Overwatch was a groundbreaking title upon its release in 2016. The game did many things well, including having diverse characters with their own abilities and powers directly correlated to their personalities. Much of Overwatch‘s success initially was due to the appeal the many heroes brought to the game—so diverse that whatever character a player chose really influenced the game’s course.
In Overwatch and its sequel, Overwatch 2, players don’t just choose a character based on their appearance, they also consider what abilities they have and their personalities. This was a unique element for the competitive FPS-style genre, giving the shooter a much more compelling narrative than its competitors without requiring much in-depth story development.
The game started to receive a lot more competition from games with similar concepts and mechanics as time went on. Overwatch is no longer the titan it once was in terms of FPS games or even team-based shooters. Even so, it doesn’t mean the fanbase is gone, or the game isn’t good anymore. Overwatch 2 is still a great game, despite the recent criticism it has received.
But if you’re not feeling the same pull towards Overwatch 2 as you felt towards the original game, or if the new content structure of the game’s sequel made you lose interest, we’ve got some other games you could try in search of your next favorite.
Below are the ten best games like Overwatch.
10) Fortnite
For serious PC gamers, Fortnite might seem silly to add to this list at first, but the game provides new mechanical challenges and integration of your surroundings that well-versed multitaskers that excel at Overwatch 2 might enjoy. The slight chaos of Fortnite could feel like home for those used to colors and characters flying across their screen like in Overwatch 2. Fortnite is a shooter with a similarly bright and colorful aesthetic, which seems hard to come by in some other more intense first-person shooter titles.
While Fortnite certainly has a reputation for appealing to casual gamers and has become a game that heavily embraces larger aspects of pop culture, it can be as serious as you want it to be. Like Overwatch 2, Fortnite is great to play with friends across a variety of consoles or on PC.
9) Rocket Arena
Rocket Arena is the title to go for if you main Pharah in Overwatch 2. The game is virtually a three-vs-three Pharah simulator, giving each character a rocket launcher to use against their enemies. Blast meters replace health meters, which increase when players are hit. As in Super Smash Bros., this meter indicates how much a player will be blown away. They will be blasted from the arena further if that meter is higher, a la Pharah’s Concussive Blast. Players die when they are blown out of the map. This game is exciting if you appreciate the unconventional FPS aspect of Overwatch 2.
As opposed to Overwatch, the characters in this game are purely cosmetic and won’t affect your gameplay. If you get tired of blowing each other up in Rocket Arena, you can play other game modes like Capture the Flag, Rocket Ball, and treasure hunt, similar to Overwatch 2’s Arcade modes.
8) Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
CS:GO is probably the most prolific shooter on PC. As a result of multiple installments and Valve’s welcoming attitude as a developer, the player base has grown exponentially, and with the addition of CS2 later this year, it will only continue to grow. This, alongside the fact CS:GO came out in 2012, means there are a lot of experienced players on every CS:GO server, and the experience is not very beginner friendly.
Related: When is CS2 coming out?
Like Overwatch 2, CS:GO is all about working as a team to beat your enemy. If you’re not good at working with your team and utilizing in-game communication tools, you will not last long in CS:GO. Another major difference between Overwatch 2 and CS:GO is that the latter has no abilities, a key feature of Overwatch 2. But you’re missing out if you haven’t tried CS:GO.
7) Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege is the ultimate cops and robbers game. During the game, one team attempts to reach and subsequently take out the other, while their opposition holds its ground and defends its position. Different strategies come into play depending on what side you’re on, just like in Overwatch 2.
Yet unlike in Overwatch 2, the walls of the map in Rainbow Six Siege are breakable, eliminating the annoying possibility of camping and increasing the pace of the game. Although certain classes have special abilities, similar to Overwatch 2, the gameplay revolves around being a normal human fighting other people—no robots involved. In Rainbow Six Siege, outmaneuvering the other team is more important than winning a direct shootout, meaning team play is key.
6) Battleborn
Battleborn came out around the same time as the original Overwatch but takes inspiration from a different game. Overwatch 2 is a lot like Team Fortress 2, where players use a character’s abilities to get ahead. They team up with other characters, and they’re more likely to win if they can work together well. The big difference is that Battleborn feels way more like a MOBA than a team-based shooter.
