Activision Blizzard’s newest team-based first-person shooter is one of the best of its kind. Several weeks after its official release, Overwatch is already being hailed as a major achievement by some of the biggest names in gaming. Reviewers are giving it high marks for its playability and pure enjoyment factor.

Overwatch takes place in the not-so-distant future, on Earth. After a conflict between humans and omnics (a race of artificially intelligent robots) rose to cataclysmic proportions, an international task force named ‘Overwatch’ was assembled by the United Nations to quell the robotic uprising. This task force included 21 heroes, made up of “soldiers, scientists, adventurers, and oddities.”

At the time of the omnic-human crisis, Overwatch was able to restore peace and order to the planet. Now, a generation later, tensions are running high, and the disbanded Overwatch task force is being called into action once again.

These 21 heroes are classified by their unique role: offense, defense, tank, and support. Each class or role has its own purpose and attributes, and no two heroes are alike. The heroes of Overwatch are separated by more than just their respective roles. They all come from different backgrounds, ethnicities, locations, and nationalities, and they each have their own personal history.

In this post, we will be outlining the heroes of Activision Blizzard’s Overwatch – their abilities, their unique attributes, and their place in the battlefield.

Overview of the Overwatch Heroes

Offense Heroes

Genji – Genji Shimada is a 35-year-old Japanese adventurer. His Shuriken (throwing stars) and swift Katana strikes can be lethal. He has the ability not only to attack, but to also deflect oncoming projectiles with the help of his weapons. He also possesses the ability to climb walls and jump in mid-air.

Genji’s ultimate ability is that of the Dragonblade, which delivers deadly Katana strikes to any target within range, for a period of 8 seconds.

McCree – Jesse McCree is a 37-year-old American bounty hunter. Using his faithful six-shooter, McCree can either fire a round at a time, or fan the hammer to quickly unload all six bullets. He has the ability to throw flashbangs at the direction of his enemies (causing them to stagger), and can also execute a combat roll, which causes him to dive for cover while simultaneously reloading his weapon.

McCree’s ultimate ability is that of Deadeye, which causes him to deliver a killing shot at the direction of every target which he can see.

Pharah – Fareeha Amari is a 32-year-old Egyptian security chief. Pharah uses her rocket launcher to inflict serious damage in a wide radius. This is amplified due to her hovering and jump jet abilities, and it allows her to gain high ground in many situations. Pharah also has the ability to knock back enemies using a wrist rocket.

Pharah’s ultimate ability is that of a Barrage of mini-rocket fire, which has a rate of 30 rockets per second, lasts for a period of 3 seconds, and covers a wide area.

Reaper – Gabriel Reyes is an American assassin of unknown age, formerly affiliated with the United States military. In his hands are twin shotguns, which fire at a rate of 2 rounds per second (1 from each), making him one of the deadliest heroes at short range. Reaper can restore health using his enemies’ corpses, and can also become a shadow (wraith form) for a short period of 3 seconds’ time, in which he can move through his enemies, but is otherwise incapacitated. Reaper also possesses the ability to disappear and reappear at a chosen spot, providing it is in his line of sight.

Reaper’s ultimate ability is that of Death Blossom, which causes him to empty both of his shotguns in a hail of bullets which spells certain death for all nearby enemies.

Soldier: 76 – Jack Morrison is a former American soldier and vigilante, of unknown age. He was also the commander of Overwatch, before it was disbanded. He is quick, and can sprint along the battlefield with ease.  Soldier is equipped with a heavy pulse rifle, able to fire at a rate of up to 10 rounds per second. The rifle is also the source of Soldier’s secondary weapon, which is a splash of tiny Helix rockets, able to causes damage to nearby enemies. Soldier is also a vital cog in the support end of things, as he has the ability to restore other players’ health using his Biotic Field.

76’s ultimate ability is closely tied in with his visor, which locks onto targets and disposes of them with utmost accuracy. If you hear the words “I’ve got you all in my sights”, you’d better get the hell out of the way.

Tracer – Lena Oxton is a 26-year-old adventurer from the UK. She has two short-range pistols in her arsenal, but what makes her especially dangerous is her speed and mobility. Her ability to zoom through the battlefield with the blink of an eye, and to also go several seconds backwards in time, is what gives her an edge which – when properly utilized – can make her a player’s favorite in no time, and a serious threat to any enemy.

