Following the previous announcementWorld of Warcraft: Darkest NightFollowing the confirmation of its official launch date of March 2nd, Blizzard Entertainment announced during its "Overwatch Highlights 2026" livestream that it would officially drop the "2" from the title "Overwatch 2" and revert to the original "Overwatch". In addition, Blizzard Entertainment announced that it will release 10 new heroes in 2026 and will launch a super cute collaboration with Sanrio.
Why change it back to its original name?
Blizzard explained that this move was to reinforce Overwatch's status as a "live service game." The official stance is that Overwatch shouldn't be limited by numbers or chronological order; this name change symbolizes the development team's commitment to managing the game universe with a longer-term perspective.
"Claw Empire" launches, with 10 new heroes joining the battle (including a cat).
To prove that this was not just a simple name change game, Blizzard unveiled its most radical update plan in history: a year-long immersive narrative storyline called "The Talon Takeover".
Starting with Season 1 on February 11th, five new heroes will be added to the battlefield, including:
• Domina:The Vice President of Vischka Enterprises, capable of creating light walls and remotely controlling the battlefield to imprison enemies.
• Emre:A former Defender member, wielding a combination rifle and pistol in a hit-and-run attack stance.
• Mizuki:A member of the Hashimoto family, a support character who can throw spinning blades and heal teammates.
• Phreak:Wu Yang's older sister is an attack character who can control flames and regenerate after death (demo available on February 6th).
• Jetpack Cat:Yes, you read that right, this is a flying cat. It's a support character with a jetpack, the ability to heal teammates, and the special move "Cat Kidnapping."
In the subsequent Seasons 2 through 6, one new hero will be added each season, for a total of 10 new faces to appear throughout the year.
Hello Kitty joins the fray, arriving on Nintendo Switch 2
Beyond its hardcore storyline, Blizzard also understands players' girlish hearts. The official announcement reveals a collaboration with Sanrio, launching a series of themed outfits starting February 11th:
• Juno x Hello Kitty
• D.Va x My Melody
• Deadly Woman x Coolomi
• Kiriko x Cinnamoroll
• Compassion x Pompompurin
• Lucio x Bigeye Frog
In addition, there is new information regarding hardware support: the game is confirmed to officially launch on Nintendo Switch 2 in Season 2 of this year.
