Activision Blizzard have announced a selection of games will be available on Steam soon, including free-to-play hero shooter Overwatch 2. The company plans on making its games “as easy as possible to access and play” going forward.
Blizzard’s Battle.net launcher is home to its most recent games on PC, but the company believes it may be a barrier of entry for many PC gamers. As a result, Blizzard will begin to release some of its games on Steam starting with Overwatch 2. A Battle.net account is still required to play the game Steam, but the new version will have access to all of Steam’s highly regarded features.
Overwatch 2 on Steam
Overwatch 2 will launch on August 10, followed by a selection of games at a later date. The new Steam version will support cross-play with the existing versions, Steam achievements, Steam friends list, and the ability to invite friends to play in-game. Blizzard plans on revealing more games coming to Steam “when the time is right.” For now, those interested in the Steam version may head to the newly launched Steam page.
“It’s our goal at Blizzard to listen to players and try to exceed their expectations in everything we do,” said Blizzard Entertainment president Mike Ybarra. “While Battle.net remains a priority for us now and into the future, we’ve heard players want the choice of Steam for a selection of our games, starting with Overwatch 2 on August 10th. We’re happy to work with Valve to make that happen.”
“Gamers and developers are both going to benefit from Overwatch 2 coming to Steam,” said Valve president Gabe Newell. “Gamers will have another platform where they can play a beloved game that utilizes the capabilities of Steam, and developers will benefit from the effects of having the talented team at Blizzard helping us evolve our supported features and functionality for Overwatch 2.”
Most recently, Microsoft was awarded the right to close the acquisition of Activision Blizzard after a legal battle with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. FTC attempted to appeal the court’s decision, but the appeal was ultimately denied. Today, Microsoft and Activision agree to extend its merger deadline from July 18 to October 18 to resolve lingering regulatory concerns.
Lastly, Overwatch 2 is available now for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Battle.net.
