Blizzard Entertainment surprise dropped Overwatch 2 on Xbox Game Pass on Tuesday, despite the game being free to play and already on Xbox.
You might find this to be a strange addition, but as a Blizzard blog post specifies, this is more about encouraging players to link their Battle.net and Xbox accounts. As a reward, players that do so will receive six exclusive skins: Cardboard Reinhardt, Turtleship D.Va, Cyberdragon Hanzo, Street Runner Genji, Bee Mercy, and Cleric Lifeweaver. (The image of a Reinhardt in a cardboard suit is delightful.) Players will also get 30 Mythic Prisms that they can use in the Mythic Shop for other skins.
Blizzard also said that linked accounts gain access to Overwatch 2 shop cosmetics from the past three seasons — so seasons 9 to 11. This will update each season for linked Game Pass players. Finally, Blizzard is offering a 10% XP boost.
Players will have from September 17 until November 11 to link their accounts and get all the perks. The rewards will remain active as long as you have an Xbox Game Pass subscription. You can find instructions on how to connect the accounts in the blog post linked above or through this support article.
This announcement comes alongside an Overwatch 2 and World of Warcraft crossover to celebrate the latter’s 20th anniversary. Players can potentially get the Sylvanas Windrunner Widowmaker, Lich King Reinhardt, Thrall Zenyatta, and Diamond Magni Torbjorn skins.
This is one of the many Game Pass/Activision Blizzard crossovers that have occurred since Microsoft successfully acquired the company for $69 billion in 2023. Diablo 4 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 are available for Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass, and Game Pass for Console subscribers. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is the next addition, coming to the aforementioned Game Pass plans on the day it launches, October 25.
