Highlights
- The story missions in Overwatch 2 have been praised for their strong narrative, exploring the flaws of characters like Reinhardt and showcasing the heroism of Torbjorn. However, more new cosmetics being introduced within these missions would be nice.
- The Invasion missions feature the heroes wearing their default attire from the sequel, which is not a bad thing but feels like a missed opportunity for more new outfits. Only one new skin is introduced in Invasion, but Blizzard should change that with future content.
- The new skins should be relatively grounded and reflect the current faction of the heroes, similar to the matching outfits seen in Overwatch 1's Uprising and Retribution missions.
Like their name suggests, the biggest strength about the story missions released in Overwatch 2 thus far has been the narrative they offer. Players have been confronted with Reinhardt’s flaws, shown Ramattra’s descent into villainy, and witnessed Torbjorn’s heroism firsthand. When it comes to the gameplay, fans are hoping that the next batch of missions has more objective variety to match the diverse locations players fight through and the numerous types of Omnics thrown their way. However, the next set of missions would also be wise to include more never-before-seen cosmetics.
With the Invasion missions of Overwatch 2 being canon and doing a lot to push the story forward, it is not too surprising that the heroes are wearing their default attire from the sequel. This is not a bad thing by any means, as the updated models for characters like Reinhardt and Tracer look great, but it does feel like a bit of a missed opportunity. Only one truly new outfit is featured in Invasion, and Blizzard should look to it for inspiration when it is crafting future content.
Overwatch 2’s Future Story Missions Should Introduce More New Skins
Though both Rio and Toronto offer no new skins for the heroes, the Gothenburg mission does, as it features a new skin for the Support hero Brigitte. The casual outfit sees her representing her father Torbjorn’s workshop, as the logo is present on her shirt, while a new hairstyle helps the skin stand out from the character’s other looks. Blizzard wisely made it unlockable for use in PvP, but it is odd that Brigitte did not have any company in the new skins department.
Sojourn’s vigilante skin from her animated short is acquired by finishing the co-op missions, which is nice, and players can get Brigitte’s Sparkplug skin for free by complete challenges in the Underworld Event mission. Still, with three full story missions, it is surprising that more cosmetics were not introduced to the hero shooter. Though a lot of effort clearly went into Sparkplug - even its name is a charming nod to Torbjorn’s nickname for his daughter - it feels like so much more can be done.
At this rate, players will be seeing one new skin per mission set - possibly two, since the Sojourn animated short’s Vigilante costume could be replaced by a second story outfit when the next batch of missions arrive. While Blizzard tying the lore-related outfits to Event mission challenges and story mission completions is a nice gesture, it feels like there is a well of untapped potential with story-related cosmetics.
Obviously, any new skins that debut during Overwatch 2’s PvE missions will need to be relatively grounded, so nothing over-the-top like Demon Lord Reinhardt or Ana’s Omnic skin will be seen. Still, there is potential for every new recruit for Winston’s version of Overwatch to get a skin featuring the organization’s logo and colors. Avengers: Endgame’s red and white costumes are proof that matching superhero outfits can look good, and the cosmetics from the original Overwatch’s Archives missions are even better examples of how to approach the idea.
The first two Archives missions in Overwatch had the playable heroes all wear getups that represented their faction. In Uprising, Mercy, Reinhardt, Tracer, and Torbjorn get matching outfits. Though they donned blue colors and prominently displayed the Overwatch logo somewhere on their person, the characters’ personalities were reflected within the designs, like Mercy being a combat medic and Tracer donning a cute, tiny hat. Retribution was no different, as the Blackwatch-focused level provided darker takes on Cassidy and Genji. This is exactly what the next batch of story missions should do, as new recruits to Overwatch like Lucio, Baptiste, D.Va, Zarya, and so on deserve matching outfits to represent their new team. Adding a large batch of story outfits like this could give players more appealing rewards to chase, too, making mission-specific challenges more appealing.
Overwatch 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
