Overwatch 2 feels the love with Loverwatch dating sim

Overwatch 2 is getting into the romantic spirit with Loverwatch, a dating sim officially created by Blizzard. With the current third season, the standalone PC game lasts just for Valentine's Day and sees players choose to romance either Mercy or Genji, two of the hero shooter's biggest characters. 

Like Dream Daddy, it's presented in a visual novel format, and features Hanzo (dressed as Cupid, obviously) as a wingman helping the player choose their one true love. It's non-canon and only half an hour, but since popular games make "we've made a dating sim" a recurring April Fools joke, it's notable that Blizzard decided to make an actual dating sim. 

Speaking to Wired, Blizzard's senior narrative designer Miranda Moyer said it was important to ensure that Loverwatch wouldn't restrict players to a particular sexual orientation or kind of relationship. "An actual design philosophy that we went into this game with was making it open to as many people as possible," she said. 

Moyer wrote the Genji portion of the game, and added that it was important to "hit home on the kind of head-empty golden retriever energy."

For Kyungseo Min, who wrote Mercy's storyline, she approached the character with her personal lore in perspective. "She was probably so busy getting two PhDs before the age of 18 that she probably didn't have much time to socialize," said Min. "Mercy's so awkward. [...] But she's still so sure of herself."

Loverwatch may not be a one-and-done event

Looking to the future, Blizzard said that any of Overwatch 2's 36 characters (at time of writing) would be viable for future installments of Loverwatch. Marketing manager Beth Bryson said that if this first incarnation takes off with players, "absolutely the hope would be that we will be able to potentially expand this experience in the future."

Throughout the lifetime of Overwatch 1, Blizzard held a variety of seasonal events that extended the longevity of the game. While it's likely some of those events will return in Overwatch 2, the sequel deserves to have events exclusive to itself. 

When asked by Wired, Bryson said she would like to see new hero Ramratta added to the Loverwatch cast. "He's so angsty! We stan an angsty omnic," she said. 

Min expressed interest in an older hero, Wrecking Ball from Overwatch 1. "I had this whole outline in my head of just like, Hammond is the parent and there's a curfew. And you help the mech understand human emotions and help it translate what it means to embark on the journey of love.”