Overwatch Free Weekend Coming To Xbox One, PS4 And PC November 18th

Have you managed to avoid playing Overwatch up to this point? Blizzard's crazy popular shooter has amassed 20 million players without your participation, but if you want to add to the ranks (or simply see what all the fuss is about), you'll have a chance next weekend to try it out for free. That's because Blizzard is making the full game experience free to play from November 18 to 21.

The free period begins precisely at 11 a.m. PT on Friday, November 18, and continues until 4:00 p.m. PT Monday, November 21 in all gameplay regions. During that time, players will have access to the full roster of 22 heroes and 13 maps in a bunch of different modes, including Quick Play, Custom Games, and the latest Weekly Brawl. In other words, it won't be a gimped experience—players will even be able to level up, earn Loot Boxes, and unlock different customization options.


Blizzard's free weekend applies to Overwatch on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. No keys or special codes will be needed to download and jump in. Anyone who decides to buy the game after test driving it will get to keep any progress they made, they'll just need to use the same Battle.net, Xbox Live, or Sony Entertainment account that was used for the free weekend.

It's about a 12GB file download to play Overwatch. Also note that a PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold subscription is required to play on their respective platforms. While all progress is retained for anyone who ends up buying the game, Trophies and Achievements will both be disabled during the free weekend.

Here are the instructions for installing on each platform.

Windows PC

1. Download and install Battle.net desktop app, if you haven't already, and launch it.
2. Create a free Battle.net account, or log in with an existing account.
3. Click the "Overwatch" icon, located on the left-hand side of the Battle.net desktop app.
4. Select your region from the drop-down menu, then click "Install" to begin the installation process.
5. Once installed, click "Play" to begin.

PlayStation 4

1. Turn on your PlayStation 4 and log in to your preferred local user.
2. Go to PlayStation Store and select "Search" from the top menu.
3. In the search field, type in "Overwatch."
4. Select "Overwatch Free Weekend" from the search results and then click "Download."
5. Once the download and installation process is complete, click "Start" to begin.

Xbox One

1. Turn on your Xbox One and log in to your Xbox Live account.
2. Go to the Xbox One Store, then select "Search."
3. In the search field, type in "Overwatch."
4. Select "Overwatch: Origins Edition" from the search results and then click "Free Trial."
5. Once the download and installation process is complete, click "Launch" to begin!

The real buzzkill, of course, is that cross platform play isn't supported in Overwatch. That means you won't be able to fire up Overwatch on your PC and team up with your buddies on Xbox One or PS4. Other than that, there really isn't anything negative to say here—it's a popular game that will be free to play for several days.