The subsequent hero coming to Overwatch 2 isn’t precisely new. Gamers received a glimpse of him, an Omnic activist referred to as Ramattra, greater than three years in the past, on the conclusion of an Overwatch Archives occasion known as Storm Rising. That occasion’s cliffhanger reveal of a menacing Omnic teaming up the villain Doomfist lastly paid off on Friday on the Overwatch League Grand Finals, when Blizzard Leisure revealed the brand new tank-class character coming to Overwatch 2 subsequent month.
Ramattra will be a part of the Overwatch 2 roster on Dec. 6, debuting alongside the sport’s second season. He’ll be the sport’s eleventh tank character, and can deliver a novel mechanic to the tank group: Ramattra has two types, a typical Omnic type and a hulking second type, known as Nemesis.
In his normal Omnic type, Ramattra battles utilizing a employees that fires projectiles and may create a barrier to guard his workforce. However when Ramattra hulks out, utilizing a capability on a cooldown, he turns into a huge brawler able to highly effective melee assaults that may strike concern into “squishies” on the opposing workforce. Overwatch builders described Ramattra’s transformation as “scary” and “menacing,” turning him from a reasonably standard-sized hero into one of many recreation’s largest. That grow to be his extra aggressive Nemesis type makes him deadlier, nevertheless it additionally makes him a a lot larger goal for assaults like Ana’s sleep dart or Zenyatta’s orb of discord.
Picture: Blizzard Leisure
However Ramattra will supply tank gamers new gameplay alternatives, letting them determine between defending their workforce with longer vary assaults and obstacles, or aggressively main the cost into battle. His punches, whereas in Nemesis type, can pierce by means of obstacles, lead hero designer Alec Dawson stated, offering counters to “bubbles” from heroes like Winston and Zarya.
Blizzard didn’t reveal an excessive amount of about Ramattra’s capacity package or his stats throughout a press briefing on Thursday, and as a substitute targeted on the Omnic’s narrative place in Overwatch’s world.
In line with Blizzard’s official origin story, Ramattra was constructed as a warfare machine for the Omnic Disaster, however he put down his weapons, in search of tranquility alongside Zenyatta. For a time, Ramattra adopted that peaceable path earlier than in the end main Null Sector, and preventing for the survival of his folks by any means mandatory.
“Omnics and people have tried to coexist, however as you’ve seen within the lore, that has not been going properly for them,” lead narrative designer Gavin Jurgens-Fyhrie stated. “Ramattra is bored with ready and has grown impatient. He has shaped this group with some allies to battle for the liberty of the Omnic folks and win their security at any price.”
Picture: Blizzard Leisure
Like Kiriko, it feels like Ramattra will roll out to gamers through Overwatch 2’s battle cross. Gamers who pay for the premium model of that cross will get him instantly, whereas different gamers might want to stage up the free model of the cross to unlock him. Requested whether or not Blizzard plans to vary the required battle cross stage — which was 55 for Kiriko — for Ramattra’s launch, artwork director Dion Rogers deferred, saying that the Overwatch workforce is usually evaluating its plans. “It’s a relentless dialog for our workforce,” Rogers stated.
Ramattra will arrive in season 2 alongside a brand new map, one which builders stated has unspecified ties to the brand new hero. Extra heroes, together with a brand new support-class character, are deliberate for Overwatch 2 in 2023.
