A recentOverwatchupdate has addressed a controversy that has gained new traction due to recent events, leading to the removal of a character specific spray. Fortunately for Blizzard, this has less to do with anyspecific problems withOverwatchcharactersor from the company’s own actions, and more with the way that the view of certain images have changed lately.
This latest controversy comes in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, which has brought a number of controversial images to public attention, including an otherwise popular spray inOverwatch. Additionally, this isn’t the first time thatBlizzard has removed cosmeticsfrom the game, either due to timed events or public outcry at emotes sprays and costumes that the community sees as harmful.
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The spray in question belongs to McCree and has allowed players to leave the image of a noose all around the map since the game first launched, making it one of the oldestcosmetics inOverwatch. However, nooses have long had a reputation as a racist symbol, bearing a history of lynching against people of color, especially in the USA, and the recent BLM movement has shined a light on the negativity around these symbols. As a result, the noose has been removed, although Blizzard has been quiet about the exact reason for its absence in the game and silently made the change with no official announcement.
In addition to removing the noose,Overwatchhas also replaced the spray with a new symbol that equally fits the character and style of McCree, but without the racial perception. The new image now shows an upside down horseshoe with “Bad Luck” written across the top, a common western symbol used to represent good or poor luck based on the direction it hangs. This is a welcome change for many fans of thewildly popular game, as it keeps with the character’s western aesthetic, while not calling to the unpleasant history that the original image evokes for many Americans.
For the players who back this type of concern for racial relations, it is comforting to see a large company like Blizzard make these kinds of changes inOverwatch. This is especially poignant for a game that has adiverse cast of charactersand has been one of the more inclusive franchises in recent years. So, while a public acknowledgement of the change and the reasons for it would have been the best option, this is still a solid step in the right direction for the company.
Overwatchis available now for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
