Overwatch To Reveal Plans For Updated Punishment System Soon

Those who have played Overwatch and taken part in some multiplayer conquests have likely encountered one or two teammates who were less than willing to play nicely with others, many of whom probably get their kicks from seeking out ways to antagonize teammates. The occurrence isn't unique to Overwatch at all, but Blizzard is looking to change up the game's punishment system to better prevent players from engaging in such behavior.

News of the upcoming changes came from a post within the Blizzard forums where an Overwatch player asked what the deal was when it came to players getting silenced after they've been reported for throwing, or intentionally losing, their games. Overwatch game director Jeff Kaplan responded within the post to correct the initial question and also give an update on the current state of the punishment system.

"It doesn't anymore," Kaplan replied. "It hasn't done this for some time. There is a post coming about updates to the punishment system coming soon."

If you're not familiar with the punishment system currently in place in Overwatch, players can report other players for a variety of different topics that include aggressive chat towards others, throwing games, and other categories that are the usual suspects when it comes to reporting in online games. The silence punishment is one that would restrict the user's chat after they were reported a number of times to their in-game communication.

After Kaplan replied to the initial post, players within the comments section were pretty thrilled at the idea that the punishment system would be updated to better target these individuals that are ruining others' games. Throwing games was one of the main topics that was discussed, one that players hope the new system will fix so that they can play their ranked matches without worrying about a teammate having a rough day and putting them at a disadvantage.

Some players suggested a player review process that other games have popularized where several players are able to review one game and decide if the defendant's actions warrant a punishment, but others were more worried about whether or not an updated system would be coming to consoles as well.

There are no details on what the punishment system update might entail, but news of the changes will likely be coming soon, according to Kaplan.