Blizzard is currently testing voice chat transcription in Overwatch 2 to combat ‘disruptive behavior’

snowstorm Started testing audio transcription Overwatch 2 Work hard to counter verbal abuse in the game’s voice chat.

In the latest patch notes for Overwatch 2, Blizzard confirmed that it has started rolling out its audio transcription feature as part of its Defense Matrix initiative (thanks, Eurogamer). The feature is currently only available for PC players in certain countries, so if you can’t see it, here’s why.

This feature essentially uses audio transcriptions of voice chats, allowing Blizzard to “analyze transcriptions from temporary voice chat transcripts of reported players. Players will now see a notification when they first enter voice chat during a game session, indicating that the voice chat may will be recorded.”

The post states that if you have this feature, make sure to report disruptive behavior as close to the point in time it occurred as possible to maximize its effectiveness. “Once a report is made, a text file transcription will be made using a speech-to-text program using the temporary recording. The temporary recording is left unlistened and promptly deleted after transcription. Transcripts are only transcribed for disruptive reporting of behavior in public voice channels, including team and game chat — — does not include group “party” chats.”

Toxicity has long been an issue in Overwatch voice chat, as it is in many online shooters, but Blizzard has never really done enough to deal with it properly. Obviously we’ll have to wait and see how well this feature works, as it requires moderation teams to respond appropriately to every harassment report, but it would be nice if there were practical consequences for those who like to fool themselves in voice chat.

In a separate recent blog post, Blizzard also talked about how it plans to change the battle pass in future seasons, as it admitted it isn’t entirely happy with the way players are currently rewarded for progress.