The success of such collaborations appears to have caught the attention of Blizzard who is thinking of exploring the business model now that Overwatch 2 is free-to-play. The move is a good idea if done right as it could give Overwatch 2 a sustainable source of revenue.
John Spector, vice president of Overwatch, recently expressed his interest in looking at similar brand collaborations. In an interview with Game Informer’s Alex Van Aken, Spector is caught saying good things about the recent Fortnite x Naruto collaboration, claiming that they are a good fit for Overwatch 2. Currently, the revenue for Overwatch 2 will rely heavily on selling the Premium Battle Pass as the game has moved into the free-to-play model and shied away from selling loot boxes. Overwatch 1 was previously a paid title and retailed for $39.99. The game also had an in-game store that offered loot boxes as a continued source of revenue. Overwatch has previously had crossover events albeit only with other Blizzard titles. The shooter previously had a crossover with StarCraft featuring Nova Terra and Sarah Kerrigan legendary skins. There were also collaborations with Warcraft and Diablo. With these previous partnerships as a base, it is not hard to imagine other characters appearing in the game. Fortnite’s crossovers included music celebrities, movie characters, and even sports athletes. There were even a couple of music concerts in the battle royale game. Don’t expect something over-the-top like Dragonball Z’s Son Goku and his overpowered Kamehameha anytime soon though. As with the previous collaboration with other Blizzard titles, OW2 will be looking for crossovers that would not upset the balance of the competitive shooters. Aside from character skins, Overwatch could also implement crossover maps. Overwatch 2 will be debuting the Portugal map and it wouldn’t be so much of a stretch to imagine the game having a Wakanda-themed map. Other cosmetic items such as emotes, sprays, and weapon skins could also be used for future crossovers. There is a lot of potential with Overwatch 2 and it will be exciting to see how they expand crossovers beyond Blizzard titles. For now, players will have to wait and enjoy the last days of Overwatch 1. The servers will shut down on October 2 to prepare for the transition for Overwatch 2. OW2 will be launching on October 4.
