The Korean pro-gamer D.Va is one of the most popular heroines in Overwatch. So far, it was assumed that she was a StarCraft pro. But is that perhaps not the case? Overwatch Lead Writer Michael Chu says: No, D.Va was not a StarCraft pro!
Overwatch has a wide selection of various heroes. They are all unique and have their own backgrounds, standing together across all boundaries. This diversity is an integral part of the game.
One heroine has particularly captivated many fans for several reasons: the Korean professional gamer and actress Hana “D.Va.” Song. She is young, beautiful, and probably plays better than any Overwatch player herself. No wonder she has many admirers.
When she was introduced, she was embedded in a StarCraft context. She had her own profile on the StarCraft 2 World Championship Series website. Here are the profiles of the best StarCraft players in the world. Reason enough to assume that D.Va also belonged to these.
“This is a common misconception. D.Va was not a StarCraft pro before MEKA.”
In response to a fan’s question on Twitter, Overwatch Lead Writer Michael Chu stated that D.Va was not a StarCraft pro before she joined the MEKA program. That is a common misconception.
This statement faced strong criticism from other fans. So much so that Chu eventually had to backtrack and said: “I was trying to make a distinction between D.Va as a pro gamer and pro gamers specializing in StarCraft. I wasn’t precise enough.”
However, with these words, he sparked an even larger controversy. More and more fans found more evidence that D.Va was indeed a StarCraft pro before her duty with MEKA – and even backed this up with official sources.
It’s a common misconception, but https://t.co/Ds3qQyRwN6 wasn’t a StarCraft pro before joining MEKA.
— Michael Chu ??? (@westofhouse) January 31, 2018
Even Jeff Kaplan fell for this “misconception”
Since D.Va’s first appearance, she has been associated with StarCraft. She is a StarCraft announcer, has exclusive game content for the strategy game, and freaks out in Heroes of the Storm when she meets Kerrigan for the first time.
Her WCS profile also mentioned: “At the age of 16, she became the #1 player in the world and was undefeated for 3 years.” Her connection to StarCraft esports is similarly repeated at several points.
Sure, any “normal” StarCraft player could experience the same, without earning money from the game. But where is the line between esports and pro-gaming? Additionally, in an interview with Forbes about BlizzardWorld, even Game Director Jeff Kaplan seemed to fall for this “common misconception”: he referred to D.Va as a “StarCraft pro.”
The fans’ discontent
All this eventually led Michael Chu to publish a blue post in the official forums, in which he addresses his statements once again. He writes that any teasers and stories surrounding D.Va may have been experimental and somewhat confusing.
Moreover, many of these allusions have since been deleted. The WCS profile can only be found through web archives, and other references are gradually disappearing as well.
Fans find that further provoking. They feel attacked and portrayed by Blizzard as those who are at fault. Chu’s statement aims to place the blame on them – instead of simply owning up to a retrospective change in the story.
It is clear that D.Va has officially been referred to multiple times as a StarCraft pro gamer. Only Michael Chu, who ultimately has the final word, now says that she is not. This only recently. Why is Chu changing his stance on D.Va? This can only be speculated.
Perhaps an official lore video for D.Va is upcoming, perhaps Blizzard no longer liked the idea. It remains to be seen whether D.Va will be seen as a StarCraft pro or not.
