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Blizzard released Overwatch’s newest tank hero Sigma on the game’s Public Test Region today, giving fans a first look at the character’s abilities. Many fans have already started planning team comps around Sigma for their ranked matches—but the hero isn’t scheduled to join the game’s competitive mode for some time.
New characters are typically disabled from Overwatch’s ranked mode for two weeks following their release on the live servers while they settle into the game’s meta. Although Sigma is now available on the Overwatch PTR, he has yet to launch on the live servers, so his arrival in competitive is still a ways off.
But fans did get a date for when the Overwatch developer expects the game’s 31st hero to become available in ranked. During a livestream with popular streamer and retired Overwatch pro Brandon “Seagull” Larned, Overwatch’s lead designer Jeff Kaplan told fans to mark their calendar for early September.
Related: Overwatch PTR update patch notes introduce Sigma and Role Queue in Quick Play
“I think for [competitive], we’re gonna want to get Sigma in [competitive], I’m hoping Sept. 1,” Kaplan said. The lead designer confirmed that the tank hero would release with the official start of the first role queue season.
Sigma’s expected release date is still tentative and could change—Overwatch’s 30th hero Baptiste faced a delay after the combat medic joined the game’s live servers. Until then, however, Sigma is now available on the game’s testing server for fans to try out before putting their skills to the test when he launches in Overwatch’s ranked mode.
