Overwatch Winter Holiday Event Leaks
By Dalton Cooper 12 December 2016
Datamining efforts leak potential details about Overwatch‘s upcoming winter event, which reportedly includes a new map, game mode, and customization options.
It’s no secret that Blizzard is going to run a winter event in Overwatch, which is expected to kick off later today, but what is a secret is exactly what the event will entail. Blizzard is expected to release a new trailer any minute now to start the event, but in the meantime, fans have been datamining Overwatch for clues, potentially leaking details about it.
As revealed by Reddit datamining efforts, the winter event in Overwatch will reportedly be called Winter Wonderland. As teased by Blizzard, the event will likely add snow to existing maps, but beyond that, datamining has also suggested that the Winter Wonderland event will add a new map, new game mode, new customization options, and new character interactions.
Just because datamining suggests these things, though, it doesn’t mean that they will definitely be in the event. Fans can count on the character interactions and customization options like new skins to be a lock for Winter Wonderland, but more substantial content may not necessarily come with today’s update.
For example, the only new map that Blizzard has been testing is Oasis, whose palm trees don’t really fit in with the Winter Wonderland theme. And it wasn’t that long ago that Blizzard added the Ecopoint: Antarctica map for the 3v3 Elimination Mode, which is covered in ice and snow, and is a better fit for the Winter Wonderland theme. So even though datamining suggests the possibility that Oasis will make its debut today, it seems unlikely.
While fans may not necessarily be able to look forward to a new map with today’s update, a new game mode is a more likely possibility. After all, Overwatch‘s Halloween event had its own game mode, Junkenstein’s Revenge, as did the Olympic event this past summer in the form of Lucio Ball. While it’s hard to say exactly what game mode Winter Wonderland will add to Overwatch, one has to imagine that it will be holiday themed.
There’s one other addition to the game that fans may be able to look forward to when the Winter Wonderland update hits Overwatch today. One of the game’s support characters, Symmetra, is getting a significant buff that is currently being tested. The buff is designed to make Symmetra a more useful character for Attack matches, whereas she was previously only useful during Defend matches. The datamining doesn’t suggest that Symmetra’s overhaul is coming in the Winter Wonderland update, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t possible, especially since the buff has been tested for weeks.
Whatever the Winter Wonderland event will include, fans at least won’t have to wait long to find out. All signs point to Winter Wonderland coming to Overwatch later today, and Blizzard is expected to release a trailer announcing that fact to the masses soon enough.
Overwatch is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
