What you need to know
- Overwatch 2 developer Blizzard has announced Overwatch Genesis, a three-part anime mini-series set in the Overwatch universe.
- Based on the series' trailer, it looks like it's set in (or is at least about) the Omnic Crisis and will feature multiple characters from the game, including Ana, Reinhardt, and Torbjorn.
- The trailer also showed a new female omnic character with very human-looking eyes, possibly suggesting that she's some sort of human-omnic hybrid.
- The first part of Genesis, titled "Hope," is scheduled to become available on July 6 at 9 a.m. PT / 12 p.m. ET. It will have a runtime of five minutes and 13 seconds.
For years, Overwatch fans have been begging developer Blizzard for an anime adaptation of the franchise, which has become known for the extremely high quality of its cinematics. Now, it looks like that wish has finally been granted.
Blizzard has officially announced Overwatch Genesis, a three-part anime mini-series set to debut next week on July 6. The first part of Genesis will be available to watch at 9 a.m. PT / 12 p.m. ET, will be titled "Dawn," and will have a runtime of five minutes and 13 seconds. There aren't any details about the following parts, however.
You can expect to see multiple Overwatch 2 heroes in these episodes, as Ana, Reinhardt, and Torbjorn all appeared in the mini-series' teaser trailer, along with Echo's creator Dr. Mina Liao. We've embedded it below so you can have a look.
Based on the dialogue heard in the trailer as well as what was shown, it's clear that Genesis will be set during, or at least heavily focus on, the Omnic Crisis war. This conflict saw members of Overwatch deploy all over the world to fight against armies of hostile omnics, AI machines that were originally designed to be peaceful human companions that eventually gained sentience and became part of society.
It looks like we'll learn more about how the Omnic Crisis came to occur in this mini-series, and may also see how it continues to affect the Overwatch 2 story moving forward. Notably, there's a new female omnic character shown in the trailer as well, though her eyes look very human, which may suggest she's a unique human-omnic hybrid. At the end of the trailer, she's seen walking towards the Shambali Monastery, a sanctuary for omnics and the site of a map added to Overwatch 2 in Season 2.
Overall, it's fantastic that Blizzard is finally embracing this medium for Overwatch storytelling, as the universe's stylized and vibrant art direction is absolutely perfect for it. It is a shame that the mini-series will likely only be around 15-20 minutes long if Part One's runtime is any indication, though it's possible that Part Two and Three will be longer. Hopefully Genesis is a success, as I would love for Blizzard to explore anime adaptations of Overwatch further.
Overwatch 2 is one of the best Xbox games on the market for fans of hero shooters, and it's free-to-play on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, PS5, and PS4.
