Overwatch is soon introducing a new in-game currency for real money. This is for exclusive skins that are not available in loot boxes!
With the Overwatch League, Blizzard is trying to create its own ecosystem for large-scale eSports. The best Overwatch teams in the world are supposed to compete against each other to find out who will take home the prize money (and a lot of fame and glory).
To ensure that the matches are exciting and understandable for viewers, all official teams will have their own skins. These skins act like “jerseys” and ensure that even in the hectic chaos, it is always clear who just threw the Pulse Bomb and whose D.Va explosion is currently sending shockwaves across the battlefield.
League Tokens for Real Money
Nate Nanzer from the Overwatch League explained in a short video that players can also grab the skins. There is a new currency for this, the so-called League Tokens. These tokens can be purchased for real money.
Thus, Overwatch will have another in-game currency in addition to Credits and Competitive Points, which is used to unlock skins.
The reason for the tokens, according to Nanzer, is that Blizzard can easily keep track of which skins were purchased since part of the purchase price benefits the corresponding teams.
The release of the Overwatch League skins is expected to happen early in 2018.
However, all players will receive enough League Tokens to buy at least one of the skins directly. It was not mentioned whether players can earn additional tokens. This also seems rather unlikely.
Cortyn says: To be honest, I am quite glad that the Overwatch League skins can only be bought for real money and not in the usual loot boxes – because I am not interested in them at all. I would be disappointed if I found the seventeenth color scheme for Zenyatta in every box. Therefore, I view the system with a shrug. Those who love their team will surely buy a few skins. It probably doesn’t bother the others much.
What do you think of the team skins for real money? Would you have liked to see them in regular loot boxes?
