On April 6, Overwatch revealed a redesign for Anran, one of the new heroes Blizzard added to the game in February as part of the game’s pseudo relaunch. The changes were in response to a wave of pushback from fans who said she didn’t look like the original design we’d seen in previous Overwatch media, with several calling her a victim of the game’s recurring “same face” issue and not her resemblance to heroes like Kiriko and Juno. Now, the company has released a video comparing the new design with the old one, and while there are some notable changes, some fans still feel like Blizzard hasn’t gone far enough.
@overwatch In Season 2, we’re introducing an updated look for Anran. She didn’t fully land as the fiery and fierce sister of Wuyang that we hoped she would. With this update, our team focused on strengthening her overall presence. This evolution reflects both our creative intent and the care we’ve taken in shaping the Hero. See her rise from the ashes when Season 2 starts on April 14. #overwatch2 #overwatch #gaming #Anran #gamingontiktok
Let’s start with the positive: Anran does look more distinct than she did in her old design. The round baby face is gone and her eyes are sharper, so she definitely presents as slightly older and more mature than Kiriko and Juno. Some smaller changes like a straighter posture in the hero select screen also communicate her more stern personality. Overall, it’s definitely an improvement, but the big sticking point is that her longer nose shown in the animated cinematic “Elemental Kin” is still nowhere to be seen in the in-game model.
brother be so for real thats still not the same woman https://t.co/XhqdiIImpd pic.twitter.com/I5FtM3eBs1
— alex ☆.ᐟ 🇲🇽 (@foxclanfan69) April 6, 2026
yeah im not gonna speak
whatever https://t.co/JeV6ulWUD1 pic.twitter.com/wf7NHChRVj
— Vivi♡ (@viviiVEVO) April 6, 2026
anran does look better like pls dont get me wrong but im going to stay a bit disappointed that her nose is COMPLETELY different from cinematic to game? wuyang is pretty 1:1 so im just confused on why they even made her look like that in the first place
— djay 𑣲 (@ssolarism) April 7, 2026
Some have pointed out that these changes bring her more in-line with Anran’s appearance in the Overwatch comics, which is where she technically made her debut. So in a way, the longer nose shown in “Elemental Kin” is the outlier in terms of how the character has been portrayed across all the game’s external media.
And not everyone is displeased. There’s plenty of support for the subtle redesign.
“I know it’s very subtle, but tweaks in her face and posture CHANGE her demeanor massively,” Kindly-Definition689 writes on Reddit. “Her aura just gives off YES, she is Wuyang’s older sister, and even if they have the same essential body, the pose gives off a more muscular athlete rather than petite and lean. It’s actually extremely impressive how they kept her fundamentally the same yet changed her substantially at the same time.”
“She looks similar but more mature,” oMrEnigma writes on the same thread. “Definitely an improvement.”
Looking at the two designs side by side, I’m definitely happier with the version we have now. She doesn’t look like she’s of the same cutesy/playful archetype as characters like Kiriko and Juno, though I am disappointed that after all that hoopla she didn’t get her nose back. I’m sure that those who are still underwhelmed by the changes are going to be vocal about it, but now that the response seems more mixed, I doubt Blizzard is going to go back and change her a third time.
Anran’s redesign will launch next week when Season 2 begins on April 14.
