Summary
Overwatch 2just debuted “Control,” a 3D animated short telling some of the backstory of Juno, the new hero from Season 12. This charming cinematic came as a surprise to players, as it has been about a year sinceOverwatch 2released its last one.
Season 12 ofOverwatch 2, dubbed New Frontiers, has officially landed in the first-person shooter. Though the seasonal update added tons of content to the game, one of the most exciting parts is Juno, a new support hero, and the second character added in 2024.Overwatch 2shared her backstory in the form of a narrated comicshortly before her release, and while it was a great story, many fans were disappointed she didn’t get any sort of cinematic or animated short.
Little did they know,Overwatch 2had one prepared for Juno all along. “Control” is a new 3D animated short the tells the story of the Martian’s exodus from her home planet. After an emotional moment before leaving, Juno discovers a problem with her ship: a chunk of rock is jamming one of her thrusters. She begins to panic when she damages her equipment and nearly runs out of air on a spacewalk, but her mother is able to calm her down, enabling her to fix her ship and commence the jump, vowing to find a way to save the colony. The short ends with Overwatch contacting her as she enters the Earth’s atmosphere, promising to send an agent to rendezvous with her after she crashes in Dorodo,as seen on theOverwatch 2map.
“Control” – First Overwatch 2 3D Animated Short of 2024
Last year, Blizzard released “A Great Day,” a 2D animated short featuring Mauga and Talon, in December, but the last 3D animated short was “Calling,” the Sojourn cinematic leading up toOverwatch 2: Invasionin August 2023 – though parts of the “Perfect Night” music video by LE SSERAFIM from October could technically qualify as well. Before that, “The Wastelander” and “Kiriko” introduced some of the new heroes forOverwatch 2’s release in 2022, but there were several years when there were no 3D cinematics at all. DuringOverwatch 1’s heyday, it would release at least two such animations a year – one at BlizzCon and another at Gamescom – so it is fitting “Control” debuted alongsideBlizzard’s grand return to the major German gaming convention.
Rise and Shine
Honor and Glory
August 2024
Overwatch 2
Needless to say, the response to this animated short has been quite positive. After the layoffs at Blizzard this year, and theapparent death of PvE inOverwatch 2, many fans feared they would never see another animation from the game. This delightful cinematic has given many players a renewed hope that they will see more story content like this in the future.
WHERE TO PLAY
Overwatch 2 is an always-on and ever-evolving free-to-play, team-based action game set in an optimistic future, where every match is the ultimate 5v5 battlefield brawl. Power up your railgun and disrupt the battlefield as Sojourn, or yield your axe and command attention as Junker Queen. Battle to take control of a robot and move it toward the enemy base in the new Push Mode. Bring the fight to new destinations across the globe in iconic locations like New York, Rome, Monte Carlo and Rio. Daily challenges and frequent updates mean there is always something new to play.
