Jeff Kaplan Calls Overwatch 2 “One of My Biggest Mistakes,” Citing Devs Who “Didn’t Like PvP” and Executive Pressure for Troubled Development

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He learned the hard way about putting a timeline in front of a higher-up

Overwatch 2 had a rocky development, with some PvE elements cut and tensions over the release schedule. Former director Jeff Kaplan reflects on the experience as one of his biggest mistakes as a creative leader.

Points of failure

Kaplan highlighted two main issues on the Lex Fridman podcast:

  1. Team preferences: Some developers loved the Overwatch universe but preferred co-op, campaign-driven gameplay over PvP. They wanted to enjoy the heroes on their own terms rather than focus solely on competitive shooters.

  2. Management pressures: Kaplan admits that he mishandled the release timeline, essentially putting a schedule in front of higher-ups, which created additional friction and stress during development.

The combination of conflicting team vision and external pressure contributed to the challenges Overwatch 2 faced before launch. :high_voltage::video_game: