Blizzard's Overwatch hits 10 million players and counting

Blizzard's newest IP, Overwatch, has hit 10 million players and counting across PS4, Xbox One and PC, the game developer announced on 14 June. The popular team-based multiplayer shooter surpassed its latest milestone just two weeks after Blizzard reported seven million players had logged 119 million hours in the game since its May launch.

Blizzard confirmed the news in a post on Twitter saying: "Ten million Overwatch agents activated and counting! Thank you for daring to see the world for what it could be."

Although 10 million players does not mean that 10 million copies of the game have been sold, as multiple players can play from a single copy, it is still an impressive feat considering the fact the game was released less than a month ago.

Overwatch's success is also a significant accomplishment for the development team who previously worked on the failed MMO Titan – a project that game director and Blizzard Entertainment VP Jeff Kaplan referred to as a "devastating failure".

Released to critical acclaim on 24 May, Overwatch continues to garner praise from fans across the globe, particularly for its friendly, inclusive nature compared to other shooters.

IBTimes UK's review of Overwatch called it "an instant classic" that could become the "go-to shooter for an entire generation of gamers".

Meanwhile, Blizzard has made good on its promise so far to curb cheating and toxic behaviour in the game by bringing down the permanent ban hammer on thousands of first-time cheaters and introducing strict penalties for rage-quitters.

Blizzard also plans to bring back the game's Competitive Play mode later this month and release more content later this summer.

Overwatch is available now on PS4, Xbox One and PC.