Overwatch 2is coming, and sooner than expected, too. Blizzard announced recently that it wanted to getOverwatch 2in players' hands as soon as possible, confirming that private testing with pro players and Blizzard employees would commence soon. Fans ofOverwatchwere left wondering how soon Blizzard really meant, but they may now have an answer. During a recent broadcast, Twitch streamer xQc went to playOverwatchand “accidentally” opened up the private test server forOverwatch 2instead.
xQc was having a relatively normal stream when he decided that he was going to shift to playing someOverwatch. He then quickly pulled up theBattle.net client, which already hadOverwatch’s profile selected, and clicked the big blue “Play” button. What xQc didn’t notice is that he still hadOverwatch’s “Game Version” set to “Test Server.” Naturally, the loading screen that popped up was not for the base version ofOverwatch, but rather the ongoing NDA’s alpha test for the upcoming release ofOverwatch 2.
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Fortunately for xQc, there was nothing particularly revealing about what he accidentally showed on-stream. The loading screen for theOverwatch 2alpha testdoesn’t even feature anOverwatch 2logo, and he closed the game out before it finished loading up the game. Obviously, showing any portion of an NDA’d alpha test, a test that participants aren’t supposed to even acknowledge exists, risks a quick punishment. xQc even jokingly says that he’s “going to jail.” But in this case, Blizzard will probably place its palm on its forehead, sigh deeply, and laugh it off.
Saying that, it’s not impossible that Blizzard takes a hard stance and decides to revoke xQc’s access toOverwatch 2’s ongoing private alpha. It’s unlikely, given that it’s not a severe breach of NDA, as well as the fact thatxQc is such a popular content creator. A breach of NDA is still a breach, however, and Blizzard may feel obligated.
xQc is known to have chaotic streams, just by nature of his personality. That he would accidentally openOverwatch 2is on-brand for xQc and entirely unsurprising. That said, xQc is also wily in many regards. It wouldn’t be beyond him to open it intentionally, just as a joke, and to play it off as an accident.
Removed from xQc, the leak is interesting on its own. While theOverwatch 2alpha test has been known due to other leaks, the xQc leak confirms some details about the test’s scope. Namely, thatBlizzardis already inviting non-pro content creators to try the game out. That’s a much broader player base than may have been hinted at before, and could meanOverwatch 2will jump into a public closed beta sooner than expected. If feedback indicatesOverwatch 2is in a good place, of course.
Overwatch 2is in development for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
