Third-person health bars make competitive Overwatch easier to spectate

Thank you, Blizzard! Overwatch in-game spectators can now toggle on third-person floating health bars for both teams. It’s a feature that’s going to make Overwatch esports much more pleasant to watch—and it’ll have a positive influence in caster analysis, too. Blizzard quietly implemented floating health bars for spectators in the latest Overwatch public test region patch, though the feature is expected to make it to the live server soon.

“I think this is going to help casting quite a bit in some of these bigger fights,” OGN Overwatch caster Erik “DoA” Lonnquist said in a video on the feature. “You call tell the narrative of the fight a little bit more. You can kind of see who is getting lower.” Previously, this information was only available in the third-person perspective by looking away from the fight and to the team lineup bars at the top. And given how chaotic Overwatch can be, looking away for any amount of time could cause confusion. Third-person health bars are one of the features fans and casters have been clamoring for, with Blizzard promising that increased spectator functionality would continue to roll out. “I think it really shows that [Blizzard] is listening to us,” DoA added. “They’re looking at what needs to be done in spectator mode. They’re taking the steps they need to make it better. Props to Blizzard for putting it in there.” Blizzard has not commented on when this feature will hit Overwatch’s live server, but we’re guessing DoA wants it before he starts casting season two of the OGN Overwatch APEX on Jan. 17.