In the “Top 500” of Overwatch 2, a thorough cleanup has taken place. Numerous cheaters are gone – and this time for good.
When Blizzard says that they will soon take action against cheaters, hackers, and fraudsters, it only elicits a weary smile from many fans. This has been heard many times before, and often nothing happens for a long time. But this time it was different. Almost “overnight,” the developers launched a massive ban wave. The target: nasty cheaters on PlayStation and Xbox. The uproar is enormous and sweet as honey for honest players.
How did the players cheat? On consoles, there is a method called “Ximming.” This involves using specific hardware to also use a keyboard and mouse on the console. While using a keyboard and mouse is generally not prohibited in many games, that changes when it comes to “Ximming.”
The nasty part is that the XIM device tricks the console into believing that a gamepad is still being used instead of a keyboard and mouse. This allows for options to be used that are actually not permitted – such as aim assist in Overwatch 2.
As a result, these cheaters have the superior precision and control of a mouse and keyboard (in shooters) while still benefiting from aim assist, which is only intended for gamepads.
This makes it incredibly easy to achieve a high rank in shooters.
Especially with characters like Ashe or Widowmaker, snipers with great “one-hit potential,” this can be easily exploited. This led to many cheaters being found in the Top 500 or even Top 50 of their respective region.
How long does the ban last? If you look around on various social media, most “Ximmers” seem to be permanently banned – that is, their accounts have been permanently closed, and Overwatch 2 is no longer accessible with the respective account.
These are the consequences for fair players: An amusing side effect is that many players were “just like that” promoted into the Top 500 after the cheaters were banned, realizing that they suddenly belong to the best in their region. This is hardly surprising when a large portion of the previous Top 500 consisted of cheaters who now had to vacate the field.
The community has given a lot of praise for the action and the fact that decisive measures were finally taken. Such good vibes are rare in Overwatch 2, as there is almost always a controversial issue each season. Not long ago, there was a very embarrassing mistake in an official trailer.
