Watching Pioneer is undergoing a rebranding, and after the snowstorm announced the change of the name of Watch Pioneer 2 to Watch Pioneer, the number of game players began to swell, and Steam was at one point close to 70,000 online players, surpassing Field 6 and Black Action 7.
The Watchout Pioneer, a team tactical shooting game that led to a new wind of shooting in 2016, has been one of the most popular for years. In October 2022, the Watchguard Pioneer 2 was released as a follow-up free of charge, and the snowstorm promised to join the PvE cooperation story model that had long been awaited by many players before it was released, but unfortunately it did not really materialize, and its embryo was only online with the disappointing PvE firing range model, which was removed shortly thereafter. The lack of content in Watchguard 2 and the expensive skin/war-order microtrading, combined with the snowstorm ‘ s repeated breaches of commitments and operational failures, have not only failed to salvage the reputation, but have exacerbated the displeasure of players. The Watchguard Pioneer 2 officially landed at Steam in August 2023, and once on the line, the player “fast-rated” bombarded it, and the 7 per cent positive rate to date remains one of Steam’s worst-rated games.
This is a rather dark period for Watching the Pioneer and even for the snow. The “treachery” became part of the brand, and its human face was declining as players alienated and turned to other similar games. However, there have also been several attempts during this period to focus the game more on experimental models, new play systems and features. The brand-new third-person model of the arena received wide-ranging approval, and new heroes such as Junuh, Sojan and Mauga became permanent players. On 5 February, the blizzard announced the removal of “2” from Watch Pioneer 2, the name of which returned to Watch Pioneer, and showed the updated 2026 plan. Including: New play:The annual story, “The Rule of Black Claw”, spans one to six seasons, advancing through animation, cartoons, games, maps and fine arts will change with the drama, and the seventh season will open a new chapter. New hero:Ten new heroes were added throughout the year, and five new ones, such as Kim Jie (reloading, remote control, alliance with vendetta), were launched in the first season of February 11th.
New play and system: The first season: the largest UI in history has been redone (chambers, hero interfaces, social networking), 3D halls, placards, notification centres. The 17th season: Map voting; the 19th season +: the escalation of the competitive model (more heroes/maps/drills), the ban on heroes. Overall: The Perks/Stadium model is iterative, two major events of the year (opening year + mid-year heavy pounds). Electronic competition arrangements:In the pre-season of February 2026, in the March national uniform competition, the finals were in China, and in September the World Cup, the BlizzCon won, the new model of the “Standing-in” contest. This “de-branding” of the Spearhead brought with it a new mass of new functions and content, which led to a dramatic increase in the game’s focus, which once exceeded Mission Call and Field 6. This is before the new season is officially online. Of course, Mission Call and Watch Pioneer players play more on platforms outside Steam. The blizzard had indicated that Watching the Pioneer was the most popular on the web and that the game also had a substantial player base at the PS5 and Xbox Series X-rayS hosts. Watch Pioneer 2 still has a long way to go on Steam to go beyond its main competitor, The Manta.
Despite the overall rating of Watchguard at Steam as “a bad rating”, many of the actual evaluations were not about the game per se, but rather were used to vent grievances over the blizzard’s commercial strategy and the poor management of fans’ expectations. The snowstorm of 2026 was no longer the blizzard of the past, and it was at some point that “soon-out products must be the best” that players certified their quality. Snow does not seem to make mistakes in the age of Star Treasures, Beasts III and Darkness II. For a long time after it was merged with moving vision, however, it gave a sense of total loss of soul. The upcoming new season could be an important turning point for the Watchers. Alan Keller, Director General of the Watch Vanguard, expressed confidence in the future and said that he had heard feedback from many players that the current Watch Pioneer 2 was in “the best state in history” and that the game had been renamed not because Watch Pioneer 2 had become a “failure”, but to clarify the direction of the game.
Watch Pioneer 2 is currently available for free download on PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S platforms. Nintendo Switch 2 is scheduled to be released during the second season of the spring of 2026.