The Winter Wonderland event has made its way to Overwatch 2. This is the second-holiday event to hit the game since its switch to a sequel.
This time, players can look forward to battling in some returning limited-time modes themed around the holiday season and a shop refresh including a bunch of new Christmas and winter-themed cosmetics. There’s also a brand new Epic Skin for Brigitte that is earnable for free during the event.
Here’s how Winter Wonderland 2022 works in Overwatch 2.
Want more Overwatch 2 content and articles? You can find more here on KeenGamer:
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- Overwatch 2: How to Play Zarya
- Overwatch 2: How to Play Symmetra
- The 3 Do’s and Don’ts of Battle Passes in Modern Gaming
Winter Wonderland 2022 Start and End Date
The Winter Wonderland seasonal event runs from December 13th 2022 until the 4th of January 2023. From now until then, players can access a variety of limited-timed modes and seasonal challenges themed around the holiday season.
The shop will also be cycling through various Christmas-themed wares and accessories, similar to how it worked in the Junkenstein’s Revenge Halloween Event. This does include some brand-new accessories like a gingerbread-themed Bastion skin.
An additional notice. Any player who logs into Overwatch 2 between December 20th and January 4th will receive the Festive Wreath Weapon Charm and Winter Wonderland 2023 Player Icon.
Winter Wonderland
Limited Time Modes
This year for Winter Wonderland, Overwatch 2 has four distinct limited-time modes available for players. All 4 of these LTMs can be found in the Arcade node for the duration of the event. Those four modes are:
- Mei’s Snowball Offensive: All players gear up as Mei, but instead of her standard icicles she fires off one hit KO snowballs. There are two versions of this LTM – 6v6 Elimination or 8-Player FFA Deathmatch.
- Yeti Hunter: This game mode pits 5 payers against 1 in a unique boss fight styled after games like Evolve. 5 Mei’s are set against a Yeti Winston who is constantly trying to steal meat. Use your ice to try to trap him, or prepare to run as he goes into a frenzied state.
- Freezethaw Elimination: Think freeze-tag, but Overwatch. In this mode, your goal is to freeze all of your opponents by defeating them while avoiding becoming an icicle yourself. This mode is 4v4 and the first team to freeze all of their opponents wins.
Aside from being a fun seasonal distraction from regular Quick Play or Competitive, you will have to engage with these modes for a few reasons. Perhaps the most important is that these LTMs are your ticket to unlocking all of the new Winter Wonderland 2022 cosmetics.
Limited Time Modes
Free Ice Queen Brigitte Skin
Following feedback from Junkenstein’s Revenge event in October, Winter Wonderland features a free skin that players can earn through gameplay. This is the new Ice Queen Brigitte skin.
This Epic Skin is based on Brigitte’s Overwatch 2 base skin. Her hair turns white, her armour gains an icy effect and she even gets back her classic crown. This is the first free skin players can earn from Events in Overwatch 2, with more to come during Season 2.
Ice Queen Brigitte
To get the Ice Queen Skin, you need to complete 6 Winter Wonderland Challenges. Some of these offer Battle Pass EXP as bonus rewards, while others offer unique sprays based on the newest Heroes to join the Overwatch roster. The challenges you need to complete are:
- Unthawed: Win a game in Freezethaw Elimination.
- Warmhearted: Thaw 15 allies in Freezethaw Elimination. (Additional Reward: Kirko Spray)
- Snowstorm: Win a game in Snowball Deathmatch.
- Caught a Cold: Catch 6 snowballs in Snowball Deathmatch. (Additional Reward: Junker Queen Spray)
- Monster Hunter: Win a game in Yeti Hunter as Mei.
- Abominable: Win a game in Yeti Hunter as Yeti. (Additional Reward: Ramattra Spray)
- Time for Coco: Win a game in Mei’s Snowball Offensive.
- Block of Ice: Block 8 snowballs with Cryo-Freeze or Ice Wall in Snowball Deathmatch or Mei’s Snowball Offensive. (Additional Reward: Sojourn Spray)
Complete any 6 of these challenges and you will earn the Ice Queen Brigitte Skin as well as the Snowman Head Weapon Charm. You have the entire 3-week duration of the event to complete these challenges and net yourself that skin.
Winter Wonderland
New Holiday Twitch Drops
Lastly, new Twitch drops have been added to celebrate the holiday season. To obtain these rewards, your Battle.Net account needs to be linked to your Twitch account.
If you watch 2 hours of Overwatch-affiliated Twitch streamers from December 25th to January 4th, you will net yourself the Festive D.Va Victory Pose. Then, if you watch 6 hours in total, you will also get the Sleighing D.Va Legendary Skin.
That is everything you need to know about the new Winter Wonderland Event in Overwatch 2. A quick reminder that this event will last from December 13th to January 4th, so get in there, earn that new Brigitte skin and have some festive fun.
