V6: No Limits
Defeat the enemy team without any limits on hero selection.
Rules:
- Players: 12
- Map: Random
- No hero selection limit
- Victory: Complete standard map objectives.
Capture the Flag
Capture the Flag is a gamemode in which there are 2 flags on each side the of the map, one flag is your team's flag and the other is the enemy team's flag.
The gamemode includes voice lines exclusive to this gamemode, a lot of unique strategies are also present in this gamemode.
- Players: 12
- Maps:
- Game Type: 2-Flag Capture the Flag
- Victory: Capture the enemy team's flag 3 times within the time limit.
Total Mayhem
Power up and embrace the chaos.
Rules:
- Players: 12
- Maps:
- 200% Health
- 150% Ultimate Gain
- 75% Faster cooldowns
- Victory: Complete standard map objectives
Low Gravity
Low Gravity comprised standard Overwatch modes with the movement gravity setting lowered to 25%. It featured all maps and was available in the Arcade for a brief period.
Deathmatch
Deathmatch is a free-for-all mode in which eight players take part in a map with the only objective being to eliminate each other. Every hero can be chosen with no hero limit applying. The player who reaches 20 points first or has the highest score when the 10-minute timer runs out will be awarded first place. Win credit is awarded to the top four players of each match. Some of the hybrid and escort maps are modified for play in Deathmatch. Chateau Guillard was also introduced, created specifically for the mode.[1]
Team Deathmatch
Team Deathmatch uses the same rules as Deathmatch but divides players into 2 teams of 4. Kills are attributed to a team's overall score. The team that reaches 30 points first or has the most points when the 10-minute timer runs out will be awarded a win. The maps Black Forest, Necropolis, and Ecopoint: Antarctica are playable in this mode.[1]
Game Browser
The Game Browser
The Game Browser allows players to create their own or find other player's Custom Games, through a list of public games.
Seasonal event brawls
During seasonal events, a special brawl is available to play in the Arcade. Starting with Junkenstein's Revenge, the seasonal brawls also feature special achievements that players can earn.
- Summer Games: Lúcioball
- Halloween Terror: Junkenstein's Revenge, Junkenstein's Revenge Endless Mode
- Winter Wonderland: Mei's Snowball Offensive, Winter Mystery (Mystery Heroes but only on the Winterized versions of King's Row and Hanamura)
- Year of the Rooster: Capture the Rooster
- Overwatch Uprising: Uprising, Uprising (all heroes)
Rewards
When a new game mode is introduced, there is a one-time Loot Box rewarded for playing and winning it.
There is a weekly reward system where players can earn a maximum of three Loot Boxes per week: one box per every three games won out of nine games total. The system resets at the same time every week, Mondays 8 PM EST, 5 PM PST.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 2017-08-10, Developer Update | Deathmatch | Overwatch. YouTube, accessed on 2017-08-11