Blizzard has stated that a permanent ban, which had been administered to an Overwatch 2 player for saying the word "noob" in-game, had been overturned following backlash from fans. After Overwatch 2 made light of the situation on social media, players continued to criticize Blizzard for the ban.

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The move came just days after Overwatch 2 kicked off Season 18, which was highlighted by the introduction of Wuyang as a Support hero. Overwatch 2's latest content update also made changes to the perks that each hero can utilize during a match, including additional damage for heroes like Genji and crowd control effects for characters like Doomfist. Keyboard and mouse support is now available for Overwatch 2 console players to utilize.

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Overwatch 2 Apologizes For 'Noob' Ban

Amid a busy week that saw Overwatch 2 back off on the removal of mirror matches in Stadium mode, Blizzard also walked back a controversial ban. As reported by Dexerto, a now-deleted post by a Reddit user named Content_Tadpole2299 claimed that they had been permanently banned from Overwatch 2 for typing the word "noob" during a match, prompting criticism from fans who decried the move as an overreaction by Blizzard. As of August 29, Blizzard has reversed course on its controversial ban and stated that players can now use the word noob in-game again without consequences. Although Blizzard made light of the situation with a Twitter post, not all fans were amused by the initial decision. In response, some Overwatch players additionally called on Blizzard to provide a list of words that would justify a penalty in the game's text and voice chats.

By comparison, Overwatch 2's main competitor, Marvel Rivals, has taken steps to combat toxic behavior in both text and voice chats via similar automated methods. However, Marvel Rivals developer Netease Games assured fans that all reports taken by its automated systems would be subject to human review to avoid punishing any false positive results.

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Only time will tell if Overwatch 2 will make adjustments to its systems following the "noob" controversy.

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6 /10

Overwatch 2
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Top Critic Avg: 77 /100 Critics Rec: 65%
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Released
August 10, 2023
ESRB
T For Teen // Blood, Mild Language, Use of Tobacco, Violence
Developer(s)
Blizzard
Publisher(s)
Blizzard
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DIGITAL
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Proprietary Engine
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Shooter