The new Overwatch hero is already well received by fans, even though nothing is known about his abilities yet.
Last night, Blizzard released the first story trailer for the 30th hero of Overwatch. Baptiste will be a “combat medic” and has a not-so-glorious past, but he aims to improve the future of the world. For many aspects of the character, Blizzard is already receiving praise – because Baptiste does not fit the typical stereotype of a Haitian.
“No Voodoo” is receiving praise: Blizzard is receiving special praise for creating a Haitian character that does not resort to typical Haitian stereotypes. Funkatron82 notes on Reddit that Baptiste has nothing to do with Voodoo, which is a common theme in almost all portrayals of Haitian characters in the media. While many players suspect that there will eventually be a “Voodoo skin,” that is not the core aspect of the character.
Instead, Baptiste has a serious backstory that deviates significantly from the stereotypical portrayals.
Baptiste feels like a protagonist: It is also frequently noted that Baptiste feels more “like a protagonist” in his presentation, rather than a background character. This was particularly criticized with Moira and recently Ashe, as they are not portrayed as independent characters but are too reliant on others to shine. In contrast, Baptiste would stand out strongly.
There is a bit of mockery: However, some players note with a smile that Baptiste fits a completely different stereotype – that of an anime superhero. After all, he lost his parents at a young age, was part of an evil organization (Talon), which he has now turned his back on and now wants to make the world a better place. This leads to comments like:
- “You can tell he’s a protagonist because he lost his parents.”
- “We still have to wait and see how close he sits to the window and in the back row of the classroom.”
- “He doesn’t carry a huge two-handed sword at all. There is room for improvement.”
Reactions on YouTube are positive: The story trailer for Baptiste is surprisingly well received on YouTube as well. After many of Blizzard’s videos in the past received rather negative ratings, the origin story for Baptiste has over 95% thumbs up.
In the coming days, Baptiste should be fully introduced, so we can also gain an insight into his abilities and playstyle.
What do you think of Baptiste? Do you like the design of the character? Or do you base your judgment on his abilities before making a first impression?
Also new in Overwatch is the map “Paris,” which has only been available for a few days.
