"Overwatch 2 anime" was not on my 2023 bingo card but let's be real, it totally should have been. Congrats to those of you who did, because Blizzard has revealed that it's releasing a three-part miniseries called Genesis, with the first part premiering later this week.
It looks to be a prequel to Overwatch, probably around the time of the Omnic Crisis or at least closely related to its events. The trailer shows off a young Reaper, Ana, Reinhardt and Torbjorn, plus a glimpse at an unknown omnic woman. There's not a whole lot more to say about the short one-minute trailer, with the voiceover mostly alluding to how life changed during the omnic uprising.
There's a big ol' emphasis on the "mini" in miniseries, too. The first part titled "Dawn," which is set to air on July 6, clocks in at just over five minutes long. Part Two: Innocence will air on July 13 with a 6-minute 34-second runtime and then Part Three: Rebirth is set to air on July 20 with a 6-minute 58-second runtime.
I've long fallen off the wagon of Overwatch lore—especially now Blizzard has slashed its planned story mode content significantly, instead charging $15 for a "considerably less ambitious" alternative—but I've always enjoyed how well-made the game's shorts are. It's nice to see them presented in a slightly different medium, and they're digestible enough that I'll probably cave and check them out.
Every episode will be available on YouTube on the official Overwatch channel. Here's the schedule for each episode. The premiere page for part one is already live and of course, the chat box is already going ham three days before it's due to air:
- Part One: Dawn – July 6 at 9 AM PT / 12 PM ET / 5 PM BST
- Part Two: Innocence – July 13 at 9 AM PT / 12 PM ET / 5 PM BST
- Part Three: Rebirth – July 20 at 9 AM PT / 12 PM ET / 5 PM BST
