Hello,
My wife wanted to express her thanks to Overwatch and its developers for helping her through some of life’s most difficult challenges. She had a rough time last year and wanted to share her thoughts and feelings with the rest of the Overwatch community.
Thank You, Overwatch
It was a cool November evening. I was watching play-through videos on my phone as Overwatch installed on my computer. I had never really played a first-person shooter before, but I wanted to give this game a shot. I honestly got it because my husband didn’t always have someone to play it with, and I knew how enthusiastic he was about the game. When I told him I would play, he perked up and bought it right away. He started showing me what the game looked like, and I was intrigued enough. Never having played anything like it, I wasn’t sure what would happen, but I tried to be open-minded. “Let’s see how this goes,” I said as I loaded the game for the first time.
I was quickly sent to the practice range where my husband picked out a few characters he thought I would enjoy (I specifically remember Reaper, Junkrat and Torbjorn). I had a lot to learn; more than the average gamer, anyway. It didn’t come to me naturally since I hadn’t played many games like this. I had a hard time remembering the buttons and each characters’ abilities, but the colorful cast of characters kept me captivated. Their individual quirks and personalities held my attention. I was pretty horrible at the game, but I didn’t want to stop playing. I was eager to give competitive play a try; since I had never done anything like that before, I wanted to see what it was like. My husband refused to team up with me until I got better, so I did what I could to learn. I watched videos of people WAY more skilled than I, and I was determined to mirror their movements.
After about two weeks of playing Overwatch, it began to consume a sizeable portion of my free time. I had put the other games I had been playing aside to build a completely new skill set. I was enjoying the new world to which I had been exposed.
Over Thanksgiving holiday I took a break from gaming for family time. I was very glad I had done so, as my father had a stroke the following weekend. He was hospitalized out of town. Because I, like most people, have to work, I couldn’t be at his bedside as often as I wished. I spent the first couple of days with him and spent every weekend with him, but during the week I was confined to hourly phone calls with my mother. I couldn’t be with him, and that separation produced overwhelming anxiety, as his condition was critical for the first few weeks. The first few days in particular were crippling.
When I came home distressed after long days at work trying to do my job along with making preparations for my parents, Overwatch was there for me. I’m sure that sounds silly, but I needed to escape from my own thoughts. I couldn’t be at the hospital, and I desperately needed some kind of distraction. I couldn’t focus at work and nightmares filled the time I should be sleeping. My few hours each night with Overwatch were the only times I wasn’t completely consumed with endless dread of the inevitable phone call that my father had taken a turn for the worse. D.Va and Mercy became my sisters. Rhinehart and Soldier 76 gave me guidance. I could go to the Temple of Anubis and forget the frustration at the hospital too far away.
My father remained hospitalized through December. The Christmas holiday event was the best part of Christmas for me. Seeing the Christmas skins brought me holiday cheer. King’s Row and Hanamura covered in snow were my cozy nights by the fire. Christmas lootboxes were my presents under the tree. I had to leave the hospital on Christmas wondering what the next year would hold, and Overwatch cleared my mind of the uncertainty.
January began with a second stroke hitting my family, and resulted in the sudden death of my grandmother. My father was still in the hospital, and I took my mother’s place as her representative at the funeral. I was consumed with grief for both of us. When I returned home, Overwatch was there for me yet again. If only for an hour or two, my troubles could fade away as I pushed the payloads in overtime and held control points as justice rained and rip-tires rolled.
Overwatch is a game. It is a way to amuse oneself and connect with friends and strangers. It is a way to pass a few hours of free time. To me, though, it will always be a little more than that. Overwatch got me through the worst months of my life. When I needed a way to get out of my own head, I could transport myself to a world of Blizzard’s creation full of color and excitement. I could forget IVs and burial plots for a few hours when I needed somewhere to go. My mains were always there waiting for me as a source of stability and comfort. No matter how bad a competitive match goes, no matter how bad my “off” day is, no matter how OP the new character is, Overwatch will always have a special place in my heart. It was my home away from home. It was my family when my own was out of reach. Thank you, Overwatch.
