“You’ll be able to draft any hero you’d like, even if the enemy team has already selected them.”
Overwatch 2 has disabled the mirror restrictions in its Stadium Draft mode. According to game director Aaron Keller, this means folks can draft any hero they would like to play even if the enemy team has already selected them.
Overwatch 2 Stadium Draft disables mirror hero restrictions
On Aug. 28, a couple of days after Overwatch 2 Season 18 launched with its new Stadium updates, Keller announced the removal of the mirrored hero restriction in Stadium Draft mode. This change means players can draft any hero they wish despite the hero picks from the enemy team.
Keller also thanked players for trying out the feature and sharing their feedback. In the X thread, he added that his team's goal is to make Overwatch 2 a game that folks want to play. Achieving this involves listening and responding to their input.
"The team is still invested in creating new and unique features for Overwatch," Keller wrote on X. "While we are listening, we still love to surprise and delight. Sometimes, that means releasing an amazing new experience for the game, like Stadium."
He continued, "But it also introduces risk and means not everything is just right each time. That doesn’t mean we’ll stop trying to innovate, but that we’ll adapt and iterate as [quickly] as we can when something doesn’t land the way we want."
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Stadium Draft in Overwatch 2 Season 18
Prior to the Aug. 28 post, an Overwatch 2 announcement went over how the Stadium Draft mode would let teams undergo a randomized snake draft cycle. The announcement, made on Aug. 25, also noted that mirror matchups wouldn’t be allowed and promised to monitor the feature closely.
"Mirror matchups won’t be allowed, so keep that in mind when you’re strategizing," the announcement stated. "This should improve the variance of Stadium Competitive matches and reduce the likelihood of static metas. We’ll also be keeping a close eye on this feature to see how it pans out. Let us know what you think!"
With the Aug. 28 update, the Overwatch 2 team indeed listened to feedback. Folks within the community praised the team for being open and responsive.
"Appreciate what the team were trying to achieve here, but thanks for being so open and responsive to the feedback," OWCavalry wrote on X. Many other players also thanked Keller for the update and called it a win.
That's all for now. Stick around on esports.gg for the latest Overwatch 2 news and updates.
