Merely two days away from release, Blizzard Entertainment decided to treat fans of Overwatch 2 to the beauty of the Arctic Peninsula map. Unlike the previous seasons, Overwatch 2's season 3 will be a bit different from what players have come to expect from the developers. While the last two seasons have released multiple heroes and playable spaces, Season 3 will only focus on one map as the prime feature.The seasonal model in Overwatch 2 differs only slightly from other games as its seasonal cycle runs for only nine weeks. In Seasons 1 and 2, Blizzard released multiple maps and four new heroes to the game's already massive roster. Currently, the game utilizes a pool system where the number of maps available is limited, as Blizzard works on fixing and tweaking the ones that are in the inactive roster. This decision hasn't flown particularly well with the community and Blizzard will soon be removing this feature in Season 4. But players do not have to worry about Arctic Peninsula, as this map will be the primary focus of Season 3.Overwatch 2's official Twitter page released a bunch of screenshots showcasing the gorgeous vistas of the map from different points of view. In the first few screenshots, players can see research equipment and vehicles dotted around the massive complex, lying in disarray while the Aurora Australis shimmers in the sky. In the fourth screenshot, the entire research station can be seen, which is where the hero Mei was stationed during her fateful cryogenic accident. In one of the latter screenshots, players can see the native inhabitants of the map. Penguins will be a feature of this map, alongside Overwatch 2's interesting spin on fishing in games. The final screenshots show some of the interior spaces of the map, where players will be engaging in combat.
As mentioned before, Arctic Peninsula is the prime feature of Season 3 and that means Blizzard will be working extra hard to pack the map full of details. Mei, being an integral part of Overwatch and having connections to Arctic Peninsula, might have new voice lines in her vocabulary for just this map. There might be even references to other maps and characters to be released in the latter seasons. It is entirely possible that featured maps like this will become an integral part of the Overwatch 2 PvE campaign mode that is under development, considering how much work Blizzard is putting into Arctic Peninsula.
Arctic Peninsula is the first of many such maps that will be coming to Overwatch 2 in the coming seasons. For now, players have to hold their breaths for a little while longer, as the reveal trailer for Season 3 will likely come on February 6. Arctic Peninsula will be playable when Season 3 launches on February 7, alongside a brand-new battle pass containing a plethora of Overwatch 2 cosmetic items and a new Mythic skin for Kiriko.
Overwatch 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.