The Overwatch 2 One-Punch Man collab has revealed some weird lore

Blizzard has announced the third Overwatch 2 x One-Punch Man collaboration skin, and honestly, Kiriko has never looked better. 

As part of Overwatch 2 Season 3‘s calendar, the game is getting its first pop culture collaboration with manga and anime sensation One-Punch Man. We already know about Doomfist’s Saitama and Soldier 76’s Mumen Rider skin, but now we know of a third. 

Xbox Wire (opens in new tab) reported the newest skin available to fans as part of the collaboration; Kiriko‘s Terrible Tornado cosplay. This skin will storm onto Overwatch 2 as part of a bundle from March 7 to April 6, available for 2,100 coins, which is $21/ £17.52 / AUS$31.08. 

Dress-up 

These skins aren’t just a great fan service for those who play the game and watch the anime, but they’re also a tiny look into the Overwatch 2’s heroes’ personal lives and a weird part of the lore, which I didn’t expect to see. 

“Our heroes are basically aware of the anime and are fans too. And they’re cosplaying as the heroes”, Overwatch 2 art director Dion Rogers said in an interview with Xbox Wire. “When you see Doomfist wearing the Saitama outfit, he’s a fan too.” 

This opens up a new world of possibilities now Soldier 76, Doomfist, and Kiriko are now canonically fans of One-Punch Man. What if Reaper is a fan of Sailor Moon? Or maybe Winston watches Bridgerton in between missions? Regardless of what our heroes do in their free time, this collab means we’ll finally learn more about them outside of the battlefield. 

More to come? 

Now Overwatch 2 has a seasonal cadence; we should expect to see further collabs that’ll tie into the seasonal theme or add another layer. “We definitely want to do more collaborations over time, but with the right opportunity [because] it took us a long time to reach here,” Rodgers said. 

Hopefully, that’ll mean that fans of the game may one day see their favorite pop culture reference land into the lap of Overwatch 2. I, for one, am holding out for a Bleach crossover. 

But we may not need to wait too long for more collabs, there are already some ideas in the woodwork. “Dragon Ball – that’s one of them. Actually, Street Fighter, I’d love to combo with Street Fighter at some point”, Rogers said. Well, Overwatch 2 looks like it’s here to stay, so with all the time on our hands, there’s no reason we can’t have both. 

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Elie is a Features Writer for TechRadar Gaming, here to write about anything new or slightly weird. Before writing for TRG, Elie studied for a Masters at Cardiff University JOMEC in International Journalism and Documentaries – spending their free time filming short docs or editing the gaming section for their student publications. 

Elie’s first step into gaming was through Pokémon but they’ve taken the natural next step in the horror genre. Any and every game that would keep you up at night is on their list to play – despite the fact that one of Elie’s biggest fears is being chased.