Overwatch 2 Stadium Summer Roadmap: Blizzard Updates Fans

Blizzard Entertainment has unveiled its ambitious roadmap for Overwatch 2's Stadium mode in 2025, revealing a lineup of heroes and features planned for Season 17, Season 18, Season 19, and beyond. In a detailed Director's Take blog post, game director Aaron Keller provided insights into the mode's past, present, and future, alongside a surprise summer roadmap released shortly after Stadium's debut.

The Stadium mode will expand with the introduction of new Damage hero Freja in a mid-season patch for Season 16. However, it's Season 17 in June that promises to elevate the experience significantly. Heroes like Junkrat, Sigma, and Zenyatta will join the roster, accompanied by the new Esperança Push map and Samoa Control map.

Blizzard aims to enhance Stadium by introducing features such as Unranked Crossplay, new all-star rewards, custom games, additional example builds, and the ability to save and share builds. While it's not clear if all these additions will be available at the start of Season 17 or rolled out throughout the season, players can look forward to an enriched gameplay experience.

Season 18 will see the iconic gorilla hero Winston, along with Sojourn and Brigitte, become playable characters. New maps like Route 66 and London will be added, alongside a Payload Race game mode, which will introduce two new maps, a Stadium trials feature, and the option to Endorse teammates.

Looking ahead to Season 19 and beyond, Blizzard plans to introduce multiple new heroes from both the existing Overwatch 2 roster and unrevealed characters. A new China map, a Draft Mode feature, consumables, and item system tweaks are also in development.

Overwatch 2 Stadium summer 2025 roadmap. Image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment.

How has Stadium Performed so Far?

The Overwatch 2 team has shared impressive statistics about Stadium's performance, indicating it has surpassed Quick Play and Competitive modes in popularity. During its launch week, Stadium saw 2.3 million matches played across 7.8 million hours, doubling the engagement seen during Overwatch Classic's launch week.

Interesting data points include Lucio being the hero with the highest win rate yet the lowest pick rate, and players spending a staggering 900 billion Stadium Cash on 206 million items for their builds.

Keller's Director's Take also clarified that Stadium's development began before Overwatch 2's launch, dispelling rumors that it was created in response to Marvel Rivals, which debuted in December 2024.

"Before signing off, I'd like to reiterate the team’s commitment to the Core modes of Overwatch," Keller stated. "We’re still pouring as much time, energy, and passion into these as we always have. Stadium isn't competing for those resources: it’s giving us more opportunities to deliver Overwatch in a new, exciting way.

"We can't wait for you to see what's coming there, especially Season 18. It's going to be a banger! Have fun with Stadium and, as always, let’s make a great game."

Overwatch 2 introduced Stadium with the launch of Season 16 last week, as part of Blizzard's efforts to reinvigorate its player base. This initiative, which began with a comprehensive Spotlight presentation in February, has led to the return of loot boxes and an improved Steam rating, with many players feeling it's the best Overwatch experience in years.

While awaiting further updates, players can explore our guide on how Stadium works and check out our recommendations for the best Tank Builds, DPS Builds, and Support Builds.