Overwatch 2 Stadium Summer Roadmap Revealed by Blizzard

Blizzard Entertainment has exciting plans for Overwatch 2 with the Stadium roadmap for 2025, outlining the heroes and features to be introduced in Season 17, Season 18, Season 19, and beyond. The team behind this innovative hero shooter shared detailed insights in a Director’s Take blog post by game director Aaron Keller. This post not only revealed a summer roadmap but also provided a retrospective on the mode's origins and its performance since its launch last week, as part of Blizzard’s efforts to reinvigorate its player base.

The Stadium mode is set to expand significantly this summer. Starting with Season 16, the new Damage hero Freja will join the roster with a mid-season update. However, it's in Season 17, launching in June, where the mode will see a substantial boost with the addition of Junkrat, Sigma, and Zenyatta. Alongside these heroes, the Esperança Push map and Samoa Control map will also be introduced, enriching the strategic multiplayer experience.

Blizzard plans to enhance Stadium further during Season 17 by introducing features such as Unranked Crossplay, new all-star rewards, custom games, additional example builds, and options to save and share builds. While it's unclear if all these elements will be available at the start of the season or rolled out throughout, the updates promise to make Stadium more engaging.

In Season 18, players can look forward to the addition of Winston, Sojourn, and Brigitte as playable characters. The Route 66 and London maps will join the game, along with a new Payload Race game mode, which will come with two new maps. Additionally, a Stadium trials feature and the ability to Endorse teammates will be introduced, fostering a more collaborative and dynamic gameplay environment.

Looking ahead to Season 19 and beyond, Blizzard has confirmed that multiple new heroes, both from the existing Overwatch 2 roster and unrevealed characters, will be added to Stadium. A new China map, a Draft Mode feature, consumables, and item system tweaks are also in development, ensuring continuous evolution and excitement for the mode.

Overwatch 2 Stadium summer 2025 roadmap. Image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment.

How has Stadium Performed so Far?

Since its launch, Stadium has become the most played mode in Overwatch 2, surpassing Quick Play and Competitive with an impressive 2.3 million matches played across 7.8 million hours in its first week. This performance is more than double the engagement seen during Overwatch Classic's launch week.

Notable statistics highlight Lucio as the hero with both the highest win rate and the lowest pick rate. Players have also spent a staggering 900 billion Stadium Cash, selecting 206 million items for their builds, showcasing the mode's depth and engagement.

In his Director’s Take, Aaron Keller clarified that Stadium was in development before Overwatch 2 launched, dispelling rumors that it was created to compete with Marvel Rivals, which debuted in December 2024. Keller promised more insights into Stadium next week and reassured players that Blizzard remains committed to maintaining the core experiences of Quick Play and Competitive modes.

“Before signing off, I'd like to reiterate the team’s commitment to the Core modes of Overwatch," Keller stated. "We’re still pouring as much time, energy, and passion into these as we always have. Stadium isn't competing for those resources: it’s giving us more opportunities to deliver Overwatch in a new, exciting way. We can't wait for you to see what's coming there, especially Season 18. It's going to be a banger! Have fun with Stadium and, as always, let’s make a great game.”

Overwatch 2’s Stadium mode was introduced with Season 16 last week, following Blizzard’s efforts to reinvigorate its player base, which included an all-encompassing Spotlight presentation in February. These efforts have led to the return of loot boxes and an improved Steam rating, with many players feeling that this is the best Overwatch experience in years.

As we await further updates, you can explore our comprehensive guide to learn more about how Stadium works, and check out our recommendations for the best Tank Builds, DPS Builds, and Support Builds.