Overwatch is bringing back the original 2-2-2 team format as part of its Season 6 Competitive play. After 4 years of 5v5 battles, the 6v6 Role Queue, originally introduced in 2019, is returning to the game. While some players adjusted to the less chaotic 5v5 format and came to appreciate it more than the initial 6v6 mode, Blizzard's surveys showed that the number of users who favor 5v5 is almost the same as those who prefer 6v6. 

After Overwatch made the full switch to 5v5, many players began asking for a return to 6v6 play. As a result, Blizzard changed the number of team members in Open Queue back to 6, while still keeping 5-person teams in Role Queue. The 6v6 Open Queue play gradually became the second most-played mode by Season 5. In the meantime, countless devoted Role Queue players kept wondering if 6v6 Role Queue would ever be back – and now, it finally is, with caution.

As Keller mentioned, the change from 5 to 6 players in the Open Queue required a significant number of balance adjustments. With 6v6 Role Queue coming to Overwatch 2, Blizzard promises an "impactful, specific balance patch for 6v6." 

"We don't have any intention of moving the main mode of Overwatch to 6v6, but we're starting to think of it as a second among equals," Keller concluded. Season 6, where we'll see the long-awaited return of the 6v6 Role Queue, starts on December 8, 2026. Aside from the revamped 6v6 Role Queue, it's bringing the next Overwatch Hero that will be revealed during the OWCS Finals Broadcast.

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