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Overwatch patch 1.5 is now live, adds Sombra, Arcade, and gameplay tweaks

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Overwatch gets patch 1.5 today, and the update brings with it a host of changes.

As detailed on the official Overwatch website, the patch adds a new offense hero, Sombra. She functions as a hacker and is able to cloak, teleport around the map, and disable opponents’ skills to create confusion. Find out more about how Sombra’s abilities work in our breakdown.

Patch 1.5 also adds The Arcade, a rotation of game modes and maps that change up the gameplay with features such as 1-on-1 duels, 3v3 skirmishes, or special rules (ie. “no hero switching”) Players can still earn experience and there are special Loot Boxes that can only be acquired in The Arcade.

The update also adds a new map in the form of Ecopoint: Antarctica, a compact Arena map with multiple game modes on offer, including 3v3 and 1v1. It can be accessed in The Arcade. For the Overwatch lore enthusiasts, the map is where the hero Mei-Ling Zhou was once stationed, and where she was cryogenically frozen for almost 10 years.


Competitive Play season 2 will finish up on November 23 at 4 PM PDT. Season 3 will start on November 30 at 4 PM PDT. Players will still be able to queue for competitive matches in between, but skill ratings will not be affected, nor will any Competitive points be awarded.

Blizzard has made a few changes to how the skill rating system operates in Season 3. Players will be “distributed more broadly” across skill tiers, which means that some players will have their rating lowered. According to Blizzard, this was implemented to decrease the number of players in the Gold and Platinum skill tiers, making for less variation in skill levels within the tiers.

The skill experience bar has also been updated to reduce the amount of experience required to level from 14-100. The amount of XP needed to level up past 100 is now a constant 20,000 and does not reset after each promotion.

You can check out the full patch notes on the Overwatch forums, where specific hero changes are detailed.