Tracer’s ultimate ability comes in the shape of a bomb, which explodes and inflicts a lot of damage on any enemies unfortunate enough to be in its blast radius.

Defense Heroes

Bastion – real name: SST Laboratories Siege Automaton E54. He is a 30-year old battle robot, and has several different configurations. These are Recon mode, Sentry mode, and Tank mode, and they are what make him incredibly versatile, and a real asset to any team effort. When in Recon Mode, Bastion is mobile, and is equipped with a submachine gun. Perfect for medium range encounters.

In Sentry Mode, Bastion does not move. But, to make up for this lack of movement, his armor is increased by 200%, and his primary weapon becomes a Gatling, which fires bullets at incredible speed, and demolishes anything and anyone in its path, providing it is in the short-to-medium range radius. Being a battle droid (looking right at you, Star Wars!), Bastion also has the ability to repair himself. However, this takes a heavy toll on his movement and firepower. When self-repairing, Bastion is extremely vulnerable.

Tank Mode is Bastion’s ultimate ability, and it is a doozy. A long-range cannon is deployed, and its shells eliminate targets located within the shells’ large blast radius.

Hanzo – Hanzo Shimada is a 38-year-old Japanese assassin, and older brother to Genji. He is a highly skilled bowman, and his arrows have unique attributes. 

First, there is the well-known plain arrow, able to severely damage enemies in its path. Second, there is the sonic arrow, which marks enemies within the sonar’s radius, making them easier to pick off for Hanzo and his team. Third, there is the fragmenting arrow (also known as scatter arrow), which can ricochet off walls and objects, and hit multiple targets simultaneously.

Hanzo’s ultimate ability is that of Dragonstrike. Using his powers, Hanzo call upon a Spirit Dragon, which flies in the air and kills any enemies in its path.

Junkrat – Jamison Fawkes is a 25-year-old Australian anarchist. He is a Jack of many trades, which include – but are certainly not limited to – thieving, demolishing, scavenging, creating mayhem and dissent, and soldiering in general.

Junkrat has a very lively sense of humor, but there is no joking about this guy’s arsenal. He is armed with a grenade launcher, able to shoot explosive frags across considerable distances. He is a fine maker of concussion mines, which can be either be used to damage his opponents, or to make himself airborne. Another weapon which Fawkes has at his disposal is his metal-tooth steel traps, which immobilize enemies and damage their health. Plus, should Junkrat be killed, he leaves parting gifts in the shape of a few live grenades in his wake. See? Humor!

Junkrat’s ultimate ability is a motorized, remote-controlled tire bomb, which he is only too happy to send off into battle. Enemies caught in the blast sustain heavy damages, invariably make Junkrat very happy in the process!

Mei – Mei-Ling Zhou is a 31-year-old Chinese climatologist and adventurer. She is armed with a blaster, which shoots a short-range stream of frost. This frost damages her enemies, slows then down, and can even freeze them where they stand. A defense hero, Mei is able to heal herself while encased in a block of ice, though this does take away her mobility and firepower. Mei can also generate a huge wall of ice, which can be used as a shield, as a way to block entrances, objects, and enemy fire, and also as a way of elevating herself, her allies, and her enemies.

Mei’s ultimate ability is Blizzard. She sends out a weather-changing device, which causes enemies to slow down, lose health, and in some cases freeze.  

Torbjörn – Torbjörn Lindholm is a 57-year-old Swedish weapons designer. His abilities are impressive and varied, and here they are:

First, there is his rivet gun, which has two functions: first, it fires long-range pins on metal, which arch into the fray at a rate of 2 per second. There are 18 rivets in a magazine. The second function the gun possesses is close to that of a shotgun. Torbjörn’s gun becomes a short-to-mid-range beast, and fires a shotgun blast of pellets at a rate of 1.3 rounds per second, with each round consisting of 10 pellets. Next, Torbjörn wields a multipurpose hammer, which he uses to build, upgrade, and repair turrets, as well as damage enemies up close. It is not as impressive as, say, Reinhardt’s rocket hammer, but it gets the job done. Torbjörn’s turrets lock onto enemies and fire at them automatically. As previously mentioned, his hammer is able to repair and upgrade these turrets as well, making him a very useful hero. He is also useful due to his armor upgrade packs, which can be picked up by Torbjörn’s himself or his allies.

