📝 An Overwatch-focused review of DreamHack Stockholm 2025

DreamHack Stockholm is one of Europe’s biggest gaming festivals and was the home of Overwatch’s final major event in 2024 and 2025. From good-quality, affordable food to tips on the best seating in the venue, I’ll describe and review the experience at DreamHack Stockholm, so those unable to attend can get a better sense of the viewer experience and perhaps consider attending future events.

Arrival and queues

DreamHack Stockholm 2025 ran from the 28th to the 30th of November in the Stockholmsmässan arena. Travelling here is pretty easy thanks to both cities’ extensive public transport networks and the DreamHack website, detailing key information for travelling here. The queues for the first day were very long. We entered the queue at 10-10:30 AM and got in before the first games started, but if not for another group saving seats for us, we would not have had the seats we wanted (thanks to them for saving us seats in their row!). Don’t fret, though, even when arriving late, you’ll always find seats available (just not the best seats in the house).

Seating

Speaking of good seats, the best seats, in my opinion, were in the middle right row. Being too close meant craning our necks to see the screen; being too far back meant we were farther from the crowd reactions; and being on the left meant the massive camera arm capturing all the arena action would be distracting or in our way. I found that being in the middle of the inner right row had a good balance of everything I would want from seating at a LAN event, creating the best overall spectator experience. Of course, others may prefer a quieter and more comfortable area, which the VIP seating is perfect for.

Side activities

Moving away from the seats, the venue was MASSIVE. There were lots of sections in the venue, filled with activities such as testing reaction times at the FACEIT stall to win FACEIT points or playing different titles. What I personally enjoyed about the venue size was the sheer breadth of gaming-related things there was to do. Even though we were primarily there for Overwatch, we still discovered many interesting new games. The extent of companies present becomes clearer when I think back on all the freebies, especially the Red Bull and yogurt drinks available around the arena.

Despite the venue's size, there was still plenty of opportunity to meet people. All of the teams were present for meet and greets at a designated time, and there was plenty of chance you would just spot someone during the event. For example, I got to meet ChrisTFer and CommanderX at the venue, two people who I feel really inspired by and was glad to meet. Most players, talent, content creators, etc., are really welcoming at these events and make sure to take the time to talk to and take photos with fans, which adds so much to the experience.

Food and drinks

Now onto the food and drink available at the venue. I thought there were plenty of lunch options, with multiple food stalls and a small Pressbyrån (basically a convenience store selling drinks and snacks) next to the OWCS seating entrance. The food closest to the seating area was particularly good, with one section selling burgers and another poke bowls. The screens we had to use to order were only in Swedish, so it may be a good idea to install a good translation app to make sure you don’t order anything by mistake, like I did (thankfully, the tuna poke bowl I ordered was very nice!).

Production

All in all, the event's production quality was good. As people watching online would have seen, the host, Adam Savage, was a great addition and did a good job hyping key matches and introducing the teams. There were a couple of issues with the finals walkout name order and one moment when the event screens froze for a couple of minutes, but aside from that, everything went by without a hitch. It was clear to me how much effort had been put into DreamHack, which really reflected on the quality of the product we were given at the event.

Despite the fact that Blizzard is holding all four major Overwatch events this year outside of DreamHack, I am certain that if the same love and care that went into DreamHack is put into those events, every attendee will be lucky to do so. From a massive venue packed with activities to seamless OWCS action and great food on site, OWCS delivered a world-class major event that I will certainly remember for years to come.