Veteran Blizzard Executive Critiques Surprise Rivals for Mimicking Overwatch

Former Blizzard executive Mike Ybarra has criticized Surprise Games, suggesting it is an Overwatch imitation.

In a tweet that has since been removed, Ybarra referred to NetEase Games’ free-to-play, team-oriented PVP shooter as “Overwatch Marvel Rivals,” and expressed that Tencent’s Light of Motiram is “a clear copy of Horizon Zero Dawn.” He implied that Surprise Games clearly drew from Blizzard’s famous team-oriented PVP shooter, Overwatch.

“Seems like Overwatch Marvel Rivals is launching tomorrow,” Ybarra commented in his now-deleted tweet. “Just like Light of Motiram (a blatant imitation of [Horizon Zero Dawn]) from China.

“I mean, even the character names – Widowmaker in [Overwatch] vs. Black Widow in Marvel Rivals lol – NetEase/Tencent – it’s all too similar.”

Before Ybarra retracted the post, however, a community response attached to the tweet stated: “Natasha Romanoff, also known as Black Widow, is a well-known Marvel character who made her comic debut in 1964, over 50 years before Overwatch and Widowmaker were created.”

Surprise Competitors finally launched in full on December 6, 2024. Making a bold start on Steam, it reportedly achieved a peak concurrent player count of 444,286 on Valve’s platform, and this number is likely to increase even further over the weekend.

The game itself is characterized as a “dynamic, fast-paced, cooperative gameplay experience,” and one that…