“We know how much players care about their favorite heroes, and we want the game and other players to recognize the effort you put into mastering them.”
Overwatch 2 has announced Hero Progression 2.0, which is a system that lets you show off your dedication to their favorite heroes. Read on for our quick guide on how Overwatch 2's Hero Progression 2.0 system works!
Overwatch 2 Hero Progression 2.0 introduces Ascended borders
In Overwatch 2 Season 18, the Hero Progression 2.0 system allows you to earn shiny portrait borders for your favorite characters at hero levels 20, 50, and 60. These borders frame your hero portrait on hero select and the kill cam to start, according to lead systems designer Patrick Dietz.
If you're a competitive Overwatch 2 player, then your opponents cannot see your portrait border until well after a match kicks off. "Enemy teams will not be able to see your full player cards until after you’ve eliminated them or they eliminate you. Player cards will be shown on the side of the kill cam, but it’ll be a toggleable option if that isn’t your thing," Blizzard Entertainment explained.
Meanwhile, your teammates can see your full player card during hero select. As for streamers, they can shield their player cards after completing the Tenacious Hero challenge. This challenge requires winning 750 matches in Overwatch 2.
"A streamer’s most-played heroes will be hidden from view, but their Ascended border will still be visible to everyone," Blizzard Entertainment added. "Our goal is to help streamers and content creators avoid being pigeonholed into hero picks."
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Overwatch 2 hero rewards
Under this new system, each hero has an upgraded rewards track with specific cosmetics and loot boxes as well. What's great about Hero Progression 2.0 is that if you already love a certain hero and have gained many levels on them, then Overwatch 2 Season 18 does not reset your progress. Rather, all of your hero levels get carried over.
"If you were level 20 on any hero right now, you will have the first new border on Day 1," Dietz said in the developer update on Aug. 22. "And if you're starting out a new hero, like our buddy Wuyang there, it should take you roughly 20 hours to hit hero level 20."
A post by Blizzard Entertainment explained this further, revealing that if you're a Baptiste fan who's already at level 50, for example, then you'll get all of the rewards such as the portrait borders, badges, cosmetics, and loot boxes up to level 50 right away.
Overwatch 2 badges explained
The new Hero Progression 2.0 system also lets you earn badges between portrait borders. For example, the screenshot below indicates that you can earn a green badge between hero level 20 and 40.
Additionally, to make everything easier to navigate, the system lets you equip hero-specific items such as name cards or titles with a single click. This means you won't have to head over to the "Customization" tab and search through all of your other items to find and equip the newest one.
That's all for now. Are you excited about Overwatch 2 Season 18 and Hero Progression 2.0? Stick around on esports.gg for more news and updates!
