TL;DR
- Blizzard Entertainment unveils a major overhaul for Overwatch following its latest Spotlight showcase.
- Five brand-new heroes will launch at the start of Season 1, covering Tank, Damage, and Support roles.
- An additional five heroes are planned later in 2026, alongside reworks for older characters.
Blizzard Entertainment has officially pulled back the curtain on the future of Overwatch, confirming changes to the long-running hero shooter. During the latest Overwatch Spotlight showcase, the developer outlined ambitious plans that signal a fresh chapter for the franchise, both in gameplay systems and content delivery.
The headline announcement from the showcase centered on the introduction of five new heroes arriving at the very start of Season 1. These characters are designed to expand strategic variety across all roles and introduce fresh mechanics to the battlefield.
Leading the lineup is Domina, a Tank hero built around long-range pressure. She can summon a unique shield that only partially breaks when damaged, allowing skilled players to maintain frontline presence even under heavy fire. Emre joins the roster as a Damage hero who leans into classic FPS fundamentals, wielding a Halo-style battle rifle, a reliable sidearm, and grenades that can bounce off walls for creative plays.
Support hero is named Mizuki, a hero centered on sustained team value. She emits a healing aura reminiscent of Lucio, but with a twist. The aura becomes stronger as Mizuki uses abilities and deals damage, encouraging an active, aggressive support playstyle. Rounding out the Damage category is Anran, an assassin-type hero with high mobility and lethal burst potential. Her kit includes access to two different ultimates, depending on whether she is alive or downed, adding a high-risk, high-reward layer to her gameplay.
Perhaps the most unconventional reveal is Jetpack Cat, a Support hero built around movement and disruption. This character can tether to nearby allies to transport them quickly toward objectives, or use their ultimate to latch onto an enemy and carry them off the map, turning positioning into a weapon.
Beyond the initial launch roster, Blizzard confirmed that five more heroes are planned for release after Season 1. This brings the total number of new heroes arriving in 2026 to ten. Alongside these additions, several legacy heroes from the existing roster will receive reworks throughout the year, aiming to modernize older kits and better align them with the game’s evolving design philosophy.
Another major system debuting with Season 1 is Subroles. After previously introducing Hero Perks, Blizzard is now further refining class identity by dividing each of the three main roles into ten Subroles. Heroes will be grouped by general playstyle, and each Subrole will grant an additional passive ability, subtly shifting how characters function and how teams are built.
One of the most symbolic moments of the showcase was Blizzard’s decision to officially remove the “2” from the game’s title.
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