For weeks, an Overwatch exploit that lets players use Mei’s ice wall ability to get outside levels and become invincible has been wreaking havoc on 3v3. Good and righteous players who abhor cheating in all its ghastly forms are sick of it. After prolonged silence, Blizzard’s finally said they’re gonna do something about it.
Blizzard’s plan, announced by game director Jeff Kaplan on Overwatch’s forums, has two components: 1) eradicating the exploit and 2) “aggressively” punishing people who use it. The first part should happen today, but Kaplan’s not 100 percent certain the fix will get the job done. “There is always the chance that our fix could fail,” he said. “We’re currently testing to verify the fix.”
This particular exploit was, according to Kaplan, “surprisingly tricky for us to track down,” which is why it was able to metastasize into such a behemoth of a problem. Make no mistake, though: players who’ve decided to treat 3v3 like a lawless land won’t get off scot-free.
“We will be taking action against those who abused this exploit,” said Kaplan. “Overwatch is a PvP experience so that means exploiting game mechanics like this comes at a cost to those you are competing against. We take aggressive action against people who abuse game mechanics, hack or cheat. This case is no different.”
Kaplan went on to apologize for how long the whole process has taken. “Apologies that this bug lingered for as long as it did,” he said. “Hopefully this should go away soon (along with those who abused it).”