Overwatch 2 Stadium Summer Roadmap Revealed by Blizzard

Blizzard Entertainment has revealed an exciting roadmap for Overwatch 2's Stadium mode, spanning Season 17, Season 18, Season 19, and beyond in 2025. In a comprehensive Director’s Take blog post, game director Aaron Keller shared insights into the mode’s past, present, and future, along with a surprise summer roadmap that has been available for just over a week.

Stadium Gets 7 New Heroes This Summer

The rollout of Stadium will continue 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 significant enhancements. Heroes like Junkrat, Sigma, and Zenyatta will join the playable roster, accompanied by the Esperança Push map and Samoa Control map. Blizzard plans to enhance the mode further with features such as Unranked Crossplay, new all-star rewards, custom games, additional example builds, and options to save and share builds. It remains uncertain whether all these additions will be available at the start of Season 17 or staggered throughout the season.

Season 18 will see the addition of Winston, Sojourn, and Brigitte as playable characters, along with the Route 66 and London maps. A new Payload Race game mode will also be introduced, featuring two new maps and a Stadium trials feature. Players will have the ability to Endorse teammates, adding a social element to the gameplay.

Looking ahead to Season 19 and beyond, Blizzard plans to introduce multiple new heroes, including both existing 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?

Stadium has quickly become Overwatch 2's most played mode, surpassing Quick Play and Competitive with 2.3 million matches and 7.8 million hours played during its launch week. This is more than double the engagement seen during Overwatch Classic’s launch week. Interesting stats highlight Lucio as the hero with the highest win rate yet the lowest pick rate, while players have collectively spent 900 billion Stadium Cash on 206 million items for their builds.

Keller clarified that Stadium's development began before Overwatch 2 launched, dispelling rumors that it was created to compete with Marvel Rivals, which launched in December 2024. He promised continued communication with more insights into Stadium in the upcoming week.

Despite Stadium's popularity, Blizzard remains committed to maintaining other core experiences like Quick Play and Competitive. Keller emphasized, "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."

Overwatch 2 introduced Stadium in Season 16 as part of Blizzard’s efforts to reinvigorate its player base, following an all-encompassing Spotlight presentation in February. This initiative has led to the return of loot boxes and an improved Steam rating, with players celebrating what some feel is 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.