The release of a new Overwatch hero is often met with excitement, confusion, and quickplay wait times so long that you might as well bring a book. Expect all these things and more as Echo, the 32nd and newest hero in Overwatch hits live servers today across all versions. On the Overwatch PTR (public test realm, a server for new updates before they hit live) for the last month, Echo looks to be the last hero before the game transitions to Overwatch 2 but it appears as if developer Blizzard wanted to release all the heroes at once. Confused? Well, for those living in a hole: Echo’s ultimate ability lets her temporarily turn into any hero on the enemy team, complete with a super-charged Ultimate meter. All the powers!
Following the flight plan.
Echo swoops into Overwatch on April 14! pic.twitter.com/BWO8W6ivDO
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) April 9, 2020
Overwatch League players describe this new Omnic threat as “Tracer, if she could fly” and the description is apt. Echo is all about air maneuverability, burst damage, and providing flanking attack pressure. The most obvious pairing for new Echo players is with a Mercy looking to trade her old waifu Pharah in for a new model, as well as dive squad specialists like Wrecking Ball, Winston, and Doomfist. Meanwhile, hit scan characters–especially Ana, Widow, and Ashe–will be the biggest threats to Echo’s dominion over the skies. Players got a preview of what the pros can do with Echo thanks to friendly matches between OWL teams on the PTR, but expect things to get super silly for awhile as Echo’s ultimate allows for some Reddit-worthy highlights.
Be sure to catch up on the full suite of Echo’s abilities and changes the character went through while on the PTR. Will a single, new DPS hero be enough to quell the hunger of Overwatch fans until the sequel comes out? Hard to tell, but like with most new hero releases the game is changing and heading in new directions once again.
