Overwatch free-to-play weekend announced for PS4, Xbox One, PC

Blizzard has announced a free to play weekend for Overwatch on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The free weekend is set for this weekend, which means everyone who needed an excuse to spend the weekend after Valentine’s Day inside officially has one.

Unfortunately, the free play time does not kick off on Valentine’s Day itself. Players can jump into Overwatch for free on February 16th at 11:00 am PT. The event will last until 11:59 pm PT on February 19th.

PlayStation 4 owners with a PlayStation Plus membership, Xbox One owners with an Xbox Live Gold membership, and Windows PC users with a Battle.net account will be able to download and play Overwatch for free during this period.

The full roster of 26 heroes and 16 maps will be available for free, as well as a number of modes, including Quick Play, Custom Games, and the Arcade. If you choose to purchase Overwatch after the free to play weekend, all progress from the weekend will be transferred to the purchased version – as long as you use the same Blizzard, PSN, or Xbox Live account that you played on.

No downtime or maintenance currently planned for the Free Weekend.

Installation instructions:

FOR WINDOWS PC (February 16):

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

FOR PLAYSTATION 4 (Pre-download starting at 11:00 AM PST on February 13):

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

FOR XBOX ONE (Pre-download starting at 11:00 AM PST on February 13):

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