Does Overwatch 2 need to ban the word diff from text chat?

Overwatch 2 players are getting frustrated with the word "diff" and are asking Blizzard developers to ban the phrase in chat.

Like most team-based shooters, Overwatch 2 has a lot of toxicity. Players are meant to work together in order to pull off strategies and in-game plans, which can create tension when you're not on a team with cooperative or patient people. A new phrase has become prominent in Overwatch 2 chats that has left many people feeling offended by toxic teammates: diff.

Short for difference, the word "diff" is used in Overwatch 2 to express to other players that they are underperforming in their particular role or with a specific character. The term is often used in phrases like "tank diff" or "Reinhardt diff" if their own teammate is underperforming compared to the enemy's tank. Essentially, saying "diff" to teammates is a way to criticize their performance and demand hero swaps without real communication and strategy.

Blizzard is not afraid to ban toxic phrases from text chat. Overwatch players used to write "gg ez" to mean that the other team was easy to defeat, which eventually led to developers banning it from text chat. It wouldn't be out of the question for Blizzard to remove "diff" next.

While the specific phrase "diff" is a bit new, this kind of toxic behavior is not surprising. Players have often insulted teammates by comparing them to their opponent's performance. It's often been the subject of memes and online arguments. It often leads to developers attempting to combat the behavior.

So far, Overwatch 2 developers have not addressed the increasingly popular trend of saying "diff" in Overwatch 2 text chats.