Overwatch‘s Competitive Season 2 seems to have started earlier than anticipated, as a new update added both the second competitive season, and the new map that has been in the Public Test Realm since Gamescom, Eichenwalde.

The new season introduces a new ranking system, eschewing the first Season’s 1-100 rating in favor of a 1-5000 metric. Season 2 also marks the death of the hated Sudden Death, and now teams can draw if the match is too close.

PATCH HIGHLIGHTS

Competitive Play Season 2

We’ve made some big changes to Competitive Play in anticipation of the launch of Season 2 on September 6. The most noticeable change is the introduction of skill tiers, which we hope will better communicate players’ relative skill levels. Competitive Play will put a greater emphasis on skill tiers over specific ratings, and as such, a player’s tier will be more prominently displayed throughout the game. We’ve also switched the skill rating system to a 1-5000 scale to give players more detailed information about how each match affects their specific rating.

Sudden Death is also going away in Season 2. Instead, matches that are tied when the clock runs out end in a draw—though, it should be a rare occurrence. Because of this, we’ve made some changes to our game modes in Competitive Play to help reduce the chance that a draw will occur.

We’ve also made a few minor adjustments to leaver penalties, the top 500 system, and the competitive point system. Read on below to learn more!

New Assault/Escort Map: Eichenwalde

The forest has slowly begun overtaking the abandoned village of Eichenwalde, but the scars will never completely fade. During the Omnic Crisis, Eichenwalde was the site of a key battle. General Balderich von Adler took a handful of crusaders to the village in an effort to outflank the omnic army. Balderich’s soldiers were able to break down the enemy forces, giving the German military an opportunity to push back, but the Crusaders didn’t make it out of the battle. General Balderich finally collapsed in the castle’s great hall.

New Legendary Skins

Balderich – The armor of General Balderich von Adler, Reinhardt’s commanding officer during the Omnic Crisis.
Greifhardt – After General Balderich collapsed in Eichenwalde’s great hall, his armor slowly became overgrown by vegetation.
GENERAL UPDATES

General

When activating the “Ultimate Status” communication, Symmetra now reports the number of charges left on her teleporter
When activating the “Needs healing” communication while targeting a teammate, Ana, Lúcio, Mercy, and Zenyatta will now tell allies to group up to receive healing. A marker will appear above the player’s head, allowing teammates to locate the healer more quickly
Added Torbjörn as an AI-controlled hero in Practice vs. AI, Play vs. AI, and Custom Game modes
Sit and laugh emotes are now unlockable for all heroes

Competitive Play

Skill rating is now measured on a 1-5000 scale instead of the former 1-100 scale
Skill Rating Tiers
Players will now be assigned to a tier, depending on their skill rating
Bronze – 1-1499
Silver – 1500-1999
Gold – 2000-2499
Platinum – 2500-2999
Diamond – 3000-3499
Master – 3500-3999
Grandmaster – 4000-5000
In Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond tiers, a player will not drop out of their tier even if their skill rating falls below the cutoff
In Master and Grandmaster tiers, a player whose skill rating falls below the tier’s minimum will be moved to a lower tier
Players of drastically different skill ratings (more than 500) will no longer be able to group together in competitive matches
Players that have reached the Master and Grandmaster tiers must be within 500 Skill Rating of their groupmates
Players that are Diamond-tier and below must be within 1000 Skill Rating of their groupmates
Skill Rating Decay
Players in Diamond, Master, and Grandmaster tiers that haven’t participated in a competitive match for 7 days will lose skill rating
Players with a skill rating above 3000 (Diamond tier or higher) will lose 50 rating points every 24 hours, but their rating will not fall below 3000
Competing in a single match will halt skill rating decay
Players that haven’t participated in a competitive match for 7 days will immediately drop out of the top 500
Map Changes
Several refinements have been made to the time bank system for Hanamura, Temple of Anubis, and Volskaya Industries
The time bank system has been added to Dorado, Hollywood, King’s Row, Numbani, Route 66, and Watchpoint: Gibraltar
Time granted for taking objectives on Dorado, Hanamura, Hollywood, King’s Row, Numbani, Route 66, Temple of Anubis, Volskaya Industries, and Watchpoint: Gibraltar has been reduced from 5 minutes to 4
Competitive Points
Existing competitive points saved from Season 1 will be multiplied by 10
After winning a competitive match, players will now receive 10 competitive points (instead of 1)
Players will now receive 3 competitive points for a draw
The cost of golden weapons has also been multipled by 10 from 300 to 3000
A soft cap is being placed on the number of competitive points that can be saved
Players with more than 6000 points at the start of season 2 will no longer accrue points by playing competitive matches
End-of-season rewards will still be granted to players at the soft cap
Instead of going into sudden death, tied competitive matches will now result in a draw (click here to learn more)
Players must now win at least 50 competitive matches to be eligible for a spot in the top 500
Players must now complete more matches to clear their penalty status for leaving a competitive match early