In June, 2023, the Midtown map was altered to reflect the aftermath of a Pride march, in accordance with the game's Pride event. Midtown was chosen to be the map in question to honor the Stonewall riots.[4] NYPD cars were replaced by regular SUVs for the duration of the event.[5]
The Pride theme was repeated in 2025.
Midtown is one of the only two maps that does not allow for environmental kill. The other one being Hollywood, both of which are hybrid.
Development
Midtown was originally simply called "New York." In March, 2022, the map's name was changed to "Midtown." The map was playable in both the Overwatch 2 beta and Overwatch 2 alpha.[6]
Prior to its reveal, members of Team 4 had expressed the desire to create a New York map, as many of said members hailed from the city itself.[3]
When designing the map, the developers used the art deco style of the 1920s and 50s. The map was designed to be "as authentic as possible," but with "an Overwatch spin on it".[7]
The map's payload is an NYFD truck. This apparently pertains to an incident at Grand Central Terminal, with the goal of the attackers being to escort the truck to the site of the incident.
