Overwatch 2's 6v6 modes will return in two test modes next season. Blizzard, however, won't keep these modes around if 'a surge' of players doesn't show up.

Since the sequel chose the 5v5 format, a good chunk of Overwatch 2 gamers have been ranting about the old 6v6 days. The players are so passionate about this topic that they made Blizzard back down and announce the upcoming 6v6 test, which we know more about.

Aaron Keller, the game director, announced today that there will be two different 6v6 tests in Overwatch 2 season 14, the next season. The first test will be a variant of the Open Queue ruleset where each team of 6 must have at least 1 of each role, and no more than 3. You can create a team with three tanks, one DPS and two supports.

The next 6v6 will be held in mid-season 14. It will require the original 2-2-2 team structure (two tanks and two healers with two damage dealers), while still retaining Overwatch 2 changes such as reduced crowd control and reworked Heroes. In both cases, tanks will not be as powerful as they are now. Keller says that "the power and survivability will go down in 6v6 formats and we'll look at whether we still need many of our passives added in Overwatch 2".

Keller says that Season 13 will see new modes, but they will be 5v5 and aimed at "testing flexibility within this format." A new Quick Play event named "Limit 2" will be similar to Open Queue except that the maximum number of players in each role will only be two. Keller says that Tanks will have less health because they'll be tuned for Open Queue balance. You can freely change heroes and roles, as long as there aren't two players in the new role.

The next 5v5 game is called "Kingmaker", and it will be similar to "Limit 2", except that this time the role with only one player will receive some bonuses. Keller says that "QuickPlay: Hacked", "Limit 2," and "Kingmaker", will provide us with a benchmark and framework going into the 6v6 test," Keller says. We're excited to see what statistics we can collect as you dive into these mode, along with your feedback, which is our strongest data point!

Keller explains that "part of this series is not only to judge our players' appetite for larger teams, but also to explore different ways we might implement a new change without running into problems we had before." Keller had previously stated in his first 6v6 post that the format was negatively affecting queue times. Tanks are a rare role, so it is difficult to fill. DPS and Support players will have long wait times for matches because there are fewer players.

It will be interesting if these tests fall in the same traps or even if it negatively affects queue times for Role and Open Quotas, since this will effectively split the players' base in half. It's important to remember that Blizzard is experimenting on you when these tests take place. You could be a guinea-pig.

Keller says that if a large number of players are playing this mode, it is a sign we should do more. "I think that the'more' will depend on how excited you are. Is it possible to have both 5v5 and a 6v6 world in Overwatch 2 permanently? If you asked me a couple of months ago, I'd have said no. We've talked about Overwatch 2's potential in terms of creating the game our players want to enjoy. We know that players may want more than one type of experience. This is something we would need to take into consideration moving forward.

Try out different modes to form an opinion. Once you have made a decision, let others know by spreading the news or playing more of the mode you like. Blizzard is likely to make an informed choice based on player counts, popularity and other internal analytics for balance and player behavior.

I'm looking forward to seeing what these tests are like. However, it will mean digging up my team's sixth member and second tank, who were sent into exile in 2022. Overwatch 2 is limited to a certain number of different versions running at once. I was hoping Junkenstein's Lab, the PvE version that we were most likely to experience in the future, would stay.

I would love to see the 6v6 test results to determine if the tests are genuinely beneficial to the community. However, I am not convinced that there are enough players who want 6v6 to make this a worthwhile endeavor. I could be living under a rock, but in the last two years, it has increasingly felt like 6v6 discourse is a way for everyone to vent their frustrations at Overwatch 2's failures and disappointments.

Overwatch 2 was released and it seemed like there were too many things to be angry about. Players were upset with the increased shop prices, the lack of loot boxes, new battle passes, no PvE and 5v5 to name a couple. The players were on so many different crusades, that they didn't achieve anything. They settled for the new reality in Overwatch 2 except for the debate about 6v6 and 5v5.
This is the most common complaint when players are asked about what's wrong with Overwatch 2. It's a simple thing that people can rally around. It will be interesting to see if the community is willing to play the 6v6 test and if it is something they want.