Blizzard Keeps Its Fans in the Loop With Overwatch 2 Stadium Summer Roadmap

Blizzard Entertainment has unveiled an exciting roadmap for Overwatch 2's Stadium mode, detailing the heroes and features set to enhance the game through Season 17, Season 18, Season 19, and beyond in 2025.

In a detailed Director’s Take blog post, game director Aaron Keller provided insights into the past, present, and future of Stadium, including a surprise summer roadmap. Stadium has been available for just over a week, and Keller shared how this new mode came to be and its performance to date.

The journey of Stadium continues with the introduction of the new Damage hero, Freja, in a mid-season patch for Season 16. However, it's Season 17 in June that promises to elevate the experience further. Heroes like Junkrat, Sigma, and Zenyatta will join the fray, accompanied by the Esperança Push map and Samoa Control map.

Blizzard plans to enrich the Stadium mode during this season with features like Unranked Crossplay, new all-star rewards, custom games, additional example builds, and options to save and share builds. While it's unclear whether all these elements will launch at the start of Season 17 or roll out gradually throughout the season, the additions are poised to enhance player engagement significantly.

Season 18 will introduce the iconic gorilla hero, Winston, along with Sojourn and Brigitte. The Route 66 and London maps will also become available, and a new Payload Race game mode will debut, complete with two new maps, a Stadium trials feature, and the ability to Endorse teammates.

Looking ahead to Season 19 and beyond, Blizzard has promised "multiple new heroes," including both existing Overwatch 2 characters and new faces. A new China map, a Draft Mode feature, consumables, and item system tweaks are also on the horizon.

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

How has Stadium Performed so Far?

Stadium has quickly become Overwatch 2's most popular mode, surpassing Quick Play and Competitive. During its launch week, it saw an impressive 2.3 million matches played over 7.8 million hours. This performance is more than double that of Overwatch Classic's launch week.

Notable statistics include Lucio boasting the highest win rate yet the lowest pick rate, and players spending a staggering 900 billion Stadium Cash on 206 million items for their builds.

Keller's blog post also clarified that Stadium's development began before Overwatch 2's launch, dispelling rumors that it was a response to Marvel Rivals, which debuted in December 2024. He emphasized Blizzard's commitment to ongoing communication, promising more insights into Stadium in the following week.

Despite Stadium's popularity, Blizzard remains dedicated to its core modes. Keller reassured fans, saying, "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."

Season 18, in particular, is set to be a highlight, with Keller describing it as a "banger." As players continue to enjoy Stadium, Blizzard is eager to share more about what's coming next.

Stadium was introduced with the launch of Season 16 last week, part of Blizzard's broader efforts to reinvigorate its player base. This initiative began with a comprehensive Spotlight presentation in February, leading to the return of loot boxes and an improved Steam rating, with many players feeling that this is the best Overwatch experience in years.

For those eager to dive deeper, our guide offers more details on how Stadium works, and we also provide recommendations for the best Tank Builds, DPS Builds, and Support Builds.