Highlights
- Overwatch 2 introduces dedicated weapon skins separate from hero skins, starting with Reinhardt, Reaper, and Mercy. These skins have a sleek Hard Light design with custom visual and sound effects.
- The weapon skins are likely to be usable with any hero skin for the three mentioned heroes, allowing for interesting combinations. It remains to be seen if matching hero skins will be released for these heroes.
- This is just the beginning of weapon skins in Overwatch 2, with the potential for more heroes to receive them in the future. It is unclear if weapon skins will be included in future battle passes, so players may need to purchase them individually for now.
Overwatch 2 has finally revealed its first batch of dedicated weapon skins, which will be unique and separate from the game's hero skins. Season 8 of Overwatch 2, named Call of the Hunt, is right around the corner and will introduce the newest Tank Mauga, along with a new limited-time event in Battle of the Beasts and the return of the annual Winter Wonderland and Year of the Dragon events, both set to begin later in the season.
In the seven years since the launch of the original Overwatch, there have been a myriad of different types of cosmetics introduced to the game. Hero skins, voice lines, sprays, and emotes formed the foundation for Overwatch's cosmetic rewards as an ongoing live service game, with newer cosmetics like souvenirs and customizable Mythic skins joining the fray as part of Overwatch 2. Historically, every weapon in Overwatch has been treated as a part of the hero who wields it, and as such, all hero skins extend to the weapons in the hands of the character. The only separate weapon skins that have been made available are the golden skins obtainable exclusively with earned Competitive Points.
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Now, Overwatch 2 is looking to further decouple weapons from their heroes in the cosmetic sense. As part of the trailer for the upcoming Season 8, Overwatch 2 revealed new weapons skins for Reinhardt, Reaper, and Mercy. Each skin is interestingly very similar to Echo's base skin, with sleek white, holographic blue, and little hints of gold. These Hard Light weapon skins will supposedly be made available in Overwatch 2's in-game shop, but the pricing has yet to be officially confirmed.
It's likely that these weapon skins will be usable with any other hero skin for Reaper, Reinhardt, and Mercy, making for some potentially interesting combinations players could find. It'll be interesting to know if Mercy, Reinhardt, and Reaper will eventually receive matching Hard Light hero skins, though that would defeat the purpose of purchasing these new weapon skins in the first place. Other heroes like Lifeweaver and Moira have their weapons integrated into their hands, so it'll be see if and how Blizzard would handle them.
It seems like this is the beginning of a wider array of weapon skins coming to Overwatch 2 for many more heroes in the future. Whether weapon skins will become available as part of future Overwatch 2 battle passes remains to be seen, as Season 8's pass doesn't seem to include any. For now, players who wish to mix and match weapon and hero skins will have to purchase the Hard Light skins in the shop, or wait for more to potentially become available in future seasonal battle passes.
Overwatch 2
Overwatch 2 is Blizzard's free-to-play team-based first-person shooter. The title features some new heroes like Junker Queen and Sojourn, as well as returning favorites.