One look at a Battleborn will immediately remind players of League of Legends. Both League and Dota 2 are amazing games, but they work well because they’re MOBAs designed to be MOBAs. As a shooter player, you want the gameplay and graphics to match your main objective—shooting your enemies. Battleborn is left feeling a bit disjointed due to this disconnect. It’s still a fun game, just not as fun as Overwatch or VALORANT.
5) Team Fortress 2
Team Fortress 2 had a huge influence on the gameplay of Overwatch, and once you’ve played both you can see the similarities.
The classic team-based gameplay of Team Fortress 2 is coupled with its pleasing and unique aesthetics. There are different abilities and benefits for each class in TF2, and like Overwatch 2, players need to master them to do well. This means understanding the role of your class and adjusting your strategy based on which one you choose is crucial. TF2 is easy to learn because it hasn’t changed much since it was created, at a time when PCs weren’t big enough to accommodate developers adding a lot to the game. The game is accessible and a bit easier to swallow than Overwatch 2 or CS:GO.
Capture the Flag, King of the Hill, Control Point, and many others are also available besides the classic team deathmatch mode. One of the best things about TF2 is that it is free to play and requires only a PC equipped with Steam.
4) Rogue Company
Rogue Company is a game that encourages players to jump, sprint, and navigate across the map quickly. As Rogue Company is a third-person game—marking a significant difference from Overwatch 2—characters can climb and roll in a more visually appealing manner. There are four-vs-four and six-vs-six game modes, and the gameplay feels like Overwatch 2, but the maps are a little looser, without a clear path toward an objective. This makes firefights feel less restricted.
Depending on which character you choose, you can use different abilities, just like in Overwatch 2. If you master your main character and learn the strengths and weaknesses of other characters, you can be just as good at Rogue Company as at Overwatch. For those looking for something as close as possible to Overwatch, this is a good choice, though the player base is not as big.
3) Paladins
Overwatch 2 and Paladins share a very similar concept. Players select a character and face off with other players in a five-vs-five team-based shooter. Each character has a set of abilities and an ultimate that can be used after dealing enough damage to their opponents—pretty much exactly like Overwatch 2.
The bonus of Paladins is that players can customize their heroes using their XP—which is an idea developers originally hoped to bring into Overwatch 2 via skill trees. It’s not as easy as it sounds, because the game’s overly complicated currency system makes it difficult to purchase items using various currencies: XP, gold, and crystals. The game rewards you with experience through daily achievements and quests. You can earn gold by winning matches, leveling up, and visiting the game daily. Usually, games bundle everything together, giving XP and currency for each of these things, but in Paladins, they are separate. The only way to get crystals is to use real-world money. You’ll get used to this system as you use it more, but it seems unnecessary to separate the earning of currencies.
Additionally, players can engage in onslaught, ranked, and siege modes, providing different ways to play just like Overwatch 2.
2) Apex Legends
Overwatch is known more for its characters than anything else. This idea was inspiration for EA, who then instead of using these unique characters to make a team-based shooter, put them into a battle royale. This battle royale became Apex Legends.
Players select from a large roster of characters with unique skill sets and ultimates to use against others who might be able to utilize these skills more effectively. Normally, the game is played by three players in a trio against other squads on a huge map, but some players prefer playing as duos or solos. Regardless of how you play, there is a character that you will most likely do well with. By making players relate to and identify with a character, EA has been able to build an addicting and dominating force in the battle royale genre. Apex is a game that, like Overwatch 2, perfectly combines appealing lore and character design with excellent game functionality to create a game you won’t want to stop playing.
1) VALORANT
It is very hard to find a game more like Overwatch 2 than VALORANT. The latter is Riot Games’ try at a similar innovative first-person shooter. These days, many former Overwatch players have been making the transition to VALORANT as their game of choice.
Both Overwatch 2 and VALORANT feature unique characters with backstories that drive their voice lines and in-game abilities. Their powers revolve around their personalities—when played well, they give the game a feeling not quite captured by other team-based games. Overwatch came out first, but VALORANT learned from its shortcomings and provided a much more balanced experience.
Related: Best agents in VALORANT: Ranked tier list
It may be a good time to start playing VALORANT if you like Overwatch and Overwatch 2 but haven’t played it yet. Though longtime Overwatch fans might be hesitant to switch over at first, the game is certainly worth a try.
If you’ve played Overwatch 2, you’re very likely to get hooked on VALORANT because the game is also free and can run on any PC that runs Overwatch 2 well. Riot’s premier FPS is about as close to Overwatch 2 as you can get.
Published: Jul 16, 2023 06:29 pm