There's a cool Dark Souls Easter egg in the new Overwatch Eichenwalde map
It's playable now on the Public Test Realm.
There's a nifty nod to Dark Souls in the new Overwatch map Eichenwalde. Venture into the castle and into a room opposite the entrance, just off to the right, and you'll find a sword stabbed into a flaming mound. It is undoubtedly a reference to the Dark Souls series' iconic checkpoints.
![](https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/theres-a-cool-dark-souls-easter-egg-in-the-new-overwatch-eichenwalde-map-147188348474.gif?width=690&quality=75&format=jpg&auto=webp)
![](https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/theres-a-cool-dark-souls-easter-egg-in-the-new-overwatch-eichenwalde-map-147188339314.jpg?width=690&quality=75&format=jpg&auto=webp)
The Eichenwalde Overwatch map, unveiled at Gamescom, is now available on the Public Test Realm for everyone to try. You access the PTR by selecting "PTR: Overwatch" from the "Region / Account" drop-down box above the big "Play" button on the Battle.net launcher. You have to download the PTR, and it's several gigabytes big.
I suggest you access the PTR to nose around Eichenwalde if you can, because it's not only a gorgeous environment - all crumbly castle and old German town - but also a complex one, with myriad routes and vantage points to know about.
There are choke points - one in particular outside the castle gates, which the payload batters down - worth familiarising yourself with too.
Eichenwalde goes live in Overwatch some time in September - maybe as part of the same patch in testing on PTR now, the one with Competitive Season 2, which has a pencilled-in start date of 6th September.