Torbjörn ultimate ability is Molten Core, which provides him with substantially increased armor. Also, when in Molten Core mode, Torbjörn can attack, build, and repair more rapidly.

Widowmaker – Amélie Lacroix is a 33-year-old French assassin, who is also affiliated with the terrorist group Talon. She is a sniper, first and foremost, with deadly aim and lethal precision. Long range attacks? Leave it to her. Furthermore, her weapon has a secondary function, and can be used as an automatic mid-range rifle. This French delicacy also carries a grappling hook, which can propel her to meet any object with is scalable. Whether she needs a hiding place, a higher vantage point, or a way to quickly cut across the battlefield – this is a go-to feature which you will find yourself using quite often, I think. Widowmaker’s motion-triggered venom mines can be attached to any surface, and they detonate and spread poison gas across the blast radius, affecting enemies who are nearby.

Her ultimate ability is really her teammates’ ultimate ability as well, since it is shared with them. It is the ability of infrared sight, which lasts for 15.5 seconds, and allows herself and her allies to spot targets, even through walls.

Tank Heroes

D.Va – Hana Song is a 19-year-old Korean professional gamer and mechanical suit (mech) pilot. She may be young, but she is not to be trifled with.

Mech mode: D.Va’s mech is armed with two cannons, which continuously fire without the need to reload. Her mech also has the ability to use boosters and propel D.Va into the air. She can then choose her direction, in mid-air, or alternatively launch herself right into enemies, damaging them and knocking them down.

Pilot Mode:  When not in her mech, D.Va is equipped with a light automatic gun. It provides her with the ability to gain headshots, but is altogether a weak weapon. D.Va ultimate ability in Pilot mode is calling a new mech, which she can then hop into and return to battle.

She has some very effective means of warding off attacks. One is the defense matrix, which is a short-lived energy shield used to deflect inbound projectiles. Another self-defense move, which is also her mech’s ultimate ability, is the self-destruct feature. Once activated, D.Va will shoot out of the mech, and leave it to self-destruct near her enemies.

Reinhardt – Reinhardt Wilhelm is a 61-year-old German adventurer. He is distinguishable thanks to his enormous rocket hammer. The hammer he carries is great for use against close enemies, and its wide range ensures that anyone who is near Reinhardt will be punished. Reinhardt generates a shield which can absorb a significant amount of damage before being destroyed, but it costs him his firepower abilities. Still, it is one of the best things to use when going on the offensive. If you’ve got enemies coming from the front, a Reinhardt shield will give you all the cover you need to return fire.

Other Reinhardt abilities include charge and fire strike, both of which can be used to inflict a great amount of damage to anyone is his path. His ultimate ability is Earthshatter, where his hammer is brought down hard, causing the enemies to be knocked down and damaged.

Roadhog – Mako Rutledge is a 48-ear-old former Australian enforcer and bodyguard. His scrap gun fires shrapnel, which is lethal at short ranges, and can also fire a ball of shrapnel which detonates further away. Equipped with a menacing hook, Roadhog can pull enemies closer to him, making his gun a lot more effective.

Roadhog restores his health in a relatively short time, by using his “take a breather” canister of oxygen. His ultimate ability is called “Whole Hog”, and it essentially turns his gun into a machine gun, shooting shrapnel at a very fast rate, and causing substantial damage to enemies caught in its line of fire.

Winston – Winston is a 29-year-old gorilla. Yes, that’s right. A gorilla. And a super intelligent one at that. Winston has been genetically engineered, and as a result of that he is a brilliant scientist and adventurer. He is armed with a Tesla cannon, which fires electricity continuously. He is a highly mobile tank unit, and he uses his energy pack to make high jumps and land with a bang, causing damage and knocking enemies down as he goes.

Like Reinhardt, Winston can project a bubble-shaped energy field, which absorbs damage until it is destroyed. His ultimate ability is that of primal rage. When activated, Winston will forgo his brilliant scientist ways, and embrace a much more primitive demeanor.

