'Overwatch's' new Capture The Flag map and competitive mode is live

For the second year, Blizzard has launched a seasonal event to celebrate the Lunar New Year. As promised in a Developer Update video earlier this week, players get a new Thailand-inspired map and competitive mode for Capture The Flag, as well as new skins. There are a couple more changes, too -- including, at long last, the ability to change your hero's outfit at the start of the match.

Since the inaugural Lunar New Year event introduced the Capture The Flag mode, it's only fitting that this year's would build on it. The new map Ayutthaya, the first made exclusively for CTF, has a look split between an ancient temple on one side and modern buildings on the other.

Teams can't tie anymore, either: Should time run out while the score is tied, a sudden death mechanic will kick in that starts the match over with both sides' flags far closer to the middle, and the first to capture wins. The competitive CTF mode is as you'd expect, with placement matches, skill rating tiers and leaderboards. There are also several gameplay tweaks, like making flag pickup instant, which can be viewed on the event's page.

There are new skins for Genji, Mercy, Zarya, and Pharah themed to the Four Symbols in the Chinese constellations, along with Magistrate McCree and Black Lily Widowmaker. Plus, you can scoop up last year's rad outfits patterned after the Chinese epic Journey To The West. There's also a few new highlight intros and emotes. But perhaps the greatest addition to the game is something we've been waiting for since launch day...