The Switch version ofOverwatchwill reportedly have a cool new feature that is unique to that version of the game. The hero shooter’s release on Switch is less than a month away, and a recent interview gave brand new details on what fans can expect fromOverwatchwith a Nintendo flourish.
During the September Nintendo Direct it was announced that Blizzard’s popular shooter was finallycoming to Switch. Prior to release, Vooks.net sat down with Wes Yanagi, Principal Game Producer onOverwatchto talk about the Switch version of the game.
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The teams at Blizzard and Iron Galaxy (who also helped bringDiablo IIIto Switch) are bringing Gyroscope aiming functionality to the Switch version ofOverwatch.“It came about early on with our initial discussions with Nintendo. " Yanagi said, “they expressed how it was a popular feature on the Nintendo Switch and encouraged us to investigate it. A few of us were a little skeptical at first, but after doing a bunch of research and experimenting with various implementations, it really grew on us.”
“With gyro-aiming, you can tilt the Switch or Pro Controller to give a little nudge to your aim and help line-up shots,” Yanagi further explained. “Or, you can detach the Joy-Cons and point it at the screen like a laser pointer. One of our designers plays this way and dominates…spend two hours learning it, and you may not be able to play without it.”
In recent years, Blizzard has been a stickler for quality with their console versions of their games, so its unlikely motion controls were added just for fun. Hopefully some serious game-changing strategies can come from the exclusive features, giving the Switch version a life of its own. The gyro aiming controls will be customizable on a hero by hero basis, like all other controls in the game.
The interview also answered some questions about the new version of the game, including that a lot of work was done to ensure theSwitch version runs at 30 FPSconsistently. “While it’s easy to focus on the graphics when thinking about performance, there were a lot of other systems like physics and audio that contribute to the overall frame rate. We spent a lot of effort optimizing those systems to make the game feel just right.”
It will be interesting to see if the Switch stays with theOverwatchmetaor if the game creates its own separate meta and balances. The latter is more likely based on both the framerate differences and the fact that the motion controls will surely give certain characters new advantages.
Overwatchis out now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with a Switch version launching on October 15.
