Capture the Flag will return to the Overwatch Arcade “soon”

Blizzard removed Overwatch’s Capture the Flag mode to make room for a new Arcade game. But according to Overwatch game director Jeff Kaplan, it’ll return “soon.”

Overwatch players took to the game’s forum to lament the game type’s removal after it disappeared from the Arcade’s menu.

“I know a lot of people hate on [Capture the Flag], but there are some of us who actually love it and wish it’d be permanent,” Overwatch player KarlKatze wrote. “I like the casual, fun nature of it.”

To quell players’ fears, Kaplan responded. He confirmed that the mode would be returning, and that Blizzard is working on improvements for the gametype. Those adjustments are “still a ways off,” Kaplan added. In particular the developer wants to address draws, which are one of the mode’s big problems.

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Because many teams end up playing very defensively, with turrets surrounding the flag, neither side can even attempt to actually grab the flag. Players aren’t able to take the flag if they’re taking damage, which makes it almost impossible to nab it against a turreted defense.

Blizzard notoriously had trouble tweaking Overwatch’s Capture the Flag mode before adding it to the game during the Year of the Rooster event. Hero abilities make balance very challenging.

“Over the years as we were iterating and testing various versions of the game, we actually gave up on the mode,” Kaplan said in a Developer’s Update video in January. “We didn’t want Overwatch heroes to no longer feel like Overwatch heroes.”

Kaplan did not detail a timeline for Capture the Flag’s return, only suggesting it could be a while before players can dive back in.