Even if we can’t go to the beach in real life, Overwatch’s Summer Games event is here to bring the heat straight to our monitors.
The annual event will begin on Aug. 4 and run through Aug. 26, bringing new skins, new emotes, and new challenges to players. Lúcioball, a special arcade mode only active during Summer Games, returns with a new “remix” mode.
Lúcioball returns
Lúcioball is always the highlight of the Summer Games event. The fast-paced, Overwatch version of soccer stars support hero Lúcio. Three players on each side of a field zip around the arena, trying to “boop” and knock a ball into the opposing team’s goal. Use jump pads and speed boosts to defy gravity and get some serious airtime.
For the 2020 event, Overwatch is introducing “Lúcioball Remix” to the arcade. This is a more chaotic version of Lúcioball with two balls in play at all times. Players aren’t reset when a goal is scored, like in the normal version of Lúcioball, but are encouraged to keep zooming around the map to take advantage of the chaos. Maps will include more jump pads and wall riding opportunities.
Buffs have also been added to regular Lúcioball. Lúcio’s cooldowns will be shorter, jump pads will push him a little higher, and crouching midair will enable Lúcio to spike downward into a lunge. A “mercy” rule has been added to regular Lúcioball that will end the game once a team has a five-point lead. For Lúcioball Remix, the mercy cutoff is a 10-point lead.
Legendary and Epic skins
Five new Legendary skins will be available during the 2020 Summer Games event, including Lifeguard Pharah and Surf’s Up Echo. These can be earned through Summer Games loot boxes or bought with gold. Three Epic skins will be available through weekly challenges. Each week, players will have to rack up nine wins in Overwatch to unlock a special Epic challenge skin.
From Aug. 4 to 11, players can earn the Union Jack Tracer Skin. The second week of challenges will unlock a Sand Castle Bastion skin, available from Aug. 11 to 18. During the last week of the Summer Games event, from Aug. 18 to 26, players can earn the Ice Cream Orisa skin.
Related: Every new skin for Overwatch’s Summer Games 2020
As usual, players can also unlock skins and other assets from previous years of Summer Games events for a reduced price. All of the new content is available only from Aug. 4 to 26. New skins and emotes, as well as old Summer Games content, can be found in Summer Games loot boxes or purchased with gold on the Character Gallery screen.
