By Jacob Miller | Apr 10, 2026
Voting on Maps in Season 2 Will Be DifferentAaron Keller, the Game Director, has recently shared details about how players will be able to choose maps in the new Reign of Talon Season 2, which starts on April 14. Changes are being made to make it easier to choose and get to maps, which will make the whole experience better.
There are a number of changes coming that will make the rules for new or reworked maps more "forgiving." For example, players who lose matches on new or reworked maps will have a lower penalty (a slower rank progression) in Competitive mode. This is good timing because each season will have at least one new or updated map.
The voting system will also be getting updates. If a certain number of players vote for a certain map, it will be automatically chosen. Players can now vote for a "Random Map" on the voting board. This lets them choose a map that isn't one of the usual options. Now, there will be a label on the actual map cards that tells players which teams are attacking and defending on the maps. This will help players understand their map better before they play.
Blizzard is looking at how the maps will be shown in rotation in the background. Maps that got votes might look different from maps that didn't get votes. This gives players a better chance of voting for the maps they want to see in the game.
In Season 2, there will also be new maps, like an updated version of the Antarctic Peninsula. Season 3 will see the release of new maps like Japan Night and others (like Iceland and Atlantic Arcology) very soon after that.
Adding new social features and ways to recognize people
Blizzard has also changed the social part of Overwatch in Season 2. After a competitive match, the Endorsement System will no longer be used. Instead, there will be a new Post-Match Accolade system. After a competitive match, players will go to a 3D lobby view to vote for a "MVP" from each of their teams.
Also, new features will let players talk to their opponents after the match to encourage communication with that player and give players a chance to recognize other players for their outstanding play during the match. Post-Match Accolades has some features in common with older, more reliable voting systems that were very popular before Overwatch 2 came out.
Hero Ban System Improvements Are Coming
Blizzard hasn't given a specific date for when the changes to the Hero Ban system will happen, but they are currently working on them. Some possible improvements include being able to see players' hero preferences when they vote to ban someone in the lobby or being able to ban five (5) players when voting to ban a member of that team.
Blizzard hasn't said when these changes will go into effect, but they are aiming for late 2026. Blizzard keeps saying that all updates could change, but they are still focused on making Competitive play better.
In short, the goal of Overwatch Season 2 is to keep making the gameplay and social systems better based on Blizzard's successful relaunch of Overwatch and to give players a more balanced and interactive experience while they play.
