What genre label does Wikipedia use for Overwatch besides first-person shooter?

The story behind the answer

Wikipedia labels Overwatch as a hero shooter in addition to calling it a first-person shooter.

The “hero” designation describes the game’s character-centered design. Players choose from a roster of distinct heroes, each with individual weapons, abilities, movement options, and an ultimate ability. Those differences shape team composition and strategy far more directly than a traditional shooter’s interchangeable weapon loadouts.

Overwatch was built around two teams completing map objectives, with heroes originally divided among offense, defense, tank, and support categories. In 2018, Blizzard combined the offense and defense categories into the damage role, leaving the familiar three-role structure of damage, tank, and support.

Hero shooter is sometimes confused with battle royale because both became major multiplayer genres during the same era. Overwatch is not a battle royale: its standard matches use fixed teams, objective-based maps, and respawning rather than a last-player-standing format. Its roots also include inspiration from Team Fortress 2 and multiplayer online battle arenas.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

Add question to a list

Choose a list to keep this question in: