Overwatch 2 Stadium Summer Roadmap Unveiled by Blizzard

Blizzard Entertainment has unveiled its roadmap for Overwatch 2's Stadium mode through 2025, detailing the exciting additions planned for Season 17, Season 18, Season 19, and beyond. In a comprehensive Director's Take blog post, game director Aaron Keller shared insights into the mode's past, present, and future, along with a surprising summer roadmap now that Stadium has been available for just over a week.

Stadium's expansion continues as new Damage hero Freja joins the roster with a mid-season patch for Season 16. However, it's Season 17 in June that will truly elevate the experience. Heroes like Junkrat, Sigma, and Zenyatta will be added to the strategic multiplayer mode, accompanied by the new Esperança Push map and Samoa Control map.

Blizzard plans to enhance the Stadium experience further by introducing Unranked Crossplay, new all-star rewards, custom games, additional example builds, and options to save and share builds. While it's not clear if all these features will launch at the start of Season 17 or be rolled out throughout the season, the additions promise a richer gaming experience.

Season 18 will introduce Overwatch's iconic gorilla, Winston, as a playable character, alongside Sojourn and Brigitte. New maps such as Route 66 and London will be added, as well as a Payload Race game mode with two new maps. A Stadium trials feature and the ability to Endorse teammates will also be introduced.

Blizzard has committed to adding "multiple new heroes" to Stadium each season, both from the existing Overwatch 2 roster and new characters yet to be revealed. For Season 19 and beyond, a new China map and a Draft Mode feature are planned, along with consumables, item system tweaks, and more.

Overwatch 2 Stadium summer 2025 roadmap. Image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment.

How Has Stadium Performed So Far?

The Overwatch 2 team has shared impressive stats for Stadium, which has quickly become the game's most played mode, surpassing Quick Play and Competitive. During its launch week, Stadium saw 2.3 million matches played across 7.8 million hours, doubling the engagement seen during Overwatch Classic's launch week.

Interesting data points include Lucio having the highest win rate yet the lowest pick rate, and players spending a staggering 900 billion Stadium Cash while selecting 206 million items for their builds.

Keller's Director's Take also clarified that Stadium's development began before Overwatch 2 launched, dispelling fan theories that it was created in response to Marvel Rivals, which debuted in December 2024. Blizzard plans to continue communicating with the community, promising more insights into Stadium next week.

Despite Stadium's popularity, Blizzard remains committed to the core Overwatch experiences like Quick Play and Competitive. Keller emphasized, "We’re still pouring as much time, energy, and passion into these as we always have. Stadium isn't competing for those resources: it’s giving us more opportunities to deliver Overwatch in a new, exciting way."

Season 18, in particular, is set to be a highlight, with Keller calling it a "banger." As players continue to enjoy Stadium, Blizzard is keen on ensuring the game remains engaging and fun.

Overwatch 2 introduced Stadium with the launch of Season 16 last week as part of Blizzard's efforts to reinvigorate its player base. This initiative started with a comprehensive Spotlight presentation in February, leading to the return of loot boxes and an improved Steam rating, which many fans feel represents the best Overwatch experience in years.

While awaiting further updates, players can delve into our guide to learn more about how Stadium works and check out our recommendations for the best Tank Builds, DPS Builds, and Support Builds.