Overwatch 2's first double XP weekend starts tomorrow but it may not help as much as you hope

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Blizzard has announced the dates for three "double match XP" weekends, two in October and one in November.

Overwatch 2 hero Kiriko
(Image credit: Activision Blizzard)

Overwatch 2 got off to a rough start when it launched on October 4, and so to make up for it Blizzard promised to hold "several" double XP weekends. Dates weren't announced at the time, but today Blizzard revealed that the first double match XP weekend starts tomorrow.

The first double match XP weekend will begin at 11 am PT/2 pm ET on October 21 and run until the same time on October 24. The second weekend will follow a week later, beginning on October 28 and running until October 31, while the third will kick off on November 24 and go until November 28—all of them beginning and ending at the same, time, 11 am PT/2 pm ET.

Does three double XP weekends count as "several?" I envisioned it as implying more, maybe four or five, but the nice thing about using the word "several" is that it really doesn't lock you down to anything: Dictionary.com defines it as meaning "more than two but fewer than many," which of course compels us to define "many," meaning "constituting or forming a large number; numerous." In other words, "several" means "more than two" and that's what we've got here, so I guess Blizzard has officially delivered.

Nonetheless, reaction to the date announcement on Reddit was not overly positive. Several users complained that it was a very low effort at recompense on Blizzard's part; others pointed out that only match XP is being doubled, while daily and weekly challenges (the stuff that gives you by far the most battle pass XP) will continue to deliver the regular amount. 

"Daily and weekly [challenge] XP levels you up literally 10x faster than match XP," g0atmeal wrote. "So unless you grind for hours in one sitting, this won't make much of a difference."

Blizzard also announced today that Halloween Terror will return to Overwatch beginning on October 25. Details on that weren't announced, but previous Halloween Terror events included new cosmetics, weekly icon, spray, and skin rewards, and the Junkenstein's Revenge co-op horde mode.

Andy Chalk
Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.