No console support for Overwatch?

I have to say: I’m completely annoyed by the fact there is no way to submit a ticket as a console player. Am I overlooking something?

I need to contact someone about push to talk not working on console. Also, key binding seems bugged.

Where do I go with these problems…?

You might need to reset binding on console to clear it all up. It happens after updates. They made a minor tweek and its messing up on your side.

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Thanks, guess I’ll have to try that…

Console players can submit web tickets for certain issues such as troubleshooting disconnections, problems like the one you mentioned to specifically Overwatch or issues with their Blizzard account (but not store purchases or their XBL or PSN account). Also the technical support forum is a great place to post technical questions where players like myself or Blizzard Support Agents can chime in to answer most technical questions about the game.

I’ll try to answer this one for you.

-Do you have your Voice Chat Mode set to Push to Talk (it’s in the Sound Menu of Options) rather than Open Mic?
-Do you have the ‘Voice Chat - Push to Talk’ Control bound on your Controller?

If your answer is “Yes” to both of these:

Make sure that your mic is on. In matches, make sure you are of course in Team Chat. Hold down the Control that you bound the ‘Voice Chat - Push to Talk’ control to, and you should be able to talk like you would normally.

Please note that I’m not trying to say what I’m about to say in the following paragraph as a means to offend you or anybody else, Wyoming. I know full well that you do a great job and work really hard on solving these kinds of issues; it’s why you’re a forum MVP after all. It’s also kind of why I only quoted the first half of your post; not the second half. Because that first half of your post is what I want to take a look at (I know you don’t exactly have influence on this in terms of the game master level, since you’re only a Forum MVP).

Anyways, the game masters, from my experiences and what I’ve heard from other Console Players filing web tickets anyways, are not very much help to Console Players at all. In my experiences, the game masters that have answered my tickets have either: straight up said that they can only help with PC-Related issues, or only tell me information that I already know, plus more (note that I mention straight away that I am mentioning Console right away in tickets that I file). Like I mentioned, I’m only stating those from my personal experiences. But I have also heard of Console Players trying to appeal their IN-GAME suspensions on Console, and game masters telling them to file the ticket with Sony/Microsoft (this is not the right move; Sony and Microsoft let developers manage their game how they want to, and they have no influence on in-game bans whatsoever on their respective platforms).

Like I said, I’m not trying to say this as a means to offend you. I know that you do a great job and work really hard on trying to solve these kinds of issues; it’s why you’re a forum MVP after all.

2 Likes

First off Eternity, allow me to say… thank you. I really appreciate you taking the time to write out everything carefully not just for me, but this does give excellent and CONSTRUCTIVE feedback that Blizzard should be taking a look at in many ways to improve all levels of their service ranging from customer support to developing the game. Secondly, get a cup of coffee because this is going to be a doozy of a response. (That or just read the TL:DR at the bottom)

Important things to know about my involvement as an MVP

It is important to know that MVPs including myself do get a little more direct communication with certain representatives of Blizzard than the typical player and I do express my opinions both privately through our private channels of communication where I feel it is appropriate and publicly here on the forums. I try to avoid abusing this privilege as an MVP. Sometimes I go for weeks without talking to my Blizzard Contacts about Blizzard related subjects. (However, we do talk about anything and everything ranging from the daily cup of coffee to the latest episode of Critical Role on Twitch.) I won’t say here what feedback I have given privately to Blizzard, but I feel it is safe to say I like to think I am concerned with many issues involving Overwatch for all of our players (PC and console alike). Most of the feedback I have for Blizzard and specifically for Overwatch has been posted at some point of time here on these forums.

