Even Lapsed Overwatch Players Love Pharah's New Lifeguard Skin

It’s summer. Per tradition, this means that the Overwatch team must give somebody abs, or face dire consequences. So Pharah is a lifeguard now. Cue the entire internet dramatically leaping into the ocean and pretending to drown in hopes that somebody—nobody specific, of course—might come save them.

It would be an understatement to say that Overwatch is in a weird place right now. With Overwatch 2 in development, the original game continues to receive balance tweaks, granular new features, and the very occasional new hero, but a mix of stagnation and unpopular changes have led many to say that they’re done with the game. Overwatch League is also bleeding players, with big names like Jay “Sinatraa” Won, Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty, Zachary “Zachareee” Lombardo, and Corey “Corey” Nigra departing the team shooter’s pro scene to start anew with Riot’s new game, Valorant. Meanwhile, Blizzard’s reputation is at an all-time low after its handling of pro players advocating for Hong Kong’s independence and, more recently, reports of exceedingly poor employee pay

Despite all of that, Pharah’s new lifeguard skin, which arrives today as part of the game’s annual Summer Games event, has some lapsed Overwatch players considering another swim in the game’s choppy waters. It’s a testament not only to the internet’s unquenchable thirst, but also to the talent of Overwatch’s artists. Here’s hoping they’re getting paid what they actually deserve.

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