Activision-Blizzard has announced the details for the highly anticipated sequel to their multiplayer team shooter, Overwatch 2.

The release will be done in two segments, with the multiplayer competitive mode rolling out on October 4 for free, bringing a new character, changes to team composition and more. The PvE story mode will then be available for purchase sometime next year.

Overwatch was first released in 2016, and following in the team-based shooting footsteps of Team Fortress 2, introduced unique characters on a wide range of maps, all with their own abilities and quirks. By 2020, the game had sold 50 million copies.

Much to the dismay of many, Overwatch 2 is not quite a new game, but an expansion on the existing game. While this makes the multiplayer changes free, it also gives users no choice but to play the new format.

The main change has been reducing team numbers from 6 to 5, and despite some backlash, the change has been received well. Players got a taste of the changes during the Overwatch 2 beta, which overall, received mixed responses, and had many of the same criticisms as the first game.

Activision-Blizzard have placed a heavy focus on developing the game’s characters and relationships, so the introduction of a story mode makes perfect sense. It is assumed that the new mode will cost extra, how ever no price has been announced.

“Through the years, we’ve developed cinematics, animated shorts and graphic novels for our players who just want to get deeper into the lore,” Aaron Keller, Overwatch 2’s game director.

“With the player-versus-environment mode, “we have an opportunity to go a step further, to go deeper into diverse storytelling in ways that we just really haven’t been able to before.”

The game will also ditch loot boxes, which have been criticised as a form of gambling, and instead will introduce a battle pass system, not unlike that you would find in Fortnite.