Overwatch 2’s new hero has the potential to upend the game
Lifeweaver, the new supporting hero coming up Overlook 2 for the game’s fourth season, is more than just a healer. Lifeweaver’s abilities will bring major gameplay changes to Blizzard’s hero shooter, giving teammates new movement and protection abilities and greatly frustrating his opponents – and in some cases, even his allies.
Overlook 2Lifeweaver, the ninth supporting hero, will heal his teammates by throwing them a charged Healing Blossom. He will also be able to run fast, giving himself a burst of health regeneration and the ability to escape in tight situations. Lifeweaver can also summon temporary platforms that give teammates tactical advantages and can thwart enemies’ ultimate abilities.
But it’s Lifeweaver’s Life Grip ability that requires all players to stay alert. That ability also has the potential to become a great trolling opportunity, and if teammates don’t communicate well with each other, it could spoil some big plays.
Here’s an overview of what Lifeweaver has to offer Overlook 2.
Lifeweaver’s capabilities
Primary fire
Healing Blossom – Hold to charge Lifeweaver’s biolight flower bud and release to fire a targeted healing blast at a teammate.
Alternative fire
Thorn volley – After switching to his alternate weapon (à la Torbjörn or Mercy), Lifeweaver can shoot a rapid burst of damaging projectiles from his hand.
Secondary fire
Petal platform – Lifeweaver throws out a flower-shaped platform. The platform is pressure sensitive and raises if an ally or enemy steps on it. A well-timed jump from the Petal Platform at the top gives a player an extra boost for their jump.
Skills
Rejuvenating Dash: Lifeweaver performs a short dash and slightly heals itself. The ability can be combined with Petal Platform’s jump boost to travel long distances, and Lifeweaver can perform Rejuvenating Dash while charging his Healing Blossom.
Life Grip: Lifeweaver encases an ally in a bio-light shield and draws them in. In practice, this can mean pulling a teammate away from danger (falling off a ledge, out of Mei’s ultimate) or giving an ally better positioning (pulling Reaper, while he’s ulting, to a more advantageous location).
Ultimate
Tree of Life: Summon a large biolight tree that heals allies with a series of radiant pulses and protects them from overhead hazards.
passive
parting gift: Upon death, Lifeweaver drops a gift that heals the first person – ally or enemy – to pick it up.
Lifeweaver’s origin story and background
Lifeweaver, whose real name is Niran PruksaManee, was originally conceived as a “sci-fi druid” archetype, according to Overlook 2 main character concept artist Daryl Tan. His design came about after Blizzard settled on a plant-like silhouette for Lifeweaver, thinking the hero would heal with a combination of nature and technology. Blizzard calls it “biolight.”
“We wanted Lifeweaver to present himself as a beautiful character who also tries to find beauty in the rest of the world,” said Tan. “That’s how we ended up with a combination of gold, white and elegant pink. His long silver hair and chiseled features also helped sell that idea.
Takki Thammawan, senior technical artist at Blizzard, is credited with reinforcing Lifeweaver’s Thai background. According to a developer update from the Overwatch team, Thammawan presented the team with Thai-inspired skin designs that prompted Blizzard to make Lifeweaver a Thai character, dressing him in traditional chong kben, and theming various design elements around the lotus flower.
Gavin Jurgens-Fyhrie, lead story designer for Overlook 2, says Lifeweaver grew up with a love of botanic gardens and longed to be surrounded by nature. Later in life, he attended Vishkar Architech Academy, where he met (and was roommates with) another Overwatch character: Satya Vaswani, better known as Symmetra. Lifeweaver rejected the rigid structure and Hard-light technology used by Vishkar Architechs and left the school to help heal our dying world and its inhabitants, using a newly developed science called biolight.
Jurgens-Fyhrie described Lifeweaver’s personality as warm and welcoming, hoping players would be attracted to his positive outlook.
Overwatch fans hoping to ship Lifeweaver with other members of the hero roster have full canonical authority to do so: Blizzard notes that Lifeweaver is openly pansexual, which players will see “reflected in his voice lines, conversations, and other content,” Jurgens says Fyhrie.
Players will get their hands on Lifeweaver starting April 11, when Overlook 2 season 4 goes live. Lifeweaver will be available immediately through the game’s season 4 premium battle pass, but players can also unlock it by reaching level 45 in the battle pass free track.