REVIEWGame: OverwatchDeveloper: Blizzard EntertainmentGenre: First-person shooterPlatform: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox OneVerdict: A fantastic, fast-paced, multiplayer shooter, worth every cent.

 By WILLIAM ARNOTT

Overwatch is a game where a cowboy can shoot at a gorilla scientist while hiding behind the shield of a German retiree in power armour.

Blizzard entertainment’s latest IP is a team-based shooter, which in many ways is quite similar to Valve Corporation’s Team Fortress 2. Both games have bright, vibrant characters full of personality and charm, both have a focus on teamwork and classes and both are excellent shooters.

Overwatch takes the tried and tested formula and adds some extra depth to it, with 21 different heroes each with their own special abilities and roles.

The heroes are divided up into four main groups: Offence, Defence, Tank and Support. Offensive heroes tend to have high mobility and damage output, able to flank and kill with ease. Defensive heroes tend to focus on protecting a static location and are adept at stopping the advances of the enemy team. Tanks are meat shields with lots of armour and health and Supports heal and buff their teammates.

No two heroes are alike, even if they are in the same group. Junkrat, a psychopathic Australian with a grenade launcher, plays differently to Widowmaker, the cold-blooded French femme fatale sniper – even though they’re both defensive heroes.

The 12 maps have three main game modes: Attack/Defence, where teams battle it out over objectives; Payload, which has the attackers trying to push a cart into the defender’s base; and King of the Hill. The battlefields themselves are gorgeous, with plenty of choke points, bottomless pits and shortcuts that makes traversing them a joy.

Each hero has two abilities that they can use to augment their shooting and a powerful ultimate ability. For example, Roadhog can throw out a hook to try and drag enemies into shot gun range, can heal a significant amount of health and his ultimate turns his shotgun into a Gatling gun.

Blizzard has done a great job at keeping everything balanced. Heroes all have weaknesses that can be exploited by certain classes. Bastion, a combat robot, can turn into a stationary turret that can shred a team in moments, but by doing so he is a sitting duck for snipers.

Team composition is a huge part of the game, and Blizzard has done a great job at making sure people know what types of characters to pick. The game provides handy tips during hero selection about what heroes are needed which helps stop teams of only snipers.

Matches are fast paced, each one lasting around 10 minutes at their longest. It always feels as if there is something to do, even while waiting to get back into action. Respawn timers are mercifully short, with a kill cam showing your death from your killer’s point of view.

The game itself only offers a small snapshot of the world Blizzard have created. Aside from pre-game banter between characters, most of the lore isn’t actually in the game. Instead, most of the information can be found online, in comic books, character bios and high quality animated shorts (which feel like Pixar movies, but with more violence).

Actions performed in game provide you with XP. Interestingly, Overwatch rewards everyone involved in a kill with experience instead of the person who fired the last bullet.

This is great addition, as it lets support character not designed for combat still feel helpful in a fight. Each level earned gives you a Loot Box filled with four random cosmetic items which could be different character skins, voice lines, poses or emotes.

The biggest issue with the game is the price. It is $70 AUD for a purely multiplayer shooter that features micro transactions, although there is definitely enough content available in its current form to justify the hefty price, and Blizzard have said any additional heroes and maps will be free to all players.

There is already a massive community around the game and a budding eSports scene. Overwatch, unlike so many other games, has longevity and won’t die out a few months past release.