-
CultureCosplay
Overwatch Cosplay With An Esports Spin
Spiral Cats, South Korea’s cosplaying superstars, are back with another excellent Overwatch cosplay. This time, it has a pro gaming flavor. Tracer and D.Va’s New York Excelsior Overwatch skins come to life in a most impressive way. Not only are the outfits on point, but as usual, Spiral Cats’ props are, too. Check out these…
By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2018 -
Esports
Blizzard Accidentally Gives Fans Access To Treasure Trove Of Overwatch League Stats
For as long as the Overwatch League has been around, its most diehard contingent of fans has clamored for in-depth, match-by-match stats. Earlier this week, they got what they wanted. By mistake. First, the good news: through the Overwatch League app, fans can finally access map stats that include each players’ contributions to eliminations, deaths,…
By Nathan Grayson Published July 20, 2018 -
Big changes are coming to Overwatch’s little hammer man. In an interview withVG247, Overwatch’s lead designer detailed how he’s making Torbjorn more useful on attack maps. Soon, he might be able to throw his turrets, which would self-upgrade. Also, his ultimate ability, Molten Core, may become a normal ability.
By Cecilia D'Anastasio Published July 20, 2018 -
Esports
Last Night’s Upset Shows Cracks In The Overwatch League’s Best Team
Last night, something went terribly wrong with Overwatch’s best team. It became apparent early on in a match, when Do-hyeon “Pine” Kim, New York Excelsior’s unstoppable, sawed-off shotgun, switched off the sniper hero who made him famous and onto Doomfist, a character notorious for being high-risk but high-reward. This time, there was no reward. The…
By Cecilia D'Anastasio Published July 19, 2018 -
An Overwatch Fan Is Remaking Every Hero In Torbjorn’s Image
Overwatch’s hero roster keeps changing—all in the name of perfection that’s ultimately unattainable. Or at least, it would be, if one fan hadn’t cracked the code. One word: Torbjorn. For the past two months, Overwatch fan and subreddit poster Drewhead118 has been meticulously splicing every hero’s DNA with Torbjorn’s. The results have been both stunning…
By Nathan Grayson Published July 18, 2018 -
What ‘Women Only’ Overwatch Groups Are Actually Like
As someone who is both a journalist and gamer, I enjoy tossing myself into the hell pits of online shit cans and sorting through the garbage for meaning. Over the last week, that pit has consisted of “egirls only,” “hot egirls only 18+,” “only hot girls 420,” “[Name redacted’s] feminist island 2/2/2 girls only,” and…
By Cecilia D'Anastasio Published July 18, 2018 -
Esports
Overwatch League’s First-Ever MVP Illustrates Its Support Problem
NYXL support player Sung-hyeon “JJonak” Bang is a monster. He came out of nowhere during Overwatch League’s inaugural season and single-handedly redefined the way people perceive peace-loving robo-monk Zenyatta, transforming him into a lightning-handed murder machine. The league has just awarded him as its first-ever “MVP,” but what’s weird is, we haven’t seen him play…
By Nathan Grayson Published July 12, 2018 -
Overwatch‘s Highest-Level Player Games 12 Hours Per Day On Top Of His Job
Earlier this month, TreeboyDave became the first person to ever hit level 6,000 in Overwatch, a climb to the top of the 40-million-player heap that he estimates has taken him 9,000 hours. Despite that, he says he’s not even close to ready to hang up his keyboard. TreeboyDave is currently level 6,087, having gained more…
By Nathan Grayson Published July 11, 2018 -
The first day of this month’s Overwatch League finals will be broadcast on ESPN, with finals highlights airing on ABC. That’s part of a multi-year deal announced by ESPN/Disney today that’ll put other finals games on Disney XD and ESPN2/3 as well. OWL’s Twitch deal remains intact, according to the report.
By Stephen Totilo Published July 11, 2018 -
CultureCosplay
Please Don’t Ever Nerf These Custom Overwatch Nikes
When reader Cong Cao wanted to get his girlfriend Mavis a birthday present this year, he skipped the whole “buy her a corny gift” angle and went straight to the heart. Because she’s a big Overwatch fan, and of D.Va in particular, he decided to get her something related to the game and character. But…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 10, 2018 -
Overwatch Fans Can’t Stop Talking About Hanzo’s Dainty Ankles
For over a year, Blizzard has insisted that Hanzo Shimada does not have prosthetic legs. Nevertheless, Overwatch fans have their doubts. Let me be frank—Hanzo Shimada has impossibly tiny ankles. Observe: As a result of this undeniable truth, Overwatch fanfiction writers have been operating under the assumption that Hanzo has prosthetic legs. The understanding was…
By Gita Jackson Published July 10, 2018 -
Fortnite Is Better Than Overwatch At Telling An Evolving Story
Cracks in the sky. Rifts on the ground. Fake burger-restaurant mascots in real deserts. All eyes are on Fortnite’s map right now, and with good reason: It’s the main character of a story that could go just about anywhere. Fortnite’s battle royale mode barely has a story in the traditional sense. Little is known about…
By Nathan Grayson Published July 9, 2018 -
A $175 Statue For Hanzo Mains
Here you go, Hanzo mains. The only statue you’ll ever buy. Out in Q4 this year, he stands 13″/33 cm. Being a statue, he does nothing but stand there, looking very Hanzo. He’s the fourth in a line being released slowly by Blizzard, which already includes Mercy, Widowmaker, Genji and a $450 D.Va.
By Luke Plunkett Published July 8, 2018 -
It’s Now Even Easier For Overwatch Players To Throw Games
“We deranking u cool?” asked the creator of “LOSING GAMES/TROLL/DERANK,” a group queued up for a game of Overwatch. I agreed. “I’ve never done this before,” I said over comms. “How does it work?” My new teammates explained that we would draw out the game for as long as possible, frustrating our opponents by whatever…
By Cecilia D'Anastasio Published July 6, 2018 -
Call Overwatch‘s Hamster Hammond, You Cowards
Hammond is one of the better hamster names in history, miles ahead of Squeaks, Furball, or whatever else children name their pets. Despite this, the Overwatch team insists on officially calling the game’s newest hero “Wrecking Ball,” a name that sounds more befitting of a GI Joe action figure or a good (fight me) but…
By Nathan Grayson Published July 3, 2018 -
Junkrat Toy Is A Tiny Terror
The Overwatch Nendoroid figures are supposed to be cute, so I don’t know what the hell is going on with this Junkrat. Maybe it’s the best they can do with the character. But I can’t look at those eyes and tongue and not think this is the cartoon lovechild of Slimer from Ghostbusters and Guy…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 1, 2018 -
Overwatch Is Getting Wackier, And That’s Great
Yesterday, Overwatch added a hamster. The hamster’s name is Hammond, or Hammy for short. In a game about cyborg ninjas, strained mother-daughter relationships, and terrorist groups with edgy-ass names like Talon, here’s Hammy the Hamster. It’s just one more example of how Overwatch is embracing its wacky side. I’m not sure if Overwatch ever fell…
By Nathan Grayson Published June 29, 2018 -
Please Don’t Kill Hammond, Overwatch’s New Hero
Hammond, Overwatch’s newest hero, can be killed just like everyone else. But while it looks like he simply disappears in the blast as his mech explodes, the reality is more horrifying. Please don’t kill Hammond.
By Luke Plunkett Published June 29, 2018