Finding the best Overwatch 2 settings is a quick and easy way to improve your performance in the Blizzard online multiplayer game. After reporting issues such as not being able to clearly hear sound cues for incoming enemy abilities, or struggling to parse the direction enemy footsteps are coming from, some players have suggested that one particular tweak to the FPS game’s sound settings could make a big difference to your success.
Players on the Competitive Overwatch Reddit say that they have been running into issues with missing sound queues that meant they weren’t hearing certain enemies sneak up on them or shoot them from behind. Obviously this can cause plenty of problems, as it can be quite difficult to notice that you’re being hit in the back unless you happen to spot your health bar plummeting. Others say that the newly overhauled gun sounds, while offering something a bit meatier than the first game’s weapons, can sometimes overwhelm the sound of footsteps.
In response, numerous comments suggest trying out the ‘night mode’ setting found under audio mix. Night mode is typically designed for use, well, at night – the idea being that it softens the dynamic range of the audio balancing in an attempt to make more important sounds stand out clearly at a lower volume. “Honestly found the audio far superior in Overwatch 2, changing to night mode is a game changer,” reports one commenter, saying they are “hearing and pointing out various flankers with ease” after making the adjustment.
This adjustment was also picked up on by some players during the beta period. Those who have tried night mode out say that it decreases a lot of the low-end reverb and bassy sounds, which can often overwhelm the sound of player footsteps. One player remarks that “It doesn’t sound as nice but does provide a competitive advantage.” Personally, we’ve found it quite a boon – making it far easier to tell when enemies are flanking around the side and giving a quick alert to our teammates with the new Overwatch 2 ping system.
Some users say that they’ve had a lot of trouble resulting from the Dolby Atmos spatial audio settings, and recommend disabling those if you’ve found some sound cues are missing in your game. Some users say this worked well for them, though it’s important to note that it doesn’t appear to be a cast-iron solution. Another commenter remarks that the new death notification sound, which is off by default, can be very helpful to keep track on the fly of how a fight is going without having to look around you and count heads manually.
As we’ve noted, different setups may pan out differently depending upon your setup and the headphones or speakers that you use. Ultimately, the best solution is to give all the sound options a shot until you find the one that sounds best to you. While it’s easily overlooked, the competitive advantage that can be afforded by a good sound setup is impossible to overstate – so why not take a look at some of the best gaming headsets while you’re at it?
If you’re looking to get ahead, there’s no better place to start than our Overwatch 2 tier list. For a bit more customisation, why not look into the best Overwatch 2 crosshair settings? There’s also an ongoing Overwatch 2 double XP weekend to help you get the most out of the Overwatch 2 battle pass, and we’ve got all the details on the upcoming Overwatch 2 Halloween event dates. You’ll be sure to want to avoid one particular Overwatch 2 Lucio skin bug, however, as it lets enemies see you through walls.