Season 18 is the next major update coming to Overwatch 2, bringing with it a brand-new Support hero, a fresh Battle Pass, and much more.
Even by Overwatch standards, the last few updates have been absolutely huge. Season 16 introduced Stadium mode for the time, before Season 17 doubled down with the arrival of map voting and G.I. Joe crossover.
Blizzard are showing no signs of slowing down, though, as Season 18 is set to another big content drop, including a new hero joining the roster. Here’s everything we know about the update, including when it’s due to start.
Overwatch 2 Season 18 starts on Tuesday, August 26, 2025, according to the in-game timer displayed on the current Battle Pass. That being said, nothing has been officially announced by the devs just yet, so it’s possible that it could be pushed back if they need more time.
New hero Wuyang
The biggest addition this time around is Wuyang, the latest character joining the game’s lineup of heroes. The Chinese Support can manipulate water to deal damage, heal allies, and even ride a wave to get around the map quickly.
“His fluid healing, hybrid damage utility, and graceful mobility make for Support done differently,” said Blizzard when describing the new hero. “Expect a learning curve with some serious splash potential.”
Leaks have also revealed his kit, which you can check out below:
Weapons
- Primary: Xuanwu Staff
- Fire a damaging water orb. Hold to control its trajectory and empower its explosion.
- Secondary: Restorative Stream
- Place a passive healing stream on an ally. Hold on the target to manually heal at an improved rate, consuming resource.
Abilities
Guardian Wave
- Send a water wave forward that increases the amount of healing received by allies and knocks back enemies
Tidal Blast
- Ride water to move faster and jump higher.
Tidal Blast (Ultimate)
- Protect an ally or yourself with water that detonates after a short duration. The explosion knocks down enemies and massively heals the host target.
If you’re a Support main who can’t wait to try him out, a trial has been confirmed for August 14 to 18. This gives players a little time to test out his abilities before Season 18 goes live so that the devs can make any last-minute balancing changes.
Stadium heroes
After launching with a small number of available characters, three new faces are being added to Stadium mode. From August 16, you’ll be able to choose:
- Winston
- Pharah
- Brigitte
Each will have their own unique powers to unlock, allowing you to experiment with weird and wonderful builds that have never been possible before.
Mythic skin
Each new season comes with an exclusive skin to unlock, and this time around, it’s Sojourn getting the Mythic treatment. The Ultraviolet Sentinel outfit sees the DPS hero wearing cybernetic armor, which starts off completely white at level one before being upgraded into a sleek black design.
It will be available from the Mythic Shop as soon as Season 18 gets underway, but you’ll need to earn Mythic Prisms from the Battle Pass first.
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