Overwatch 2 has a new hero arriving in the game next month. The news of the arrival was recently leaked accidentally on the Nintendo Switch eShop, thus confirming the new character before the developers at Blizzard could officially announce it.
As per the Nintendo Switch eShop, the developer, Blizzard, was set to officially reveal the next Overwatch 2 hero during the BlizzCon 2023. The one-day event starts on which starts on November 3rd and ends on November 4th. However, the first look at the new hero and his abilities has leaked ahead of the official reveal.
First look at mauga I think (From the Nintendo switch news tab)
byu/Ready2Rumbl3 inOverwatch
A few hours after the leak, Overwatch 2’s official X handle confirmed the leak, announcing the arrival of the new hero. The post revealed a trailer video, which spans for a little short of 2 minutes, introducing Mauga as the latest addition to Overwatch 2’s line of heroes.
Who is Overwatch 2’s latest hero?
The latest hero in Overwatch 2 is Mauga. Being the game’s next tank-class hero, Mauga will be joining the Overwatch roster in the upcoming Season 8. Similarly, Mauga will be the game’s 39th playable character.
Although Mauga officially arrives with Season 8 coming on December 5, 2023, Overwatch 2 players will be able to get their hands on Mauga earlier than the official date. In fact, this weekend itself, thanks to Blizzard Games’ free trial weekend. Mauga will be playable for all players from Friday, November 3, until Sunday, November 5. The developers are giving players a sneak peek at season 8 of Overwatch 2 on the given dates.
The developer states that Mauga is a “powerful brawling Tank Hero who will tear through the competition with his incendiary and volatile chainguns.” The developer further notes that the hero’s kit is curated “to bash through the front lines and brawl his opponents in close-quarter combat, by wielding two powerful chainguns that can either be fire individually or in unison.”
Mauga has multiple chainguns, of which one is nicknamed “Gunny,” which can burn his opponents with incendiary charges when they take enough damage. Similarly, another gun is called a “Cha-Cha,” which is capable of delivering critical hits. Blizzard adds that Mauga’s Berserker passive ability will grant him momentary health every time he deals critical damage.
Wonder if anyone saw this coming? 😉
The long-awaited Tank Mauga is the next hero in #Overwatch2 pic.twitter.com/J3duvnTfUr
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) November 3, 2023
Additionally, Mauga’s front-line-breaking power is known as Overrun. According to Blizzard Overrun “a charging ability that cannot be stopped by any crowd control abilities.” This indicates counters like Ana’s Sleep Dart or Sigma’s Accretion. Besides, it can also stomp into opponents, dealing a powerful knockback.
Another notable ability of Mauga is Cardiac Overdrive, which creates an aura that can reduce incoming damage, thus allowing allies to heal themselves when dealing damage. However, his ultimate ability is the Cage Fight, which traps nearby opponents in a cylindrical fighting ring. It has a barrier that can block enemy incoming damage or healing from the outside.
Mauga first appeared in a guest appearance in the 2019 Overwatch comic named, ‘What You Left Behind.’ The comic introduced the tank-class character as a former Talon ally of Baptiste. The hero hails from, a location Blizzard recently mined for a new Control map in Overwatch 2 named Samoa. That map included hints of Mauga coming into the game. The hint was one of his colorful shirts hanging in a room.