When it comes to Overwatch, sound is an indispensable part of the experience. This is exactly why the community is furious with the recent sound issues that are resulting from the latest patch, as sounds in the game are failing to be registered. This means that certain cues like an approaching pair of feet are not sounding, leaving players blindsided, frustrated, and dead in-game.
The community is outraged most of all due to Blizzard Entertainment's failure to implement the patch seamlessly. With no current end in sight to the problems associated with the patch, the Overwatch community outcry only continues to grow.
The issue was showcased during a livestream by Carter Smith of Third Impact. The event was a Grandmaster match, which Overwatch fans will undoubtedly recognize as no laughing matter. In this case, the playable character Hanzo was seen as the primary culprit during the match-up, leaving Hanzo essentially inaudible, and thus awarding the player a supreme advantage.
This meant that Smith was at a disadvantage, as he was left with hardly any window to react to his enemy's actions even while his opponent engaged in wall-climbing, running, and jumping right beside and around him. Smith confirmed this, and showcased on his livestream the lack of sound coming from the enemy Hanzo, even at close proximity.
"Sounds that originate from out of your FOV are often not even played," Smith wrote on Reddit where he posted the clip from his stream. "If they are, they're EXTREMELY quiet." The community responded with stories of their own, relieved to see that they weren't losing their minds at what they thought was happening. With the current state of esports in question by many, some believe issues like this could have lasting implications on the user base of games like Overwatch.
"I thought I was going crazy," user WyldeTV of the New York Excelsior Overwatch League wrote. "I've been flanked multiple times and have not heard a thing." Users went on to converse about the issue, exclaiming how "unacceptable" it is that to have issues like this in a game where players rely so heavily on sound for their survival.
As of now, the Overwatch forums are ablaze with concerns over the issue, with players exclaiming that the game is "unplayable in its current state." Some fans are hoping that the next Overwatch Development Update will feature the fix, while others aren't as optimistic.
It is unclear at this time when Blizzard plans on solving the issue as many assume their focus is on the imminent release of Overwatch 2.
Overwatch is available now for PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.