Image: Blizzard Entertainment
We interviewed Overwatch 2s developers about the games all-new Thai hero, Lifeweaver.
Do you hear that?
Heres what they had to say!
Note: this interview has been condensed and edited for the sake of clarity.
Alec Dawson (Lead Hero Designer):There are things in there that actually protect against that.
Weve been fixing bugs but when we do go live, those will be protected.
If its intentional, its something we’ll consider for penalties as well.
Gavin Jurgens-Fyhrie (Lead Narrative Designer):On the flip side, that ability is so dramatic.
We would have recorded that for a gameplay trailer if we’d captured it first.
But it was just such an incredible play, and so dramatic, and so memorable.
I can’t wait to see players make use of that stuff.
Who do you think will enjoy playing Lifeweaver the most?
Alec:I think Support players who really enjoy helping their allies will like Lifeweaver.
you’re able to actually dish out a ton of healing if youre ready for the situation.
Diving ino the backline?
That sounds so irresponsible.
Second of all though, I think Lifeweaver will appeal to a lot of different people.
Theres so much there.
For the previous example, we had Ash from the cinematic who became a hero.
We saw the early prototypes in the art.
And we’re like, Well, that doesn’t look like real plants at all.
That looks sort of transparent, is that hard light?
Theyre like, Yeah, it’s hard light.
And we went, Oh, we know what to do with this now!
And it became a sort of natural evolution.
We knew that this is a character who’s related to Vishkar in some way.
Its sort of a living light.
What is the teams thought process behind designing and releasing new heroes?
Do they get priority depending on how much they contribute to/change the current meta?
Alec:What were working on here was about a year in advance.
And it comes from a place of what we’re passionate about.
Similar to Mercy, Lifeweaver’s healing is self-targeted.
It actually hones in on allies if you charge it up.
It doesn’t miss.
Takki, you did one of these meetings, right?
We have a silhouette that we really like and the archetype.
What if that flower disappeared?
What if we can pick it up like this?
Which heroes do you think will synergise with Lifeweaver best?
What kind of team comp will he fit into?
Bring them to a safe area and use your primary healing on the way.
How much healing does his Parting Gift do?
Alec:It heals enemies for 75 and heals your allies for 250.
Lifeweaver is the 37th hero Overwatch has put out.
How has the process of creating and evolving these heroes changed over the years?
Like, These are the heroes in the lore that we want to cover in the future.
Here are the heroes that we think can have a really cool look.
Here are any heroes that we think would have a really cool gameplay hook.
We all start brainstorming together and have a wonderful time.
In recent years we’ve moved more and more towards that sense of collaboration.
We’re all trying to push each other up, like Lifeweaver, right?
What was the most fun you had in the process of creating Lifeweaver?
Gavin:Uniquely on the narrative side here, we usually have one person assigned primarily to a hero.
So it’s probably the most mass-collaborated hero we had, and it was a lot of fun.
It was so much fun.
Alec:Lifeweaver can be actually one of the hardest heroes to master.
Even though there is the ease of healing, utilising all of his abilities effectively can be very difficult.
There is a considerable lack of Support heroes compared to Tanks and Damage.
Is this because its easier to design Tank heroes compared to Support?
What are the unique challenges for developing heroes in this role?
Alec:Each role definitely has their own unique set of challenges.
One of their abilities should aim to bring something totally new to the scene.
With Lifeweaver, were adding another Support.
Our next hero will also be a Support.
So as we look at Overwatch 2, you’ll see the Support roster grow.
We’re going to keep doing this thing of two Supports for every one Tank and one Damage.
So out of four heroes, say two Supports, one Tank, one Damage hero.
Alec:It’s more that these two heroes came out next to each other than anything else.
In terms of how many buttons were using, Lifeweaver has quite a few.
The weapon swap and his abilities, and such.
How do you see Lifeweaver shaking up the meta in professional play?
Lifeweaver weans on teamwork first, and thats going to happen at the highest level.
I’m excited to see the pro players unlock his full potential.
Are there any Asian elements in Lifeweavers design players might have missed out on?
Its called chong kben, it makes for an interesting silhouette.
Thai patterns are hiding everywhere in his kit, even down to the key in of flower he uses.
It’s a lotus, which is pretty big in day-to-day life in Southeast Asia.
Nobody calls me by my full name, my nickname is Takki.
Lifeweaver has a nickname which is Bua, which means something like water lily.
On the narrative side, we also have a lot of voice lines that are native to the character.
We rarely have characters from Thailand, especially in videogames.
Gavin:There’s a number of conversations that I think people are really going to enjoy with Lifeweaver.
He lifts them up.
He is a person who makes people feel welcome.
So I think you’re going to see that in his conversations.
How he makes people feel appreciated.
There are some conversations with Baptise that I’m very fond of.
You’ll also see conversations with people he doesn’t get along with.
Overwatch 2 Season 4 launches in April, with a brand-new Battle Pass and hero.
