I still remember booting up Overwatch 2 for the first time last month, expecting the same explosive hero roster that made the original legendary. Instead, I was greeted with what felt like a demo version - only 11 heroes available while others remained frustratingly grayed out. "Unlock through gameplay," the tooltip teased, but nowhere did it mention the brutal truth: I'd need to play 100 matches just to access characters that veterans got instantly years ago. Blizzard claimed this "First Time User Experience" prevented overwhelm, but staring at locked favorites like Reinhardt and Mercy felt more like punishment than protection.

The gradual unlock system unfolded in baffling phases:

• 🔓 First 15 matches: Only Quick Play and Arcade modes available

• 💬 After match 20: Team chat functionality enabled

• 🧩 Every 5 matches: 1-2 heroes trickle-unlocked

• ⏳ Post-match 100: Full original roster finally accessible

Even conservative math made my head spin:

Matches Played	Estimated Time	Heroes Unlocked
10	~1.5 hours	5
50	~8 hours	15
100	~16 hours	All OW1 heroes

That competitive mode blockade stung worse though. When I asked veteran friends about climbing ranks, they casually mentioned needing 50 Quick Play matches first. Blizzard's blog called it "preparation for higher expectations," but my buddy Carlos snorted: "Smurf deterrent, plain and simple." The irony? Smurfs would just grind through anyway while genuine newcomers like me got gatekept from the game's most strategic dimension.

Then came the authentication headache - mandatory phone verification that locked me out for two days when my carrier had issues. One account per number? In 2025? When most gamers have multiple accounts for different playstyles? The security intent made sense, but the execution felt archaic compared to modern biometric systems.

Three weeks in, I'm finally past the restrictions, yet the aftertaste remains. Did slicing the roster really ease my learning curve? 🤔 Or did it just:

• Force me into repetitive mirror matches

• Delay understanding hero synergies

• Create artificial grind where exploration should thrive

Maybe onboarding needed evolution, but watching newbies today still struggling through the same hurdles makes me wonder: When does "guided experience" become player alienation? And in our era of instant-gratification gaming, is Blizzard's phased approach visionary... or just stubborn?

Perhaps the real test isn't in unlocks, but whether that first victory still feels earned when half the tools remain locked away. 🎮