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The most interesting things happening in Overwatch for the moment was not built by Blizzard. Two weeks ago, the developer released a new tool called Workshop, in which players can use a rudimentary scripting language to design their own software. Overwatch Games. Its availability is limited. currently, you can only use it on your PC and it is only available in the public domain of the game's test. Nevertheless, the fans have sided vigorously – and the Workshop could very well be an essential element of the future of the game
Some of the first creations show an incredible level of ingenuity. There is a mode where you can race with the Hammond mechanical hamster ball, and another where a group of spies must sneak the locations of a team of powerful mercenaries. An air combat mode allows you to fly as a Bastion. Other players' creations are smaller, but no less useful; a user has created a radial menu to quickly choose a new hero. There is even a Flappy Bird clone. "There were certainly a lot of things our users did that I did not even know you could do it in the beginning, "says Dan Reed, a gameplay designer experienced on Overwatch.
The idea of the workshop began about two years ago. Reed and Keith Miron, chief gameplay game engineer, talked about the improvement OverwatchThe fairly limited custom game mode allows players to create new things. In 2017, Blizzard staff had two free days to work on the project of their choice and Reed and Miron decided to see what they could build. Their goal was to create a tool that simplifies the scripting language Overwatch the developers use it, so even people without programming skills can do things.
They managed to make it work and after two days they created a playable game mode that they showed the rest of the team. Even Jeff Kaplan, OverwatchDirector and Senior Designer, has expressed interest in the project. But they struggled to find time to devote themselves to this idea, which was put on the shelves until 2018, by which time they had two extra days to work on personal projects. They managed to clean up the system a bit and created some custom games, including a zombie mode and another where one of the players is Roadhog, and if you kill him, you become him. "After that, we started working very seriously," says Miron.
Miron says the project was mainly community driven. the Overwatch The team often receives comments asking for specific new game modes, but it can create a limited number. "The players have all these good ideas for what they want to see in OverwatchSaid Miron. "And I think a lot of the motivation for us was to give them a way to materialize those ideas."
The first signs are encouraging. According to Blizzard, 2.7 million games have been created so far and creators have shared more than 60,000 game codes, letting others play with what they've built. Since its launch, the mode has experienced a steady stream of small updates, focused primarily on stability and ease of use. However, the goal is to start taking into account user feedback to actually add new features to the shop floor. "We are trying to find ways to add tools that will benefit a lot of people," said Miron. "To be honest, there are so many returns that we will need to step back and really identify the best thing to work on."
the Overwatch The workshop is clearly still in an early state; it has just been launched and most users, especially on console, can not even access it. But it will almost certainly be an important part of OverwatchThe future. While the game regularly receives new characters and new cards, a true creative mode could help maintain the relevance of the game for a long time, offering players a constant stream of tasks to perform. That's a big part of why MinecraftContinuous success, and it's something Fortnite tries to replicate with his creative mode. The early launch of Workshop is a promising start, and more features, including custom maps and the ability to import works of art, could contribute to making it a much bigger phenomenon.
The team is not yet ready to discuss the main features of this workshop. For now, their goal is to make sure the existing version is working properly and to prepare for the eventual public launch. But that does not mean they do not have big plans. "It was one of the biggest motives, to be honest, to do something Overwatch it can be something we support in the future, "says Miron.
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