The actor behind the English language version of the newly revealed Overwatch hero, Anran, has responded to criticism of her visual design, supporting calls for her look to be changed, claiming, “this is a hill worth dying on.”
Last week’s Overwatch spotlight saw the introduction of a new era for Blizzard’s hero shooter, but, with it, came the reemergence of an issue that’s followed the design of its characters around for many years now: “Same Face Syndrome.” The look of Overwatch’s female heroes has long been a talking point among fans, some of whom have claimed that the characters all share remarkably similar facial features, no matter where that character is from in this universe. Indeed, fans have said this applies to Swedish shield-bearer Brigitte, Japanese healer Kiriko, and the Martian support, Juno.
Now, with five new heroes joining the team imminently, fans say Blizzard is adding another familiar face to that list, in the shape of Anran, a fiery damage dealer from China. Having played with Anran quite a bit over the weekend, I can confirm she’s very fun to play as, but there’s no getting away from the fact that you could swap her face with almost any other female member of the roster, and not instantly notice a difference.
This has led to many members of the Overwatch community raising their concerns about the lack of variety in how Blizzard designs its female characters, and whether unrealistic beauty standards are being portrayed in a game with an otherwise positive message. It’s even something that's led the English voice actor for Anran, Fareeha, to weigh in with her thoughts on the backlash.
I'm the voice of Anran in Overwatch!!! 🧡
I held off on posting about this because I wanted to make sure I could do this discussion justice. Here's a shot at that!
Let's keep rooting for the version of her that could be. I hope you have so much fun playing her!! 🔥🪭 pic.twitter.com/jbFbKHPVpb
“I’m going to be so honest”, Fareeha said in a video posted on social media. “I’m nervous about this video, because I didn’t want to not address the elephant in the room, but I didn’t want to step on the devs’ toes or speak on their behalf because it’s a tightrope in my mind in trying to honor the community and everyone’s criticism, because I agree, and also give grace to the developers because they’re always trying their best in the situation they’re in.”
Anran had been teased as a playable hero in Overwatch for a short while before her release, after appearing in a comic and cinematic alongside her brother, Wuyang. But curiously, fans say she looked different in those earlier published looks, which begs the question why her face now appears to fit the more uniform Overwatch look in-game.
“I got to mourn Anran, between the design that I had hoped for for her, and the design we ended up with," Fareeha continued. “Because I think in her comic and the cinematic, there was a precedent set by it. There was an unspoken promise that said ‘we’re going to challenge the beauty standards that are plaguing and ransacking media these days.’ Right? The Ozempic chic, the ‘contour your nose’, ‘you have no nose’, ‘the tiniest nose’. And I think because of that precedent, people feel understandably let down.
rhinoplasty, eye lift, jaw shave, botox, cheek filler, facial bone surgery, gastric bypass surgery, face lift, lip filler, buccal fat removal pic.twitter.com/f4OAgIquGg
“Overwatch is a trailblazer at challenging that, right? Of trying to break those molds, of trying to explore the bounds of what it means to be good, what it looks like to be heroic. And I think the result we got says something else. It says something that leaves a bad taste in our mouths. It’s not the bold, optimistic swing that we know Overwatch to make. It’s a look that isn’t congruent with her personality, right?. She looks like the younger sibling. She looks more docile, somehow, as a fire hero, she looks more docile than the most docile peacekeeping support in the game.”
Ever since this new look was revealed, fans of the game have been taking to social media to present their redesigns and suggestions as to how to give Anran a different look, which is something Fareeha said she had seen, appreciated and encouraged.
“I’ve been seeing everyone’s redesigns, and quietly bookmarking them, but I wanted you to hear that this concern is important," Fareeha stated. “This is a hill worth dying on. It's worth speaking on, because I believe the more we speak up about the things that truly matter to us, the more we’ll see ourselves reflected in the world around us. The more we’ll see our values in the world around us.
“I want you to know that I shared all of this with the dev team. Not only that, I was encouraged to be as open and honest as possible and to not hold anything back. And, it’s my hope that this isn’t for naught, right? That they see it, they hear it from you all, too. While it’s not my decision to decide what can be done and what gets done about this, I will keep championing for the version of her that we all wished for, and I want you to do the same, with boldness, with kindness, and with ‘hopium’. Because Overwatch is not an exploration of what the world is, it’s an exploration of what the world could be.”
I got chills looking at this omg
GORGEOUS ❤️🔥 https://t.co/omwie4G8gV
Time will tell if Anran does receive an alteration to realign her look with what was originally conceived, or, indeed, if any future female heroes added to Overwatch’s roster manage to avoid the now-dreaded “same face syndrome”. We've reached out to Blizzard for comment on Anran's design.
What did you think of all of the news and updates coming to Overwatch now that it’s getting rid of the “2”? Let us know in the comments if you’re ready to jump back in!
Simon Cardy is a Senior Editor at IGN who can mainly be found skulking around open world games, indulging in Korean cinema, or despairing at the state of Tottenham Hotspur and the New York Jets. Follow him on Bluesky at @cardy.bsky.social.
