Overwatch players were left fuming after fan-favorite character Anran had an "Ozempic" redesign.
She was unveiled during a recent spotlight event by the Overwatch developers at Blizzard, but fans couldn't help but notice a marked difference in her appearance. As well as being noticeably thinner, her nose was a lot smaller, and her eyes a lot bigger.
When asked what fans thought of the new look, multiple X users made the same joke, claiming that Anran had had a number of cosmetic procedures, including "rhinoplasty, eye lift, jaw shave, botox, cheek filler, facial bone surgery, gastric bypass surgery, face lift, lip filler, and buccal fat removal."
In response, one X user posted the hashtag #NOTMYANRAN.
Fareeha Andersen made her feelings known
The outrage garnered momentum after Fareeha Andersen, the female voice for Anran, spoke out on X.
In the video, she says: "I got to mourn Anran between the design I had hoped for for her and the design we ended up with, because I think in her comic and the cinematic Elemental Kin, there was a precedent set by it. There was an unspoken promise that said, 'We're going to challenge the beauty standards plaguing and ransacking media these days' [...], and I think because of that precedence, people feel understandably let down."
She continued: "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."
She went on to describe the redesign as too "docile," and assured fans: "This is a hill worth dying on. It's worth speaking on. Because I believe that 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."
Overwatch director reacts
It was only a matter of time before someone behind the game's development was going to respond. In a video post on Overwatch's official X account, director Aaron Keller said:
"Thank you all for the incredible reception to last week's Spotlight event. We're sorting through all the questions, comments, excitement, and feedback that you guys shared, and I wanted to take a moment to address one thing in particular.
"The team is currently discussing what it will take to make Anran look and feel more like the fierce older sister that we all envision her to be. We're so proud of the work that our team has put into Anran and the rest of the five heroes launching in Season 1, and we agree that she can be even better if we get this aspect of her right in-game."
"We discussed sharing this with all of you last week, but wanted to wait until we had confirmation of exactly what we can do. We're hoping to make this update in Season 1, but I don't have specifics to share just yet. Our hero models are incredibly complicated, and we really need to test out what we can do."
He concluded: "We're always striving to make Overwatch better and I think Season 1 is a great example of the dedication and tireless work that our team puts into this game, its universe and ultimately, our players. We're so excited to share it with all of you when Season 1 launches tomorrow. Thanks for the feedback and support, we couldn't do it without all of you. Please keep it coming."
The Daily Dot has reached out to Fareeha Andersen for comment.
The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s newsletter here.
