Overwatch 2 has shared a brand new update to its Defense Matrix Initiative, which focuses on curbing “game breaking, abusive chat, and cheating.”
In the latest update to the program, Blizzard revealed that it will more strictly monitor voice communications, punish players who cooperate with cheaters, and more.
The technology used to monitor voice communications is a new speech-to-text transcription software and artificial intelligence learning algorithms. This is already rolling out on PC in select regions and “has proven to be exceptionally accurate and effective at identifying abusive chat and language.” Overwatch 2 is now working to mute or suspend offending players whenever possible.
Blizzard has also acknowledged that cheating in Overwatch 2 is a problem and has “taken action against more than 50,000 accounts” that have been found to be cheating since the game launched. Beginning in Season 3, Blizzard will identify players who are willing to team up with those who are often flagged as cheaters, and those players will also face account lawsuits.
It is recognized that players who often align themselves with cheaters are taking advantage, even if they are not directly cheating themselves. Boosting is a common problem in multiplayer games like Overwatch 2, which results in “unfair and unbalanced matches.” Blizzard will issue “long, severe suspensions and, in extreme cases, even outright bans” to those willing to play with cheaters.
In addition to these changes, Overwatch 2 will also improve protection for streamers. Blizzard recognizes that streaming sniping is not an easy problem to solve, but in Season 3, it will “introduce new streaming protection features that should be a step toward enabling content creators to safely share Overwatch 2 with fans.” ’ is a big step forward.”
Overwatch 2 players and content creators will be able to hide their BattleTag and PlayerTag in their lobbies. They can also hide queue times and even delay Overwatch 2 matches for a random amount of time before they start.
Last but not least, Blizzard encourages players to report any disruptive or problematic behavior in-game. This helps the team identify issues and work towards solving them. Blizzard has also admitted that reporting on the console isn’t as intuitive as it should be, and will soon be taking steps to improve that.
What do you think of the latest update to Overwatch 2’s Defense Matrix plans?
