'Overwatch' Patch That Requires a Reinstall Is A "Remaster" Update, According to Blizzard

We recently shared a statement from the Blizzard team about an upcoming Overwatch update that is apparently so big, it requires players to reinstall the game entirely. Now the studio has offered a little more clarification on why the next patch is so monumental.

In an email to Kotaku, a Blizzard representative mentioned that the new update will be a "remaster" patch designed to make everything better in the game including loading times, memory optimization, bug fixes "across many maps," console reworks, and change how the data "supports future content." With the confirmation that there are 6 confirmed new heroes on the way, it's clear that the studio has a lot of plans for their shooter.

As for the previous statement from the studio that started it all, Blizzard took to the Overwatch forums to debut the latest news of a huge update on the horizon. "We wanted to get ahead of this early and let you all know what to expect with our next big patch," began the team in their latest post. We don't currently have a release date/time with this, but will update this thread once we do."

They added, "The next major patch will have some pretty fundamental changes to the game client. The number of back-end changes we're putting in is substantial enough that we can't just patch over the current content efficiently. As a result, when the next patch comes out, the client will fully reinstall itself to handle these changes. We know that this isn't ideal for people on metered connections, so hopefully this announcement helps you prepare for this coming update."

As we've mentioned previously, one of the aspects of Overwatch that keeps it going so strong is that almost every month since launch, there's something new going on. Whether it be a new tie-in comic, an animated short, or teasers of a new map/hero - there's always something going on. Pair that with the constant rotation of new events with even more rewards to earn, and it's easy to see why players just can't seem to quit this online game. While the constant devotion is admirable, it is also the reason that Blizzard has stated they aren't going to be working on a sequel any time soon. And you know what? We're OK with that because there is still so much to explore with the current roster of heroes and their intricate past with Blackwatch.

Reinstall or no, we're excited to see what else the Overwatch team has up their sleeves.