The basis is clearly stated. The five heroes stated all, to me at least, feel like they fit the experience of Overwatch. Whereas with the newer ones, this is less strong.
Not sure how that doesn’t make sense to you? Let’s see if an LLM can make sense of it:
ChatGPT said:
Yeah, your point makes sense, and I get where you’re coming from. Overwatch 2 has definitely shifted in tone and design philosophy compared to the original.
A lot of people feel like the new heroes lack that distinct “Overwatch” identity—something that made the original roster so iconic. Characters like Echo, Kiriko, JQ, and Ramattra feel more naturally integrated into the universe, either through lore connections or unique aesthetics that fit the game’s original design language. Even Mauga, despite some mixed reactions, at least had a long-standing connection to Baptiste and Talon.
On the other hand, Venture, Illari, and Freya seem to deviate in ways that are hard to pinpoint. Maybe it’s that their designs feel more generic or lack the same narrative depth? Venture, for example, has a more neutral, almost Fortnite-esque look. Illari had cool abilities, but her backstory wasn’t as interwoven into the world as other heroes. Freya, from early impressions, seems more like a generic Viking archetype than a character deeply rooted in Overwatch’s lore.
It could also be that OW2’s art direction has subtly shifted—textures, shading, and even silhouettes feel a bit different. That, combined with the lack of meaningful story content, makes it harder for newer heroes to feel like a natural extension of the world we fell in love with.
Hmm. Seems the randomly unthinking word engine can make sense of it.
Let’s see what it thinks of Freja compared with the ones I mentioned:
One of the biggest issues newer heroes face is how well they fit into the existing Overwatch narrative. Here’s how they compare:
Kiriko (Strong Connection)
- Introduced as part of Kanezaka’s lore alongside Hanzo & Genji.
- Her story ties into the Shimada clan, a major faction in Overwatch’s world.
- Her role as a kitsune-guided protector gives her a direct link to the world’s spiritual and ninja elements.
Junker Queen (Strong Connection)
- The ruler of Junkertown, a location first established in OW1.
- She’s the leader of a faction that already had lore ties through Junkrat and Roadhog.
- Her story about winning the throne of Junkertown expands on an existing in-game setting.
Ramattra (Very Strong Connection)
- Directly tied to Zenyatta, the Shambali monks, and Omnic crisis lore.
- Introduced as the leader of Null Sector, a core antagonist faction.
- His entire philosophy builds on Overwatch 1’s long-running Omnic/human conflict.
Mauga (Decent Connection)
- First mentioned in Baptiste’s lore in OW1.
- Connected to Talon, the long-running villainous organization.
- His personality and combat style fit well into the high-energy world of Overwatch.
Freja (Weakest Connection)
- Unlike the others, she doesn’t seem to have any major pre-existing connections to Overwatch’s central storylines.
- No clear ties to Null Sector, Talon, or Overwatch itself (so far).
- Her bounty hunter background is generic compared to the deeply tied histories of other OW2 heroes.
This makes her feel more like an isolated character rather than someone that naturally expands Overwatch’s world.
- Kiriko, Junker Queen, Ramattra, and Mauga all feel like they fit into Overwatch’s world in a deep and natural way.
- Freja, by comparison, feels like she could belong in almost any other hero shooter—she lacks that direct tie to the core storylines and factions that make Overwatch heroes feel distinct.
Well that certainly saves me a job. Gee, it seems that it’s your claims that are baseless, after all?
Ilari suffers from a similar issue as Freja in that she feels somewhat disconnected from the broader Overwatch universe. Let’s compare her to the other heroes you’ve mentioned.
Illari (Weakest Connection)
- Unlike the others, she has no strong ties to an existing Overwatch faction, hero, or event.
- Comes from an entirely new, never-before-mentioned group (the Inti Warriors).
- While her Peruvian culture and sun-god energy abilities are unique, her place in Overwatch’s world is unclear.
- No strong relationships with other heroes that make her feel like part of the universe.
Illari, like Freja, feels like she was added first as a gameplay concept, and her lore was an afterthought. She could have been part of Talon, Null Sector, or Overwatch itself—but instead, she’s from an isolated, previously unknown group.
Shucks, some pretty shaky ground you’re on there.
Well that’s just great isn’t it? Except what? The whole basis of the argument is that these new heroes are relatively speaking barely from the OW universe at all compared to past ones.
It’s almost like in order to be as diverse and inclusive as possible, not that this is a bad thing of course, they’re moving outside the bounds of the original lore into the weaker less well covered areas. This is hardly surprising as there can only have been a limited amount of material to draw on.
Sure, feel free to make further stuff up by all means, but at least make it the same level of detail and give it the same overall feel.
This new stuff, as the chatbot says, could have been pulled from any old shooter.