Quick MVP facts for those who don’t know:

  • Learn more about the overall MVP program here (links to WoW forums)
  • Learn more about my specific MVP introduction (links to older Overwatch forums)
  • I am under the Blizzard Customer Service and Technical Support MVP program and not any game’s community MVP program at this time.
  • Overwatch does not have a Community MVP group like World of Warcraft’s MVP Group at this time. I wish there was because there are many here who are as equally constructive posters.
  • On the older forums, select forums I posted in (most notably the Overwatch Technical Support forum) would have my posts appear in green. The new forum platform does not have the MVP features built in yet.
  • I am human and subject to mistakes and unintentionally providing misinformation. It happens from time to time, and I appreciate it when players and Blizzard constructively inform and correct me.
  • A forum MVP does NOT represent Blizzard Entertainment

My personal opinions of Blizzard’s game masters

I have filled out my fair share of web tickets as a PC player. This, of course, was before I became an MVP, and I will note that it was starting a communication with Blizzard in troubleshooting my own problems that eventually led me to become an MVP. So I kinda have a good vibe on what Game Masters can really help with. To be honest, and this is a matter of personal opinion, I feel that the game masters are far more oriented toward World of Warcraft than most other of their titles, however, the fair reason behind this is that World of Warcraft has been and will continue to be Blizzard’s biggest game. (Not to mention, its a darn fun game… blame Blizzard… they got me hooked on all of their games.) Here is a pretty good article (links to WoW forums) from Blizzard Customer Service Agent Vrakthsis, on what WoW players should expect of game masters.

Now what I shared there as little to with Overwatch (much less the console community), but I think you get the idea that Game Masters do have a majority of focus on World of Warcraft and it’s for good reasons. When I was submitting web tickets for my own problems back in the fall of 2016, I would always first talk to a game master and then sometimes be escalated to a technical support agent. Note this was due to a really weird crash with Overwatch back during version 1.3 and 1.4 that is no longer a problem today. During my chats with Game Masters, I felt like there was some disconnect with the game master involving Blizzard’s newest title, however, I will also note they treated me not only as a valued customer but as a friend. Always remember that a truthful answer is sometimes one you don’t like.

In some ways, I do personally wish Game Masters and Blizzard’s Customer Service department had more access to a player’s Overwatch account information to help provide more accurate information to players, but these wishes are something that Overwatch Development Team would have to make happen. However, I much rather see the features in the game client itself that details a player’s history of playing Overwatch including detailed match history (including leaver violations), items, SR gains, and losses, etc. Then GMs don’t have to be directly badgered about such things.

My personal opinions about Blizzard interaction with the console community

I will agree there is some disconnect between the console player community and certain interaction with Blizzard in many ways, and to be honest… it sucks because unlike the Battle.net platform on PC where there is far more of a direct interaction between Blizzard and its players, there are third parties more directly involved (most notably Sony and Microsoft). This leads to a variety of problems and hurdles for all parties involved (including the player) and why to this day we have perceived issues such as…

  • Mouse and Keyboard users on console
  • Smurfing problems on console. (Which I personally believe smurf accounts on specifically console are a legitimate problem as it easily opens the door to circumvent Code-of-Conduct violations and the account bans and suspensions that follow.)
  • Complications involving the console game networks

Consoles are pre-packaged ready to play bundles for video games and that is what makes consoles really awesome. I used to primarily be a console player for ages myself because of this. (Of course, this was before the day and age of online gaming, buying additional controllers and accessories and bring my friends over to play, and blowing out cartridges for the most part.) However it is a fact that consoles are packaged and easy to use computers makes them really, really difficult to troubleshoot problems, especially in today’s day and age. Console manufacturers pride themselves on selling systems and games that should work straight out of the box.

This leads to licensing agreements, terms and conditions for developers, terms for the players, player game network management (PlayStation Network, Xbox Live), release and patch certifications, the fancy gold seal of quality on that NES game packaging… (anyone remembers that thing?). All of this leads to the fact that when you play an online game on a console platform is that you are involved not only with Blizzard but with the console provider. So yeah, there is going to confusion on who is responsible for what, and to be honest it drives me crazy sometimes when answering tough console questions especially about account access and the likes. I try to discern if a problem is related to the Overwatch game software or the connection to the Overwatch game server or if it is involving the console’s firmware/hardware or connection to the player network of that console. If it involves specifically the console, I tend to forward the player to contact Microsoft or Sony for direct support.

For most console specific problems, the truth is that there is little that can be done to solve technical issues short of a few common steps such as turning it off and back on again (which does a lot more than what players realize) and basic troubleshooting for connection issues (connect by ethernet, reset router, WinMTR tests). So one thing to point out here is that game masters (and myself as a forum MVP) can feel unhelpful at times, but that is because there are not a lot of options. Again this is because the console has very little customization in comparison to a PC.

