Blizzard's Overwatch has the sort of unique look, feel, and style that not only stands out but feels very specific to the universe. From the characters to the locations, it all feels alive yet you might need a reminder that the maps don't actually feature any variation when it comes to the time of day or weather. That's all set to change with Overwatch 2.


The info arrives as a part of a new (and technical) Environment States in Overwatch 2 post from the engineering team working on the highly anticipated sequel.

"With this new system, we have managed to split all the major components of lighting, sound, and effects into self-contained assets that can be combined like building blocks to create what we call Environment Scenarios," writes lighting artist Fabien. "We can share them across maps, and we can also have multiple Scenarios on each map."

How it all works is apparently intuitive and baked into the development tools, where Environment States can be tested and played with -- like a sandstorm in a classic locale as seen here.



"We can prototype new lighting for our maps within a few hours," adds Fabien. "Being able to iterate quickly allows us to experiment more, be more creative, and produce more variety for all our maps. Environment States can also be mixed dynamically to develop new and exciting gameplay opportunities. Imagine that you are sent on a mission to Necropolis to restore the connection to an Overwatch satellite link, and while defending against a Null Sector attack, a sandstorm quickly approaches the location and rises all around you! We can make your mission a bit more challenging by adding a new sandstorm Environment State on top of the Sunny Scenario, which will slowly increase cloud coverage and sand effect density."

This then extends to thunderstorms, snowfall and other scenarios -- which sounds very cool for the PvE side of Overwatch 2 and adding variety to missions and locations. Also Seasonal Events could become, well, seasonal - Christmas Maps!