A fan online recently created a meme for Overwatch 2 that may have more validity than it intended. With Blizzard taking chances on new mechanics for the heroes it is developing in Overwatch 2, the new meme may end up being prophetic.
April 11 marked the start of season 4 for Overwatch 2, introducing players to a score of new cosmetics, game modes, and most prominently, its newest support hero Lifeweaver. With a kit unlike any other, Lifeweaver's utility largely focuses around character displacement, both enemy and ally. For the first time in Overwatch's history, a hero can pull an ally to their position, regardless of whether that ally wants to or not. The possibilities for clever plays with this new mechanic are endless, but so are the ways in which a Lifeweaver can grief their own team, and this is causing concern from the fan base over its prospects for Overwatch 2's future.
Reddit user baderki posted a four-panel meme for Overwatch 2 showing three existing heroes and a black box representing a hypothetical fourth. Focusing on abilities that have displacement as a mechanic, it shows Roadhog, with the ability to pull enemies to him, the new hero Lifeweaver, who can pull allies to them, Kiriko, with the ability to teleport to teammates, and the for now non-existing hero who would complete the quadfecta by being able to teleport to enemies. Comments in the thread were all over the map, with some appalled at the notion of an enemy flanker able to teleport behind them with no counter-play, while others posited that it was basically what Reaper, Sombra, and the old Doomfist already do.
Setting aside heroes that already do some version of teleportation for flanking's sake, a hero with an ability that actively targets a specific enemy to teleport to is an intriguing prospect. Some sort of audio or visual cue would be required to be able to counter the ability, but it could do wonders for punishing players who refuse to group up with the team. For some commenters in the thread for baderki's meme, that would be a nightmare, but Overwatch 2 is rife with hero abilities that sound overpowered on paper, yet Blizzard somehow always seems to strike a decent balance.
The future of Overwatch 2 is bright, and with the release of Lifeweaver, the imaginations of the game's fans have been stirred to speculate what crazy new abilities the studio might concoct for its next hero. Only time will tell as Overwatch 2 enters its fourth season, still early in its life-cycle.
Overwatch 2 is currently available for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.