Okay, so I’ve been seeing this question pop up a lot: “Do you need Nintendo Switch Online to play Overwatch 2?” I figured I’d jump in and share my experience, ’cause I literally just went through this whole thing.
I grabbed Overwatch 2 the second it dropped – totally free, which was awesome. I downloaded that sucker, got all hyped up, and…bam! I was thinking if I needed to subscribe to something.
My Experiment process
First things first, I tried to jump straight into a quick play match. You know, just testing the waters. I got into it!
- Booted up the Switch.
- Selected Overwatch 2 from the main menu.
- Went to the “Play” option.
- Chose “Quick Play.”
- Boom, i just got into a game.
I played a few rounds, no problem at all. No pop-ups asking for a subscription, no error messages, nothing. It just…worked. I even tried a few different modes – same deal.
So, based on my little experiment, the short answer is no. You don’t need to have the membership to enjoy some Overwatch 2. It looks like the whole “free-to-play” thing really means free-to-play, at least for the basic online multiplayer.
Now, I haven’t dug into every single corner of the game yet. There are a few things and maybe some special events or modes might need a subscription. But for the core experience, that good ol’ Overwatch shooting and team play, you’re good to go without it.
