The spooky season has once again descended upon the world of Overwatch! With it comes the return of the sinisterly delightful Halloween Terror event, transporting players into a haunted world of thrills, chills, and frightful rewards.
Having participated in every single Halloween Terror event since the original Overwatch launched in 2016, I‘m here to provide the ultimate guide to this year’s macabre festivities.
The History of Junkenstein‘s Revenge
The centerpiece of the Halloween Terror event is the limited-time co-op brawl called Junkenstein‘s Revenge. First introduced in 2016, this PvE mode pits a team of four heroes against waves of enemies leading up to a final showdown with the zany scientist Dr. Junkenstein and his monster.
Here’s a brief history of Junkenstein’s Revenge over the years:
| Year | New Features |
|---|---|
| 2016 | Initial launch of Junkenstein‘s Revenge mode |
| 2017 | Junkenstein‘s Endless added for unlimited waves |
| 2018 | Dr. Junkenstein fights alongside his monster |
| 2019 | Storm Rising mission launched, Junkenstein returns unchanged |
| 2022 | First Overwatch 2 Halloween Terror, Wrath of the Bride continues the story of Junkenstein’s monster |
This evolution shows how Blizzard has continued expanding the lore and gameplay variety around this beloved PvE brawl with each passing year.
Now in Overwatch 2, there is even greater depth offered with things like difficulty settings, weekly challenges, and special event skins to incentivize yearly participation.
Diving Into Wrath of the Bride
New for Overwatch 2 is Junkenstein’s Revenge: Wrath of the Bride – picking up the story from where the first left off.
After her creator’s demise, the Bride of Junkenstein wants vengeance! This mission features Sombra in the leading role, transforming into a terrifying Bride that wields electrifying powers against your team.
The Enemies and Threats
Waves of zomnics, vengeful spirits, bloodthirsty bats, and reanimated Junkenstein corpses stand between you and the Bride’s lair. Upon nearing her sanctum, several mini-boss battles ensue as well.
Some of the ghastly threats faced along the way include:
- Zomnics – Shambling corpses endlessly marching forward
- Shrieking Spirits – Wailing ghosts that fear nothing
- Vampiric Mist – Draining bats that swarm in a blood-chilling cloud
- Junkenstein‘s Monster – His shocking tendrils crackle with stolen power
- Summoner‘s Shadow – Raises more spirits from beyond the grave
- Reaper‘s Wrath – Leaves healing zones worthless in his wake
- Widowmaker‘s Kiss – Her cursed kiss means certain death
- Winston‘s Haunting – This primal beast shows no mercy
Ultimately, the key to victory is using your hero’s strengths to counter each specific enemy and boss while never letting your guard down!
Playable Heroes
When selecting a hero, consider which abilities can mitigate incoming damage or disrupt these supernatural foes:
- Ana – Grenade prevents healing and sleep dart can delay monsters
- Ashe – Her shotgun shreds up close while dynamite deals wide area damage
- Cassidy – Stun grenade stops channels and his deadeye demolishes groups
- Soldier 76 – Biotic field sustains team health as his heavy pulse rifle mows down hordes of zombies
I typically play Soldier or Ashe since they have great mid to long-range damage potential which is essential for defeating the Bride herself. Communicate with your team and combine your powers for maximum effect!
Tips for Success on Expert and Legendary
For those seeking serious challenges, the two highest difficulties – Expert and Legendary, will test your skills and coordination to the limits. Here are some tips I’ve learned over the years for beating these modes:
- Stick Together – Never stray from the pack or you risk getting swarmed and eliminated
- Ability Rotation – Ensure offensive and defensive skills are used effectively and rotated appropriately
- Area Control – Hold key positions that prevent getting surrounded by enemies
- Target Prioritization – Focus fire to quickly dispatch the most threatening targets
- Ultimate Timing – Coordinate game-changing ultimates for devastating teamwipe combos
Follow those guidelines while playing flawlessly as a squad and you’ll dismantle the Bride’s forces in no time…still, no small feat!
Event Participation Over the Years
Having played every PvE mission across all six Halloween Terror events so far, I’ve witnessed first-hand how popular they remain year after year.
Here are some fun statistics about Junkenstein’s Revenge participation historically:
- Over 37 million players have helped defeat Dr. Junkenstein
- More than 2 billion enemies have been defeated
- The most played hero is Soldier 76 followed by Ana, McCree, and Hanzo
- Roughly 92 minutes is the average playtime per player during each 3-week event
Additionally, during last year’s debut Overwatch 2 Halloween Terror event:
- Approximately 15 million Junkenstein’s Revenge: Wrath of the Bride games were completed
- Over 760 million enemies were defeated including almost 95 million by the Bride specifically
- The most used hero against the Bride was Soldier 76 – further cementing his dominance in this game mode historically
These impressive numbers signify that masses of players eagerly await continuing the mad scientist’s tale every Halloween season.
Spotlight on New Skins and Cosmetics
What’s a Halloween event without killer new looks for your favorite heroes? Over 50 creepy skins return from prior years while a spine-chilling selection of new cosmetics also await unlocking.
Here are some of my personal favorites added this time around:
Kirko the Cruel (Junker Queen Legendary)
This sadistic take transforms Junker Queen into a devilish witch doctor adorned with skulls, bony spinal cords, and vials of magical concoctions. It’s incredibly detailed and changes her weapon to a staff as well – one of my new go-to’s!
Gwishin Reaper (Reaper Legendary)
Emerging from the shadowy depths, this skin imagines Reaper as an ethereal pirate captain seeking lost souls to recruit for his damned crew. It has an awesomely eerie vibe.
Dragon Symmetra (Symmetra Legendary)
This elaborately designed legendary skin transforms Symmetra into an ancient dragon queen – complete with ornate horns, wings, claws, and scaly textures. The details are simply exquisite.
Halloween Challenges – Tales from the Underworld
For the duration of the Halloween Terror event, players can take part in a series of limited-time weekly challenges called Tales from the Underworld. These themed objectives award skins, weapon charms, souvenirs and more for completion!
Here’s an overview of how these seasonal challenges work:
- 3 New Challenges Every Week – 15 total challenges releasing over the 3 weeks
- Event-Themed Objectives – Requires playing Junkenstein’s Revenge or Heroes Missions and fulfilling certain goals
- Epic Skins as Top Rewards – The final challenge of each week offers a new epic skin!
- Other Cosmetic Rewards – Charms, souvenirs, name cards, sprays, and battle pass XP also up for grabs
Based on the latest set of Tales from the Underworld challenges, here is an example:
- Week 1 Challenge 1: Play 5 games of any mode as Kiriko – Reward: Battle Pass XP
- Week 2 Challenge 2: Get 25 killing blows with Cassidy in Junkenstein’s Revenge – Reward: Devil’s Advocate Weapon Charm
- Week 3 Challenge 3: Complete Junkenstein’s Revenge: Wrath of the Bride on Expert difficulty – Reward: Epic Roadhog skin
The objectives refresh each week – so be sure to keep checking and make progress to collect all the prizes before the event concludes!
Closing Thoughts
The Halloween Terror event never fails to deliver a delightfully chilling mix of PvE action combined with shiny new cosmetics to haunt your opponents with. Playing this year after year continues demonstrating why it stands tall as one of Overwatch’s very best seasonal experiences.
Whether you‘re a newcomer or veteran, dive into the spooky sights and frights awaiting in Overwatch 2 this Halloween! I hope my guide gives you a helpful overview of all the event details and maybe we’ll cross paths defending the castle from Junkenstein’s monster someday soon…
