Overwatch 2 continues the original game’s focus on a colorful world that is full of hope, though that does not mean there are not moments of darkness scattered throughout its lore. In fact, a few heroes have some particularly tragic stories. Mei woke from cryogenic slumber to see all her friends and fellow scientists dead, Hanzo essentially killed his own brother, and Reaper is in constant pain due to his cursed abilities. However, no hero can compete with Widowmaker’s lore when it comes to tragedy.
With the Overwatch 2 PvE campaign set to move the story forward in a major way, big changes could be in store for the cast of Blizzard’s hero shooter. Though each player has their own wish list for the story mode, like Genji and Hanzo interacting or Ana and Pharah continuing to repair their relationship, Widowmaker overcoming her brainwashing could make for an unforgettable turn of events.
Widowmaker’s Tragic Origin Story
Amelie Lacroix was not a skilled sniper for all her life, as for many years she was focused on her career as a ballet dancer. Eventually, she married a man named Gerard, a skilled Overwatch agent who had been successful in thwarting a number of Talon operations. With the terrorist group failing to assassinate Gerard time and time again, it came up with a new plan: brainwashing his wife to do the deed for them.
To accomplish this, Talon kidnapped Amelie and turned her into a sleeper agent, altering her personality and breaking her will through their experimentation. Once the work was done, they allowed Overwatch to find her, and two weeks after this event she killed her husband. With everything settling down in that time, nobody saw the assassination coming, and she left the scene of the crime to return to the Talon organization.
Back at Talon, the brainwashing continued, and further experiments were conducted to make Widowmaker a more effective killing tool. Her heart rate was slowed, turning her blue but helping her become a more accurate sniper. This also removed her emotions - or so Talon thought. As time has gone on, Widowmaker has assisted Doomfist in his various schemes, but she has also been shown visiting her husband’s grave in a comic panel. She has also had emotional responses on occassion, with Moira calling one of them out in some Overwatch 2 dialogue.
A Hero Turn For Widowmaker is Viable
It is important to keep in mind that, when it comes to the Talon organization, only Doomfist, Moira, and Reaper seem irredeemable. Sombra is a neutral figure that is using Talon to further her own goals, Sigma is an unfortunate character that is being manipulated, and Widowmaker has had no control over her actions for years. In the upcoming PvE mode, perhaps that will finally change for her, with a key cinematic or mission showing her betrayal of Talon.
Not only does Widowmaker have unfinished business with Ana that would make for a great PvE sequence, but the campaign could also touch on Widowmaker slowly realizing what Talon has done and fighting back against her programming. Part of Amelie’s personality could still exist, explaining her visit to Gerard’s grave and the recent emotional responses. If Widowmaker can finally break away from her brainwashing, she may join Overwatch and use the tools Talon gave her against them. Not only would escaping Talon’s control and fighting against the group help her avenge her husband, but it could be a first step to atoning for all the innocent people she killed. Much like Winter Soldier’s arc in the Marvel universe focuses on him redeeming himself for the things he did while mind controlled, Widowmaker could end up on a similar path to redemption.
Overwatch 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
