This Fan-Made Aboriginal Overwatch 2 Hero Concept Looks Like The Real Deal

Highlights

• A fan created a design of an Aboriginal Australian character for Overwatch 2, which aligns with Blizzard’s commitment to diversity.
• The fan’s concept, named Mani, is a refugee who joins Overwatch after experiencing the devastation caused by the Omnium explosion in her country.
• The design showcases the need for more ethnic representation in Overwatch, as currently all Australian characters are Caucasian.

An Overwatch 2 fan came up with their own design of an Aboriginal Australian character, and the presentation looks like the real deal. It fits perfectly with developer Blizzard’s initiative to expand the franchise’s diversity even further, which was exemplified in the addition of the game’s first Samoan hero Mauga in December 2023.

Overwatch 2 has been going strong since its official launch back in August 2023, with millions of players active every month. Despite a few issues popping up occasionally, its devoted fanbase and Blizzard’s steady stream of new content have kept the game healthy.

Redditor Redmonoart posted their original concept of an Aboriginal hero from Australia named Mani. While they didn’t specify what kind of hero Mani would be—if she was a tank, damage, or support—Redmonoart wrote her a whole backstory in which she grew up a refugee thanks to the devastation caused by the Omnium explosion in her country. The suffering she endured and witnessed because of it led her to join the remannts of the Overwatch.

Redmonoart’s design looks pretty close to the usual Overwatch style, showing a true understanding of how Blizzard does it. But if it were real, it would be a nice step forward for Australian representation in the game—as it stands, there are three characters from the continent and all of them are Caucasian, with tank hero Junker Queen being the latest addition back in 2022. With more ethnicities such as the aforementioned Mauga being added, including more ethnic minorities is only a natural and logical progression.

Any new hero takes a lot of time to design and develop, so if anyone on the Blizzard team sees this and takes inspiration from it, the concept likely won’t arrive until months or even years later. In the meantime, the team remains committed to introducing new improvements, such as possibly making new Overwatch 2 heroes instantly available to play on day one. This is to ensure that public games don’t become unfair just because some players are able to afford new heroes right away.

Another important change Blizzard is looking to introduce is the potential overhauling of the Overwatch 2 experience on console. Most people generally find a keyboard and mouse to be the superior way to play an FPS, and some console players already get around the restrictions of a controller by hooking up these PC peripherals to their machine, which isn’t allowed. But in any case, going by these developments and barring any major controversies, Overwatch players have a lot to look forward to in 2024.