It's going to be a big week for Overwatch next week. Blizzard has announced that they are celebrating the game's first anniversary with an in-game event next week. The event kicks off on Tuesday, May 23.
Blizzard has yet to reveal the full details of the anniversary event. But they did tease on Twitter that three new Arena maps are set to arrive during the big event.
In addition to the anniversary event, there will be an Overwatch Free Weekend from May 26 to May 29 on all three platforms. Anyone with a PlayStation Plus membership (PS4), an Xbox Live Gold membership (Xbox One), or a Battle.net account (PC) will be eligible to download and play Overwatch for free.
All new players during the free weekend will be able to transfer their progress if they decide to buy the game afterward. But provided that they use the same account, of course.
Finally, Blizzard will also release Overwatch: Game of the Year Edition on May 23 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. This edition comes with 10 loot boxes and the following character skins: Blackwatch Reyes, Strike-Commander Morrison, Overgrown Bastion, Security Chief Phara, and Slipstream Tracer.
Goodies for other Blizzard games are also included in the package. This includes Tracer for Heroes of the Storm, a Baby Winston pet for World of Warcraft, Mercy's wings for Diablo 3, portraits for StarCraft 2, and an Overwatch-themed card back for Hearthstone.
Blizzard did not announce the price of the Game of the Year Edition, which is basically a clone of the Origins Edition in terms of bonus content - except for the extra loot boxes.
Overwatch launched May 24 last year. It is a team-based online multiplayer shooter game that's often likened to Team Fortress 2. Well, actually, many accused it as a high-budget rip-off of Team Fortress 2. Nevertheless, Overwatch still went on to receive critical acclaim, bagging several 2016 Game of the Year awards from gaming publications.
The game is currently available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Blizzard has yet to commit to a Nintendo Switch version, though they did say that the door is open for a possible port.