- Primary Subject: Overwatch (Season 1 / 2026 Roadmap)
- Key Update: Blizzard has officially dropped the "2" from the title and announced an ambitious roadmap featuring 10 new heroes for 2026, including the long-awaited Jetpack Cat.
- Status: Confirmed
- Last Verified: February 9, 2026
- Quick Answer: Blizzard is releasing 10 new heroes in 2026, including Jetpack Cat and Anran, as part of a major rebranding effort back to the original Overwatch.
So, Overwatch 2, or better known nowadays as just Overwatch, just released the content roadmap for the rest of 2026, and I'm concerned. This sudden release of content coming right after a major Deadlock update felt like an ex begging me to take them back, but we all know Deadlock loves me better.
The content roadmap promised tons of changes, story events, and promotional game modes for the community to keep everyone engaged and playing. But what stands out the most from the announcement is the reveal of 5 out of 10 heroes slated for release this year alone. And oh boy, do I have a lot of things to say about the art direction.
Overwatch 2? More Like Overhyped 2
Overwatch 2’s release is rocky to say the least. Overwatch 1 was a great game that had a lot going for it, problematic business practices aside. I played the first game for hundreds of hours, grinding on casual and ranked with my friends. The balance was abysmal, sure, but the game was fun, and that was enough.
So imagine my surprise when, just a few years into Overwatch 1’s life cycle, Blizzard already announced a sequel that was meant to be bigger and better than the original. The differences were glaring enough that other players just opted out of playing Overwatch 1 until the sequel came out. This decision effectively killed off the game I loved, but it should be worth it for the new features, right?
The entire reason for Overwatch 2’s existence, other than just to distract you from the ongoing turmoil within Blizzard and Activision, was to introduce new mechanics. The game was suddenly a 5v5 experience with solo tanks; there were supposedly new maps and balance changes, and there was the promise of a PvE mode akin to other co-op 4-stack shooters. There was a bunch more teased to players, but only a few ever really made it through the pipeline.
The PvE concept being scrapped entirely still hurts, and is one of the main reasons I’ve strayed from the series. Overwatch 2 overpromised and under-delivered, and I believe this allows a bit of scrutiny from the fans.
Lost Identity
As someone who’s been playing Overwatch since the beta, I feel very disappointed about Overwatch’s current design direction. It’s hard to put into words the exact reason why I like Overwatch’s direction during the early years, but if I had to, I would describe it as grounded fiction.
Every design that was made for the first Overwatch game felt grounded within that universe, complete with sound lore and themes. I’m not saying it was realistic, because we are still talking about a game that has a talking monkey, but it was designed around a concept that made sense within that universe. The designs were sleek, stylized, and charming.
Fast forward to a week earlier, and I’m looking at how overdesigned and hit-or-miss the designs were. Anran and Mizuki looked like characters straight out of League of Legends, over-stylized and looking far from the original cast’s design.
Their base designs looked like battle pass skins more than anything, and don’t really communicate much about their clan’s history. Contrast this with Genji, whose redesign moving into Overwatch 2 still felt sensible for the character. Although every design this season is raising eyebrows from me personally, I will admit, heroes like Hazard, Junker Queen, and Venture still have my heart.
Fanservice
Let’s face it, Overwatch can also be considered a gooner game. Although they aren’t as blatant with the fan service as Marvel Rivals, there is still a lot to be said about them pandering to what certain thirsty fans want. Domina in particular stands out to me as a cool design, but something about it suggests it’s been tailored to the male gaze.
Then again, it may just be my own knee-jerk reaction after seeing so many thirst traps throughout the years. I mean, you can only take so many Kiriko skins before you conclude that Overwatch knows exactly what it’s doing.
Another thing that irks me more is the recent discovery that Anara’s in-game model is much different from the design seen in the trailer. The truth is that Overwatch is suffering from something called same face syndrome. Heroes like Anara, Juno, Kiriko, and D.Va all fit into the same facial archetype, making them look the same. Looking at Deadlock’s diverse cast of female faces makes Overwatch's stick out even more. I have seen multiple posts on social media attempting to fix Anara’s face, and all of them seem better than what we got.
But even amid all these complaints, I appreciate the effort and transparency the developers show to their playerbase. The heroes seem interesting enough for a few matches at least. As my final petty complaint, I have one question to ask the Overwatch Dev Team: Really? We came up with Hammond and Winston, but we couldn’t think of a better name for Jetpack Cat.
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