[Opinion] Overwatch lore questions we need answers to in Overwatch 2

Blizzard shared more information about Overwatch 2 at BlizzConline earlier this year, informing us about the hero customization trees, new competitive mode, and weapon updates. But one thing we are still left wondering is just how much lore we will finally uncover in Overwatch 2.

Even though it’s an online multiplayer, Overwatch is known for its rich, dynamic lore. We have learned more and more about the story behind the Omnic Crisis and all of the heroes through short films, comics, and game modes. But there is still so much left to explore about each hero’s background and the secrets of Overwatch’s crumbling yet beautiful world.

Here are some of the more important and pressing questions we are hoping will be answered in Overwatch 2.

Where did Mei learn to fight like that?

Aaron: So Mei is an environmental scientist who was cryogenically frozen and then had to engineer her way to survival while at Ecopoint Antarctica.

So what about that would bring her into a combat situation? Maybe in Overwatch 2, we will find out more about how Mei went from a lab to a battlefield.

Olivia: Yeah, being a climatologist doesn’t seem like a career where you’d often need to shoot icicles at people’s heads. But I recall part of her lore involving extensive travel after what happened at Ecopoint Antarctica.

It’s possible she learned a lot of different survival techniques while on her mission. But I’d definitely like to see more details about her journey after nine years of being frozen. What prepared her for Overwatch?

How did McCree lose his hand?

Olivia: Jesse McCree’s left arm is made out of cybernetics in his original, present-day skin, although skins that depict McCree at a younger age have him with his original arm.

McCree’s missing arm has been brought up in a lot of existing lore. Torbjorn and Genji have interactions with McCree that question how the cowboy lost his arm. McCree, being the suave cowboy he is, avoids answering the questions.

In Ashe’s short, “Reunion,” McCree is reunited with Echo. After acknowledging that they have been apart “far too long,” Echo asks him what happened to his arm.

“Well that’s a story for another time,” McCree answers smoothly, quickly flipping the conversation to be about Overwatch needing Echo.

Aaron: They revealed how Reinhardt lost his eye in the Eichenwalde short. Perhaps we will see a similar short about McCree’s accident — if that isn’t too graphic to depict.

Why doesn’t Sigma wear shoes?

Aaron: When Sigma released, he made waves around the internet with his shoeless design. After release, the writers claimed that the shoeless design was to refer to the fact that asylum’s don’t let patients have shoes (which is not true). The Sigma we know in-game, however, is escaped and part of Talon.

So why does he still not wear shoes? Is it a statement that he is trying to make, is it because Talon won’t let him? I hope they will talk about this in Overwatch 2 and take their own visual storytelling seriously.

Olivia: Seeing as Sigma floats with his feet dangling above the ground, I wonder if it has something to do with magnetic fields — or something very ~sciency~ that makes it easier to float without shoes.

I agree that we need more information about Sigma’s lack of footwear. There has to be a reason Sigma doesn’t wear shoes or I will personally be frustrated with this design choice. Even if they make some strange Christmas comic and reveal that he just hates confining his toes that would be fine (I guess).

What is with Jetpack Cat?

Olivia: Jetpack Cat was a design that almost made it into Overwatch, but for some disturbing, sick reason it was pulled from the original roster. Even though Jetpack Cat is now no more than a sketch, this means that there’s possibly a lot of lore behind Jetpack Cat that explains how a Jetpack Cat was able to join Overwatch and take part in combat.

We only know two things about Jetpack Cat. The first is that former Overwatch employee Michael Chu hinted that Jetpack Cat was Torbjorn’s “particularly interesting cat” that used Torbjorn’s equipment to fly.

The second is that the cat used its paws to control the jetpack in the original design, which means it wasn’t just a cat Torbjorn strapped into a jetpack. No, Jetpack Cat had capabilities beyond that of a normal housecat.

Since Brigitte has a lot of cosmetics featuring this giant cat, will we learn more about this cat (and even get it as a hero) in Overwatch 2? Because Jeff Kaplan said Jetpack Cat was “too outlandish” to be in the original roster but now we have a hamster. So…

Aaron: Right! So Winston and Hammond are down to earth (now), but a Jetpack Cat is out of the question? Come on Jeff, give us more Jetpack Cat.

I would assume that Jetpack Cat gained advanced intelligence in some comparable way to Winston and Hammond, who were both test subjects at Horizon Lunar Colony and were given their heightened intelligence by human scientists.

Perhaps the Jetpack Cat escaped the lunar base along with Hammond and Winston, ultimately getting adopted by Torbjorn.

Will Ana reveal her survival to her former partner Sam?

Aaron: We were briefly introduced to Sam Amari, the former partner of Ana Amari and Fareeha Amari’s (Pharah’s) father. He is canonically part of an indigenous nation in western Canada. We don’t know much about Ana and Sam’s relationship, other than that they met before the Omnic Crisis and had a daughter together.

One thing we do know is that Ana hasn’t revealed that she is still alive to Sam. He still believes her to have died in Poland when she first went into hiding. This fact was revealed in the Bastet comic, written by MIchael Chu and released in 2019, with Ana saying: “I made a big enough mess of his life without having to give him the news.”

Will Ana be reunited with Sam and Fareeha?

Olivia: I find it hard to believe that a game with lore as extensive as Overwatch wouldn’t come back to touch upon this interesting storyline. Overwatch has hinted at a lot of relationships I want to know more about, including Soldier: 76’s.

It seems that a lot of families and partnerships were disrupted due to the Omnic Crisis and I think fans would find it satisfying if these were revisited during the campaign.

This one is definitely one of the most interesting reunions because I’d like to see how Sam reacts not only to Ana’s involvement with Overwatch, but his daughter’s. And what kind of guy was Sam that he caught the eye of Ana, who seems so independent and strong? Maybe he has something to offer Overwatch himself.

• Aaron is an esports reporter with a background in media, technology, and communication education.

• Esports writer and editor with a passion for creating unique content for the gaming community.

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