So, yeah game masters are going to be limited in what help they can provide with the console and I am not going to judge if Blizzard is right or wrong because I don’t think as a PC player I can make that call. However, I do know that the Overwatch Development Team and Blizzard as a whole considers every D3 and Overwatch console player a valued member of the overall community. Is PC considered more important? Yes and no. Yes, when it comes to things like esports and developing the content for all platforms but again that is because Blizzard has 100% control of the Battle.net platform. But even if you are playing Overwatch on a console, you are still playing a Blizzard game and that makes you part of this great community. To sum this part up, from what I have read and experienced myself, yeah Blizzard could be more involved with helping console players with their issues, but I also know that there are few options for any specific situation that can be done for consoles.

About Appeals

I feel it is important that we clarify a few common misconceptions, so please remember these important facts about account actions, competitive penalties, and console network bans.

  • Regardless of the platform (PC, Xbox, or PS4), a Competitive Mode suspension or ban CANNOT be appealed through Blizzard customer service for any reason. Competitive Mode suspensions or bans are issued for leaving Competitive Games. Leaving a Competitive match includes any instances of game crashes or disconnections. Blizzard Customer Service does not have access to your competitive play record, nor can they make amendments or changes to it. Click here to learn more about this policy.
  • Account actions including silences, suspensions, and bans of a Blizzard game or the entire user account are due to violations of the Blizzard Code-of-Conduct and/or the Blizzard End User License Agreement. These are appealable (though often denied). Console players are required to agree to the Blizzard EULA (it prompts when you first sign onto the game with any console account) even if you do not establish a Battle.net account to link to the console account.
  • Console network bans, suspensions or restrictions are strictly subjected to the terms and conditions of that console network. For example, players on Xbox are subjected to gameplay restrictions through Xbox Live’s player reporting and reputation system. Players who get “Avoid Me” status on Xbox may face voice communication silences, the inability to play certain game modes, or have extended matchmaking queue times depending on each game. (For Overwatch these days, its communication silences for the most part.) It is important to remember that the administration of console network penalties is strictly managed by the console provider and never with Blizzard. Therefore Blizzard cannot help with any console-specific account action.

Conclusion

So to wrap up for the most part I do agree with you that I wish there was more interaction between Blizzard (not just the development team) and the console community. However, I hope what I have explained here helps give some enlightenment. There is one thing I would like to recommend. Continue to post constructive feedback not only here on the forums, but also on the r/OWconsole Subreddit. This may sound strange but I believe there is more interaction between the Overwatch Developers and the console community there than there is here on the forums.

TL:DR

  • Thank you Eternity for your very constructive post
  • MVPs don’t represent Blizzard, we have a little bit of influence, but really we just care for the Blizzard community
  • I personally believe Game Masters do tend to be less than helpful for console specific issues but its because they are limited to what they can and can’t do
  • I personally believe that Blizzard could be more involved with our console community, but there are limits to what they can realistically do
  • Consoles are very difficult overall to sort out any problems, both for technical issues and account issues.
  • Regardless of the game platform, Competitive suspensions and bans cannot be appealed; Account Silences, Suspensions, and Bans can but are due to Code-of-Conduct violations; Console Network account actions cannot be handled by Blizzard whatsoever.
  • I do encourage constructive posting on the r/OWconsole Subreddit in addition to these forums.
  • My name is WyomingMyst and I am a galaxy police detective
1 Like

That’s for your reply!

I just contacted blizzard, and they said that game related issues are to be resolved by Sony, Xbox or Microsoft for console players. But on their website they don’t specify in game problems…

As an answer to your advice on PTT: keybinding seems bugged. I can double bind a key to PTT, but then that buttons is still asigned to previous binding (acknowledge or ultimate progress). So that’s one things that doesn’t work.

I tried clearing all bindings, but it still doesn’t work. Should I reinstall overwatch completely?

Also, all settings are good: PTT, team chat, mic on (tried different mics) etc.

Thanks for your help tho, hopefully blizzard can help…