Skip to main content

Sibling rivalry: Latest ‘Overwatch’ CG short pits brother against brother

Overwatch is just a week away, and in place of a traditional campaign, Blizzard has been releasing fantastic CG shorts that give insight into the backstories of several of the game’s main characters. The first two focused on the gorilla scientist Winston and the time-bending hero Tracer, and the latest, “Dragons,” gives us more background on brothers Hanzo and Genji. Spoiler: They aren’t friends.

“My family tells of an ancient legend about two great dragon brothers: the dragon of the North Wind, and the dragon of the South Wind,” the short’s narrator states over gorgeous illustrations of an Asian-inspired beast. “Together, they upheld balance and harmony in the heavens. But the two brothers struggled over who could better rule their land. Their quarrel turned to rage and their violent struggle darkened the skies.”

This sets the stage for a pretty intense showdown, which is, naturally, what the short delivers. Hanzo drops from the rooftops, taking out several suited guards before sneaking into a nearby building to examine a katana and sit in meditation.

Before he has a chance to relax, the Cyborg Ninja-esque Genji emerges from the shadows, dodging Hanzo’s arrows as he shows off some impressive acrobatic abilities. As Genji appears to gain the upper hand, Hanzo fires a freaking dragon from his bow, which Genji counters with a dragon of his own, before revealing his identity (he’s not Gray Fox).

“I will not grant you the death you wish for. You still have a purpose in this life — brother,” Genji says.

If you’ve been enjoying these CG shorts as much as me, then Blizzard has a treat for you. A selection of Cinemark theaters will be showing all of them in full at a special event on May 22, and by reserving tickets in advance, you can “unlock” your local theater’s event. Several theaters, primarily in the Western United States, are already guaranteed to host the screening.

Overwatch arrives for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC on May 24.

Editors' Recommendations

Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
Overwatch 2 hit with second DDoS attack as long queues persist
Sombra's new look in Overwatch 2.

Another distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack has plagued Overwatch 2 just one day after its launch. The attack occurred early Wednesday, merely eight hours after the first DDoS attack caused servers to go awry. The issue is contributing to the game's continued queue size issues, which has players waiting hours to get into a round.

Overwatch 2 developer Aaron Keller confirmed the second DDoS attack on Twitter, telling fans the team has been working to stabilize the servers. He wrote, "We’re steadily making progress on server issues and stability, as well as working through a second DDoS attack," He wrote. "We’re all hands on deck and will continue to work throughout the night. Thank you for your patience -- we’ll share more info as it becomes available."

Read more
Every Overwatch 2 character confirmed so far
Two squads of heroes clash in an Overwatch 2 trailer.

It's been a long time coming, but Overwatch 2 is closer than ever to release. That being said, we still have plenty of waiting to do, and plenty of heroes are yet to be revealed. Unlike most sequels, Overwatch 2 is basically a major expansion to the first game rather than a fresh restart. Essentially, all the content from the first game will be included in the game, along with some bigger changes and additions, such as maps and modes. However, the most exciting thing for fans is the new additions to the bright, colorful, and expressive character roster.

Overwatch's cast has been growing steadily ever since it was first released in 2016. Even though each character falls into either the tank, DPS, or support role, Blizzard has managed to make nearly all of them competitive in their own way and certainly unique in terms of design and personality. At launch, the game had 21 heroes, which is already a high number for a game like this, but 11 more have been added. While we don't know much about the new faces yet, here's every character we know of that's coming to Overwatch 2. 

Read more
Overwatch 2: release date, trailers, gameplay, and more
Two squads of heroes clash in an Overwatch 2 trailer.

Overwatch 2's rumored 2020 release date has come and gone, and players still don't have the sequel in their hands. Announced at BlizzCon 2019, Blizzard has slowly released details about Overwatch 2, including showing off concept art for new maps and letting players try out the game in beta.

Although we still don't have all the concrete details, Blizzard has revealed a lot about Overwatch 2, with even more details coming from multiple showings in 2022. Until the next event gives us new details to work with, here's everything we know about Overwatch 2.

Read more