Activision Blizzard jumped at the bit and ended up revealing that Overwatch 2’s playable characters will only be unlocked through the game’s reward system, the Battle Pass. The post was later deleted for being “incomplete”, but it was confirmed that it will be necessary to release the heroes playing.

None of the characters, however, will be stuck in “paywall”. The Overwatch 2 Battle Pass, like many free-to-play games, will feature two “lines”, one of free rewards and the other of better rewards for those who choose to pay. According to a tweet by Jon Spector, one of the executives at Activision Blizzard, all the heroes of the game can be unlocked in the free Battle Pass line.

Addressing some incomplete info posted early about our Overwatch 2 Battle Pass – we’ll be sharing all details ahead of launch, but want to confirm that new Overwatch 2 heroes will be available on the free track of the Battle Pass.

— Jon Spector (@Spex_J) September 8, 2022

“We’ll share all the details before launch, but I want to confirm that the new Overwatch 2 heroes will be available on the free Battle Pass track,” Spector said in his tweet.

Unlike the previous game, the sequel to Overwatch decided to adopt the free-to-play model completely, so this kind of change was to be expected. The game’s producers also intend to ditch the loot boxes, which have given Actvision Blizzard legal headaches. Thus, the Battle Pass model will be the main source of income for Overwatch 2, as well as cosmetic items that players will be able to buy.

It is common in this type of format that players with the paid version of the Battle Pass have advantages to be able to release their items earlier, but it is interesting to confirm that, it may take a while, but it will be possible to have all the heroes without having to pay.

Overwatch 2 will launch on PC and consoles on October 4th.