‘Overwatch’ Devs To Redesign New Hero Anran After VA Criticizes Blizzard For Not Challenging “The Beauty Standards Plaguing And Ransacking Media”
After sizeable outcry from both players and the new roster member’s own voice actress, Blizzard has agreed to redesign Overwatch newcomer Anran Ye in accordance to the former’s concern over her ‘same face’ design and the latter’s distaste for her conventionally attractive appearance.
RELATED: Overwatch Team Is “Not Comfortable” Using AI-Generated Content, But That Might Change
One of the handful of new heroes to join the game proper following Overwatch 2‘s return to its original Overwatch name, the flame-wielding, fan-dancing Anran was quick to garner widespread attention after players started pointing out the near 1:1 similarity between her face and those of her fellow female fighters, the point driven home after a user on Twitter/X shared a video of themselves actively swapping their various hairstyles.
Admittedly, those upset with her in-game appearance were not completely unjustified, as in all her prior trailer and comic book appearances, she does admittedly sport a ‘fiercer’ look compared to the more rounded-face look seen on other Overwatch heroines – and while she therein does take on a softer demeanor when talking to her younger brother Wuyang, she still sports her characteristic ‘sharp and deadly’ eyes.
Unhappy with this discrepancy, multiple users on X and Reddit took to editing images of her to resemble the earlier design, with perhaps the most notable piece to come out of this protest wave coming from artist @MaritimeFeeling, whose viral work brilliantly captured the difference in not just Anran’s design, but also the tone of the character,
RELATED: ‘Overwatch’ Drops ‘2’ From Name As Part Of Major Revamp, But Devs Say They’re Not Admitting Defeat
But far from just players, Anran’s appearance also drew the ire of one particularly surprising critic in Fareeha Andersen, herself not only a notable Overwatch streamer, but also a fledgling voice actor, her first role being none other than the flame-dancing heroine.
Sharing a video to her personal Twitter/X account, Andersen explained that she much preferred Anran’s ‘fierce’ look, particularly as “there was a precedent set by it, there was an unspoken promise that said ‘We’re going to challenge the beauty standards plaguing and ransacking media these days.'”
“The ‘Ozempic-chic’, ‘Contour your nose! You have no nose! The tiniest nose!’ I think because of that precedent people feel understandably let down.”
Praising Overwatch for being a “trailblazer” in challenging those conventions while still making “heroic” looking characters, Andersen proceeded to spotlight a number of fan artworks, after which she assured fans their concerns were important and that this design battle was “a hill worth dying on,” as she argued that the more people spoke out, the more others would see evidence of themselves and their values being reflected in the world around them.
Finally, Andersen revealed that she had shared the feedback with Blizzard, who had specifically asked her to be open and honest with her thoughts, and that they seemed to be in agreement as to the need to fix Anran’s design.
Replies were a mix of praise for speaking up and accusations that Anderson acting as an activist instead of a voice actress, with some especially taking issue with the “Ozempic-chic” comment, reading it as Anderson criticizing Anran’s body for being ‘too thin’ or ‘unrealistically healthy’.
For her part, Anderson’s replies were polite to all, as notably seen when one fan shared their fear over the potential loss of the “cute” Anran they enjoyed, to which the fledgling voice actor replied “I believe she can be cute while also being c—y! I know if they change anything she’ll still be beautiful, trust trust.”
Shortly thereafter, Overwatch Game Director Aaron Keller took to X and YouTube and confirmed that, following discussions with Anderson, “The team is currently discussing what it will take to make Anran look, and feel, more like the fierce older sister that we envision her to be.”
“We’re so proud of the work our team has put into Anran, and the rest of the five heroes launching in Season One, and we agree that she can be even better if we get this aspect of her right in-game.”
Keller noted that while an update would be coming during Season One, the team couldn’t provide an exact date or further details on what will be changed.
It should be noted that this is far from the first time Blizzard has redesigned an Overwatch character’s initial design.
While the ice-themed hero Mei had thick clothes suitable for arctic exploration, fans felt some of her cosmetic skins made her look thinner than they expected. The team later stated this was a bug and fixed it.
Blizzard also changed a victory pose for Tracer, after some claimed it was too sexualized and out-of-character, and removed a “Z” from Zarya outfit to avoid allusions to supporters of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They even removed “anti-homeless” arm-rests from benches in a map at the complaint of just one user on Twitter/X, their later reasoning being that the architecture did not fit into the game’s “aspirational” setting.
Conversely, there have been times where Blizzard didn’t budge in response to outcry, as seen with the backlash over Mei’s MMA skin with cornrows haircut, as well as Tracer’s “British Bobby” skin.
