If you've been grinding Overwatch 2 ranked since launch or hopped back after a long break, you've probably seen old mentions of legacy competitive points floating around community forums and Reddit threads. The first question most players ask is can you get legacy competitive points Overwatch 2, especially if you missed out on golden weapons from the original Overwatch 1 era. I’ve been playing ranked Overwatch since 2017, so I’ve walked through every currency change between the two games, and I’m breaking down exactly how these points work, what you can get with them, and if there’s any way to earn more right now.
Can You Get Legacy Competitive Points in Overwatch 2 Right Now?
The short answer is no, you cannot earn new legacy competitive points in Overwatch 2 as of the current competitive season. Legacy competitive points were a currency exclusive to the original Overwatch 1 ranked system, and Blizzard retired all active ways to earn them when Overwatch 2 launched in October 2022. I’ve seen dozens of players fall for fake hacks or clickbait videos promising ways to farm legacy points this year, and all of them are either scams or exploit glitches that will get your account permanently banned.
The only way you have legacy competitive points in your account right now is if you carried them over from Overwatch 1. If you linked your Battle.net account before the Overwatch 2 launch, any unspent competitive points you had in OW1 automatically converted to legacy competitive points in your OW2 account. There are no legitimate active methods to earn new legacy competitive points in Overwatch 2 today. Blizzard has confirmed multiple times that they have no plans to bring back legacy point earning opportunities for new players.
What’s the Difference Between Legacy Competitive Points and Current Competitive Points?
A lot of new players mix up the two competitive currencies, and it’s easy to see why they look almost identical in your in-game wallet. Current competitive points are the currency you earn right now for playing ranked open queue, role queue, and other competitive game modes each season. You get them for winning matches, finishing end-of-season rank rewards, and completing limited-time competitive challenges. Legacy competitive points, on the other hand, are only the points carried over from OW1, and they have a separate pool you can see at the very bottom of your currency page.
Current competitive points cannot be converted to legacy competitive points, and vice versa. The two pools are completely separate, even if they can be used for some of the same rewards. To make the difference even clearer, here are the key distinctions between the two currencies:
- Legacy competitive points: Earned only in Overwatch 1, no longer earnable, can be used for OW1-era golden weapons for all heroes released before October 2022
- Current competitive points: Earned in all active Overwatch 2 competitive seasons, can be used for golden weapons for all heroes released after Overwatch 2 launch, plus other seasonal competitive rewards
- Both currencies have no expiration date, so any legacy points you have in your account will stay there until you spend them, no matter how many seasons pass
What Can You Spend Legacy Competitive Points On?
If you do have a stockpile of legacy competitive points sitting in your account, you have a few very specific options for spending them, all focused on cosmetic rewards for older heroes. The most popular use by far is golden weapons for original Overwatch roster heroes. Each golden weapon costs 3,000 legacy competitive points, just like they did in OW1. I spent my last 6,000 legacy points last year on golden weapons for Mercy and Reaper, and I’m glad I did, since there’s no other way to get those exact golden skins for those heroes using other currencies. If you’re wondering whether you can use legacy competitive points Overwatch 2 for battle pass skins or shop items, the answer is a hard no.
You cannot use legacy competitive points for any new Overwatch 2 heroes, battle pass tiers, or shop cosmetics. Some players have reported seeing limited-time legacy rewards pop up during annual anniversary events, but as of the latest season, golden weapons are the only permanent spend option for legacy points. Don’t hold onto your points waiting for new rewards, because Blizzard has confirmed they have no plans to add new legacy currency items in future patches. You’re better off spending them on a hero you play regularly rather than letting them sit unused in your wallet for years.
What to Do If You Don’t Have Any Legacy Competitive Points
If you started playing Overwatch after the 2022 launch and don’t have any legacy points carried over, you don’t have to miss out on golden weapons entirely, even for the original roster. Blizzard added a workaround a few seasons back that lets you purchase OW1-era golden weapons with current competitive points, though the cost is the same 3,000 points per weapon. So if you’ve been grinding ranked and saving up current points, you can still get that golden Genji sword you’ve been wanting, no legacy points required.
Focus on earning current competitive points if you want golden weapons for any hero, old or new. The fastest way to rack up points is to play consistent ranked matches, win as many as you can, and climb as high as possible on the rank ladder. You get 15 points per win and 5 per draw, and end-of-season rewards give you hundreds of points based on your highest rank that season. If you’re new to ranked, start with open queue to get a feel for the meta before jumping into role queue, where the competition is usually stiffer. Avoid any third-party sites that offer to sell legacy competitive points to your account, as these are all scams that will steal your Battle.net login info.
At the end of the day, the question of can you get legacy competitive points Overwatch 2 has a clear answer, but that doesn’t mean you have to miss out on the best rewards the ranked system has to offer. If you have leftover legacy points from OW1, spend them on your favorite original hero’s golden weapon before you forget they’re there. If you don’t have any legacy points, just keep grinding ranked to earn current competitive points, which work for almost every cosmetic reward legacy points used to cover, plus all the new hero golden weapons added after the OW2 launch. As long as you stick to legitimate in-game methods, you’ll be able to unlock the exact competitive rewards you want without wasting time on fake hacks or scams.