'Overwatch' Uprising Event: Tips and tricks for conquering the incredibly fun new PvE mode

The moment we've all been waiting for is here: Overwatch's new Uprising event — and its insanely fun cooperative horde mode — are live right now. We've already covered the full patch notes and cosmetic items like skins, so now it's time to talk about that new Uprising mode.

The whole deal with this Uprising mode is that it's supposed to shed light on a period of time in the past — the Omnic uprising that preceded the fall of the Overwatch organization. It's the same period of time covered in the recent "Uprising" comic.

Therefore, this mode is actually a flashback to a time where Tracer hadn't yet perfected her soft butch lesbian aesthetic — oh, and also when the King's Row area of London was completely overrun by killer Omnics.

Here's how the Uprising mode works — along with some tips and tricks to help you out on the way.

Overwatch Uprising event: How does the new Uprising mode work?

There are two variations of the new Uprising mode, both of which function the exact same way, with one key difference: In the standard mode, you can only play as Mercy, Torbjörn, Reinhardt and Tracer. In the second "all heroes" mode, you can choose from anyone in the Overwatch roster. If you're a stickler for Overwatch lore, the standard mode is the version that's deeply rooted in the fiction of the Overwatch world — each of the four characters even don their old-school uniforms by default, regardless of whether the player has unlocked them — whereas the second one is more freeform.

The mode itself is divided into three distinct sections, each of which is like a slightly remixed version of an existing Overwatch game mode — except, of course, that you're not actually fighting against other players. Instead of playing in a six-versus-six situation, it's a four-versus — well, it's hard to know exactly how many robots you fight, but it's a hell of a lot.

The other biggest difference from a standard Overwatch match is that you don't respawn automatically. Like other cooperative multiplayer shooters, you'll actually have to revive your teammates manually by standing over their bodies and holding a certain button down — square, on PS4. (This is where having Mercy's resurrection ability really comes in handy, since other characters will be totally vulnerable while they revive someone.)

Alright, now into the nitty-gritty of how each section actually works.

Overwatch Uprising event section one: Hacking three control points

In the first section, you'll have to maintain control of a point until you fill a dial up to 100%, all the while fending off waves of enemies. The main difference from a standard Overwatch control point is that the dial won't continue ticking up unless a member of your team is standing on the control point. If you've played Mass Effect: Andromeda's multiplayer, it's basically identical to one of the hack-based waves there. In total, you'll have to capture three separate points, all of which span the entirety of the King's Row map.

This first section isn't too challenging because you'll only be fighting a couple different enemy unit types, none of which are particularly tricky. There's one skittering, tiny robot type that's easy to smash, a slightly beefier version of those teeny guys and an extra large robot that has a Reinhardt-like shield to get through. Pretty standard shooter fare.

The key here is to prioritize staying on the control points — if nobody's on it, you won't make any progress toward completing the hack. It's probably easiest for Mercy or Reinhardt to stay back on the point while Torbjörn and Tracer get a little gutsier with going outside the lines to pick off enemies.

Overwatch Uprising event section two: Defending and escorting a payload

In the second section, you'll have to defend a payload — that's standing completely still — for a couple of minutes from waves of enemies and then escort it once it finally gets moving. Unlike a regular game of Overwatch, the payload itself takes damage throughout this whole process, so you'll have to use Torbjörn's turret and Reinhardt's shield to fend enemies off.

Here, you'll start to see new enemy types that make things much more challenging. In addition to the enemies listed in the last section, you'll also start seeing Bastion-like enemies that can transform into annoyingly powerful turrets and large, lumbering balloon-shaped robots that explode when they get near the payload.

Reinhardt's charge ability really saves the day in this section when things get hairy. He can use it to smash turrets into walls, but he can also use it to get one of those exploding robots away from the payload in a pinch.

Once the payload gets moving, you'll have to watch for enemies on all sides. Unlike a standard Overwatch match, your foes won't just be coming from one general direction, so watch your back.

Overwatch Uprising event section three: Eliminating targets

This last section is the hardest, simply because the volume of enemies you have to deal with can get overwhelming very quickly. 

You don't have to escort any payloads or capture any points. You simply have to eliminate four separate OR-14s — the centaur-like robots that preceded Orisa's model, the OR-15. The rhythm here will feel very familiar to that last push in a regular match of Overwatch on King's Row — except that it ends once you've eliminated all the necessary targets.

You can play through this new Uprising mode in four different difficulty levels, each of which is significantly tougher than the last. Good luck.

More Overwatch news and updates

For more on Overwatch, check out the rest of what Mic has to offer. Here is a full explanation of the different types of health in Overwatch, the latest rumor of a Terry Crews-voiced Overwatch character, an update on that Mei ice wall exploit, a hilarious video of a play of the game involving the jump pad on Oasis, a roundup of the best Overwatch plays of the week, our definitive ranking of every Overwatch hero and a giant Overwatch FAQ for beginners.