While is Rage mode, Winston is a very difficult target to acquire and take down. His health is increased, his jump pack abilities are also increased, and his up-close melee attacks are more brutal.

Zarya – Aleksandra Zaryanova is a 28-year-old Russian soldier. Her bright pink hair helps her stand out, but she is by no means an easy target.

She has the ability to block attacks, and use that attack’s energy for her primary weapon – the particle cannon. This cannon fires a short-range ray which destroys everything in its path. The cannon may also be used to chuck exploding energy charges at enemies, thereby damaging several units simultaneously. Zarya can project a protective shield bubble around one of her allies, causing it to absorb energy and fuel her particle cannon.

Her ultimate ability is that of Graviton Surge, where Zarya launches a bomb which causes nearby enemies to be pulled closer together. Under the effect of this ultimate ability, enemy units become a lot more vulnerable, presenting a fantastic opportunity for a team kill.

Support Heroes

Lúcio – Lúcio Correia dos Santos is a 26-year-old DJ from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is one of the more fun characters, because he is all about the music. It is his fun, his passion, his play, and his greatest weapon. He is armed with a device which amplifies the music he is listening to, and sends damaging particles flying through the air. Alternatively, the amplifier can be used to blast his enemies back, using a sonic wave. Lúcio’s energy is constantly regenerating, thanks to the music! Lúcio’s music also has positive effects on any friendly units nearby. It boosts their health or increases their speed, depending on the song in question. The effects of these songs can be increased, through use of Lúcio’s ‘amp it up’ ability, which is a short-lived increase of volume.

His ultimate ability is that of a sound barrier. Lúcio’s amplifier projects a short-lived protective wave of music, which affects teammates in range, increasing their health, and making them less vulnerable.

Mercy – Angela Ziegler is a 37-year-old Swiss combat medic. She is a winged healer, which can jump from great heights and land softly on the ground. Mercy’s staff allows her to project a beam of increased health or increased damage onto her allies. While she also has a blaster, meant for attack and defend herself, it is a relatively weak weapon. Mercy’s primary function is to stay close to her teammates. Her angelic abilities allow her to reach her allies with great speed, and help them in times of need, whether by healing or increasing their own abilities.

Her ultimate ability is that of resurrection. If one or more teammates fall dead, Mercy can quickly resurrect them using her healing power. Once resurrected, they return to the battle fully healed.

Symmetra – Satya Vaswani is a 28-year-old Indian architect. She utilizes her photon projector to send short-range beams of energy, which intensify and increase their damage as long as they are continuously hitting the target. Her projector also has a secondary function: the firing of an energy ball. This ball of energy becomes more destructive, the longer Symmetra lets it charge before firing it. Symmetra can also set up turrets, which fire beam that reduce the speed of enemies caught in their way. She can build several turrets at once, making for a fantastic trap at choke points, blockades, and other vital lines of defense. She can also protect her allies, by surrounding them with a personal photon shield which only expires when the protected ally has fallen.  

Her ultimate ability is enabling team teleportation. When activated, an entry teleporter is automatically placed at the spawning point, and Symmetra may place an exit teleporter anywhere in the battlefield, making it much easier for her teammates to rejoin the fight after respawning. The pad can be used six times, or until destroyed.

Zenyatta – Tekhartha Zenyatta is a 20-year-old adventurer and guru. He uses orbs of harmony, destruction, and discord, to heal allies and damage enemies. Zeyatta uses his orbs of destruction to hurt his opponents. He can fire them individually, at a rate of 2.5 rounds per second, or alternatively gather his strength and release a volley of destructive orbs. He also has the ability to heal teammates – one at a time – by projecting an orb of harmony. This orb continuously restores the health of the teammate which receives it, as long as the teammate is alive and in Zenyatta’s line of sight. The flipside of harmony is discord. Zenyatta can attach an orb of discord to an enemy unit, causing it to become more vulnerable and susceptible to damage. Like the orb of harmony, the enemy unit must be in Zenyatta’s line of sight.

Zenyatta’s ultimate ability is that of transcendent healing. When in a transcendent state, Zenyatta becomes a powerful healer of himself and any friendly units in range, but is otherwise incapacitated.

Hero Stats

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