February Was One of Overwatch’s Most Successful Months Ever

Overwatch had an incredible month in February, ranking as the sixth most-played game on PC, and 15th on Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5. The hero shooter saw a massive spike in monthly active users, which propelled Overwatch up the charts.

It is no exaggeration to say that February 2026 might have been one of Overwatch’s biggest months since its initial launch back in 2016. Overwatch began its comeback with Reign of Talon Season 1, which arrived on February 10, with five new heroes, a refurbished user interface, epic in-game events, and more. This led Overwatch to break numerous records on Steam and Twitch.

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Overwatch Was the 6th Most-Played PC Game in February

However, it seems like February was even better for Overwatch than most fans could have anticipated. According to market research platform Newzoo, Overwatch was the sixth most-played PC game in February, rising five ranks from its placement in January. This only puts it behind Counter-Strike 2, Minecraft, Roblox, Fortnite, and League of Legends.

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Who’s That Character?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)Start

RestartBack

Results

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High Score: 0
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Top PC Games (February 2026) According to Newzoo

1. Counter-Strike 2/CS: GO
2. Minecraft
3. Roblox
4. Fortnite
5. League of Legends
6. Overwatch
7. The Sims 4
8. Valorant
9. Dota 2
10. ARC Raiders
11. PUBG: Battlegrounds
12. World of Warcraft
13. Helldivers 2
14. Terraria
15. Grand Theft Auto 5
16. Apex Legends
17. Battlefield 6/REDSEC
18. Arknights: Endfield
19. Call of Duty HQ
20. Rocket League

Though it did not rank as highly, Overwatch also broke into the top 20 lists for both Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5. It landed at 15th place on both lists, rising six places on PS5 and seven on Xbox. With all platforms combined, this places it as the eighth most played game overall in February, shattering even more records for Overwatch in the process.

Newzoo derived these lists by calculating monthly active users (MAU), which counts the users who launched a game at least once during the month. MAU is a reliable way to track engagement from month to month. Newzoo also collates information from 37 different markets, excluding India and China, so it is representative of a broad group of players.

Of note, Overwatch surpassed all three of its main competitors – Valorant, Apex Legends, and Marvel Rivals – on PC in February. NetEase hero shooter Marvel Rivals missed the PC top 20, but performed better on consoles, coming ahead of Overwatch at 14th place for Xbox Series X/S and 13th on PlayStation 5. Likewise, Apex Legends ranked 12th place on PS5, ahead of both Overwatch and Marvel Rivals. Across all platforms, however, Overwatch is currently reigning supreme, with Valorant, Apex Legends, and Marvel Rivals coming in at 15th, 16th, and 17th place, respectively.

2026 Is a Huge Year for Overwatch

Image via Blizzard

The soft relaunch of Overwatch has been a big hit so far, and these numbers support it. Perks, Stadium Map Voting, and more made 2025 a huge year for Overwatch, but it also set the stage for even bigger swings in 2026. Only time will tell if Overwatch can keep up its momentum for the rest of the year, but it certainly seems to have no intention of slowing down just yet.

The rest of Overwatch Reign of Talon Season 1 should have plenty to offer players. The Overwatch x Nier: Automata collab runs until March 24, and another Junkrat’s Loot Hunt starts the weekend of March 27. Then, Underwatch, a new April Fools’ Day game mode, kicks off on April 1 and runs through the rest of the season, with Competitive Drives starting April 9.

Overwatch Reign of Talon Season 2 finally begins on April 14, bringing with it a new hero, a rework of Antarctic Peninsula, Ramattra in Stadium, a Switch 2 port, and more. Fans can expect to start seeing previews of the next season, likely including an official reveal of the new hero, within the next few weeks. Either way, while all the new content in Season 1: Conquest was flashy and exciting, Season 2 may be even more important for Blizzard, as it will show if Overwatch can ride the wave of its success.

Released

August 10, 2023

ESRB

Teen / Violence, Blood, Mild Language, Use of Tobacco, Users Interact, In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items)

Sources: Newzoo (Xbox), Newzoo (PS5)