Overwatch 2 players can’t actually play due to DDOS attack

This story about ruining a good time, boiled down, in 1:26 minutes.

What’s the fuss?

An anticipated sequel’s release day was marred by a hack that left players in the dust.

The situation

After 6 years, the popular first-person hero shooter game Overwatch finally got a sequel.

• The aptly titled Overwatch 2 brings numerous changes from its predecessor, such as becoming free-to-play and introducing new competitive game modes.
• Although many see this as less of a sequel and more of an update, the game has seen generally positive initial reviews.

Millions of players excited to get their hands on Overwatch 2 couldn’t access the game in the first place.

• A DDoS attack on Overwatch 2’s servers caused extremely long matchmaking times, meaning players ended up waiting idly for upwards of more than an hour.
• At the time of writing, the game’s developers are still working to fully restore the game’s functionality.

Boiling it down

A DDoS (Distributed Denial-of-Service) attack is sort of like people crowding the entrance of a store, making it hard for legitimate customers to enter.

• Specifically, it’s a cybercrime in which the hacker floods a server with traffic to prevent real users from connecting to it.
• These attacks are usually done against large online organizations, such as shopping sites and online casinos.

DDoS attacks are too prevalent in online gaming, affecting even the biggest organizations.

• Such attacks against gaming often occur around Christmas, in which hackers seem to revel in disrupting the delight of enjoying a new game.

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