At this year’s BlizzCon event — entitled BlizzConline for its all-digital format — Blizzard released a forty-minute video dedicated to Overwatch 2. It showcased the new Talents system, two new maps, and a few things that might get overlooked on one viewing. There was no release date announced, but there’s enough for Overwatch fans to chew on until Blizzard nails down an official launch date.
Some of the most exciting details shown off surround the bounty of upgrades coming to the PvE enemy faction, Null Sector Omnics. While these bots appeared in Overwatch seasonal events like Uprising and Halloween Terror, many players felt they posed little threat and were mostly uninteresting bullet sponges. Blizzard aims to correct this with Overwatch 2. And while much was revealed at BlizzConline, there were a few details that are easy to overlook.
10 Elite Omnic Grunts Can Fly
Though Blizzard did not mention the Jumper by name, the new Omnic appears in a few clips alongside Omnic Grunts, Elite Grunts, and Artillery units. A flying bipedal Omnic, the Jumper seems to behave similarly to Grunt units, with the added element of vertical mobility.
Jumpers also seem to have an intense effect on friendly Omnics when destroyed, thanks to Overwatch 2’s new chain-hit reactions system. One clip in Blizzard’s video shows the player gunning down a Jumper, which then explodes and bowls into a group of Omnic Grunts. Sweet.
9 Slicers Can Cut Through Walls
A returning enemy type from BlizzCon 2019, Slicers are little bird-like Omnics that Blizzard internally refers to as “chickens.” These bots seem to come in packs, posing a minor threat on their own but deadly with numbers. Little is known about how they attack players, if at all (these could be another form of “objective units,” which Blizzard discusses in the video).
What is clear from the video is how these little chickens get around. At multiple points, the video shows Slicers cutting through a large wall in the Hollywood map, burning circular holes into the offensive starting room players will recognize from the first game.
8 Artillery Units Can Fly
The tank-like Artillery unit is already an intimidating adversary based on how Blizzard describes it in the BlizzConline video. It’s a four-legged monster of an Omnic that can rain a barrage of small missiles and fire a charged-up duo of large rockets. There’s little need to make this a more intimidating adversary.
Nevertheless, a few quick shots in the video show the Artillery Omnic flying. It points its launchers towards the sky, and away it goes. Great.
7 Mysterious Drone Units
Another unannounced unit shown off in concept art-form appears to be another flying drone-like unit. This oblique, tripodal Omnic made zero appearances besides one concept art image, but it looks similar to a Detonator.
The Detonators appeared in the Uprising seasonal event. However, there are some notable differences between the image and the Uprising models, and Uprising’s titular PvE mode reenacted an event predating both Overwatch and Overwatch 2. So it’s unclear what this new Omnic’s role will be, if not flying towards enemies and blowing up like a Detonator. Perhaps it’s a healer? Maybe another grenade-tossing drone? Who knows!
6 Breachers And Objective Units
In the video, Blizzard offers many details for the Breacher, a new Null Sector enemy that lumbers towards an objective point and, if allowed to reach its destination, explodes. Blizzard refers to this Omnic as an “objective unit.”
It’s probably safe to assume that there are other objective units planned for Overwatch 2. And chances are we’ve already seen some of them. Little is explained, for instance, about the Orbiters, Slicers, and a few unnamed Omnics seen in some of the featured concept art.
5 Enemy Colors May Imply Roles
Much time is dedicated to the Breacher drones, an objective unit that carries an explosive orb towards an objective. Most of the shots featuring a Breacher show the Omnic as a bright red robot. A few concept art illustrations, however, show the unit resplendent in Null Sector purple.
There are a few other Omnics in these same two colors; Elite Grunts, Jumpers, and Orbiters are red, while older Null Sector bots, like Nullifiers, Skirmishers, and the classic B73-NS “Bastion” units, all appear in purple. There’s no clear delineation between these two colors, and the Breachers in the concept art images could be just early concepts. But it’s also possible these color differences could indicate rankings or timeline jumps in Overwatch 2’s narrative.
4 Elite Grunts Aren’t The Only Elite Enemies
Omnic Grunts are one of the examples drawn up in the video of Elite enemy types. However, Blizzard’s wording here suggests there are other “elite” enemy types to come. Ostensibly, there could be an elite version of almost any Omnic unit we’ve seen thus far.
In the video’s example, Elite Grunts differ from standard Grunts in a few ways. Besides an increase in hit points and damage output, Elite Grunts get a second wind after they’re killed; instead of just blowing up, these bots crawl after the player even after losing their limbs, ultimately exploding upon if they reach the player before getting gunned down. Who knows what else other Elite units will be able to do!
3 Orbiters Make An Appearance
One enemy type that has shown up very little, whether in the form of gameplay or concept art, is the Orbiter. These drone-like fliers seem to appear in groups and hover above players and/or objectives. In the BlizzConline video, a group of Orbiters flies over the player on both Route 66 and Numbani, and they don’t seem to be attacking the player in any obvious way.
While the Orbiters in these shots seem easy to eliminate (the Tracer player on Route 66 guns down multiple of these bots with just a few shots), their role is not clear and could be more objective-focused. (All this said, it’s nice to see these two maps brought back for Overwatch 2.)
2 The Mysterious Behemoth Made Another Appearance
While there was a ton of gameplay for the Null Sector units appearing in Overwatch 2, a few appeared only in concept art shots. One illustration shows a line of various Omnics, the largest a hulking gorilla-like bot looming over the rest.
This Omnic, called the Behemoth, has yet to appear in any gameplay, but looks to be one of the most intimidating enemies in the Null Sector roster, right alongside the Artillery unit and the Titan. The Behemoth is said to appear on the Rio de Janeiro map in the upcoming sequel.
1 Puller Hides Unknown 3D Model
One shot of the Puller (aka the Wraith) takes place in what appears to be a development space meant for working with various 3D models made for the game. As the camera dollies in front of the Wraith, a few stationary models glide into view; a T-posing Tracer, a large tanker, some pots and pans, and — most curiously — a torso-less NPC.
Many online have speculated that this model could be part of a new playable hero coming with Overwatch 2. However, it could also be a new enemy type we haven’t seen yet. Only time will tell (though no knowing when that time will be).
