Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan took to Reddit last night to answer a commendable number of questions from the community about the state of Overwatch, the direction it's headed, working at Blizzard, and even fielded personal questions about his journey to game development, life in general, and just getting by in this crazy, crazy world.
We've assembled some of the choicest answers below, but you can pick through the whole AMA on Reddit.
"I am looking forward to seeing how the barrier changes play out from the PTR once they go live. We've seen that Winston in the hands of the right player -- like Miro for example -- can be amazing. I think going too overboard with Winston buffs on the eve of Orisa's release is not wise. So we need to proceed with caution here. We don't want barriers or tanks getting out of hand. Winston is the least picked hero in the game in case you were wondering."
"Right now we're trying some stuff with Lucio. We feel like a lot of players feel like he is a "must have" in comps but he also doesn't feel super impactful to play. We're trying some ideas to make him more engaging to play while making him a little less obvious/must pick. We'll see if those changes make it to the PTR."
Let's face it, collecting legendary skins for your favorite hero is half the reason most people play Overwatch. For you Widow-mains out there, Kaplan's simple response when asked if/when Widowmaker was getting a new legendary skin was, "Soon. Worth the wait."
When asked about the feature to gift loot boxes (the coveted rewards for gaining a level and winning matches), Kaplan said, "working on it." Are you feeling generous?
"We were working on a game that got cancelled. We had 6 weeks to pitch new game ideas to the studio. If we didn't come up with something compelling, our team was going to be redistributed to work on other projects (WoW, HS, HotS, D3 etc). Arnold Tsang was drawing these amazing characters. And during some of our game idea sessions Geoff Goodman was pitching really cool class ideas for a class-based MMO. We merged these concepts into what was to become Overwatch."
You can learn more about the origin of Overwatch in IGN's 3-part 'Making of'videoseries.
I never knew "game development" was a job. I just thought smart programmers made games... and talented artists. There were no game development programs in school. I just loved games. It wasn't until my late 20's that I realized that I had a chance to make games. I sort of dropped everything I was doing and totally changed careers. I was 29 when I started working on games.
"Right now? Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It's a masterpiece." We totally agree, and you can find out why it's a masterpiece in the IGN The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild review.
"I've mellowed out a lot. I spend a lot more time trying to really listen to and understand other people. I think I spent a lot of my life thinking I was right about everything but as I get older I realize how little I was actually right about. I think I appreciate the little things in life a lot more as I get older and am less focused on how others perceive me. I think about gaming all the time.
I think I've gotten good at taking critical feedback. But literally everything I read affects me on a personal level.
"As much as it is true that some developers don't understand their players, I think it's even more true that most players don't understand what it's like to make games.... or really to have any job where everything you do is openly and constantly criticized by a large amount of people. I think I've gotten good at taking critical feedback. But literally everything I read affects me on a personal level. I worry about my teammates in this regard. I think they are awesome and it makes me really upset when someone criticizes them unfairly.
"I'm a lot happier now that I was in my teens and twenties. I wish I could convince everyone who is young and feels unhappy to hang in there and chase your passions -- things really do get better and there is so much awesome in this world we live in."
"This is going to sound canned but I fall in love with a different hero each week. I think that's one of my favorite parts about OW. I totally get "maining" and I have heroes I play more than others... but I'm constantly discovering new things about different heroes on different maps... and then of course there is their backstories etc... Also, every time Hanamura comes up I will only play Hanzo on defense. Because... roleplay... meet me on the porch, Genji."
"We make games to make players happy... not to win awards. With that said, I was extremely happy for my team that they were recognized. They were so loyal and dedicated... and they worked so hard. It made me feel really good that they received some recognition for their efforts."
Brandin Tyrrel is an Editor at IGN. He's interviewed Jeff Kaplan four times in his career and can honestly say he's the nicest man. You can follow him on Twitter at @BrandinTyrrel.
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