Blizzard took the decision to pull competitive play from Overwatch at launch following less than glowing feedback from the beta. The team went back to the drawing board and reworked what competitive play would be like in the hero shooter, and now they're ready to show us what they've come up with.
Competitive Overwatch is now available to those on PC who have access to Blizzard's Public Test Region. There players will be able to sample the new, more serious mode, as long as they hit all of the requirements. Here are the details direct from Blizzard:
Once you hit level 25, you'll have access to our newest feature: Competitive Play. This mode was designed to be a more serious experience, allowing players to hone their skills and perfect their strategies. But before diving into the fray, you'll need to play 10 placement matches. These will allow our matchmaking system to gather enough information about your abilities to assign a skill rating.
With your newly acquired skill rating, you'll be matched against players of a similar ability level. And if you play well and win games, the competition will become increasingly fierce throughout the two-and-a-half-month season. Plus, your performance will be rewarded with unique in-game items like sprays, player icons, and Competitive Points (which can be traded in for cosmetic Golden Weapons).
We've also made a number of changes to Overwatch's match format for Competitive Play. Some of these changes are simple interface changes, while others ensure that maps and modes don't favor one side or another—plus we've added a sudden death mechanic that ensures tied games are broken as fairly as possible.
Because Competitive Play is more serious in nature, we want to make sure that player behavior is acceptable. This means that the penalties are more severe than in the Quick Play or Weekly Brawl! modes. Leaving a game early or stepping away from your computer will make you ineligible to join a game until the previous game has ended, and continued infractions could result in restrictions or removal from Competitive Play.