Overwatch 2’s ‘Michief and Magic’ mode, AKA Prop Hunt, is goofy fun

Overwatch 2 got a new game mode on Tuesday called “Mischief and Magic,” and it’s a Prop Hunt — which means that players have been trying all manner of strategies to mimic inanimate objects in-game.

Prop Hunt has never been available in Overwatch before, although it’s been a classic mode in multiplayer shooters since its first appearance in Counter Strike: SourceIn 2012. Basically, it’s a hide-and-seek situation; one team is made up of players controlling various in-game objects, hiding in plain sight. The other team goes on the hunt, trying to find the disguised “prop” players by attacking them.

The following are some of the ways to get in touch with us Overwatch 2’s version, the “prop” players are technically playing as Kiriko, disguising herself using her fox spirit powers (because, sure). The props also have the ability to stun and flashbang their opponents, giving them a chance to escape even if they’re discovered. Genji is the character of players who are on the seeker side. They slash at any suspicious objects.

This version of Prop Hunt might seem easier than others at first, because the Genji players aren’t punished for slashing at objects that aren’t players in disguise. Since each prop can only take one attack before it dies, in theory the Genjis would be able to slash every object that they saw until they found their mark. But the prop teams have figured out they can fight back — because their melee attacks still work.

In a video post on the Overwatch subreddit by user Reticulum217, titled “Ikea 2: The furniture fights back,” it’s clear that props can get the upper hand if they gang up on an unassuming Genji player. The video shows players in barrels, bush and planks of wood encircling a Genji and attacking them with melee and flashbang attacks. It’s like the end of Beauty and the Beast, when the enchanted household objects attack all the unsuspecting townspeople storming Beast’s castle.

Hide in plain site is a good tactic if you manage to pull it off. A post by Reddit user SammyIsSeiso, titled “To hide as a prop, you must become the prop,” demonstrates the super-smooth operation of disguising oneself as a minecart on the Blizzard World map. “I plugged my controller in so I could move this smoothly,” explained SammyIsSeiso in a comment on the post.

SammyIsSeiso is never caught in the video. It is as if the cart glides unnoticed through the level. Kiriko’s grandma would be proud.