Living For This

‘Overwatch 2’ Announces Their First Openly Pansexual Character, Lifeweaver

Overwatch 2 is getting queerer with the upcoming introduction of Niran “Lifeweaver” PruksaManee. Lifeweaver will become the game’s first character from Thailand as well as the first openly pansexual character. And from head to toe, he screams queer and we love it. 

This powerful healer, hence the nickname, specializes in plant-based tech that heals and protects his teammates in battle as a support character. According to the game’s lore, he’s a fugitive running from the Vishkar Corporation and he makes it look fabulous. From his beautiful, white hair, to his ornate attire with a cinched waist, to the pink tech flowers incorporated into his design, Lifeweaver is, well, giving you life. 

In Lifeweaver’s announcement trailer he’s seen elegantly moving across the environment healing teammates with flower power and protecting them from harm. Of course he throws in a few cute jokes and that just makes him even more charming. Also, get into his look. It’s a serve.

Overwatch is an immensely popular, free, multiplayer shooter game. Created by Blizzard Entertainment, the game is ever-evolving. Additionally, since debuting in 2016, the game has won numerous gaming awards and has gained a huge fanbase.

Overwatch 2 is its sequel, bringing new characters and new abilities to the battle. While players progress through Overwatch 2, the game’s story is expressed further through a variety of external media, such as animated shorts, comics, and short stories. While queer characters have already been introduced, including Solder: 76, the game’s gay, grumpy grandpa, and Tracer, the game’s lesbian mascot, their queer storylines were attached to their characters after their introduction. This is mostly due to their queerness not being noted within gameplay. 

However, Lifeweaver’s queerness is front and center before he’s even available for use within Overwatch 2, a conscious decision made by the Overwatch 2 team. 

“Representation has always been really important to this team and we’ve been looking for a way to express that more,” said Gavin Jurgens-Fyhrie, Overwatch 2’s lead narrative designer. “So I think in terms of Lifeweaver, when we were initially discussing this, we wanted a pansexual character, and the approach that everyone was happy with was that this would be an openly pansexual character.”

Additionally, his queerness will be core to his character, something that will actively play out within gameplay. 

“It was a question asked to us in the last [interview] session. ‘Is this a label or is this something that you intend to do something with?’ I’m very happy to say it’s something that we are making part of his core character,” said Jurgens-Fyhrie. “You’ll see this expressed in conversations with other heroes. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but there’s going to be some flirting going on. So I do want everybody to keep an eye out for that as well. We’re very excited to see how that’s received.”

Speaking of expressing his queerness in conversation, having Lifeweaver in Overwatch 2 means that there’s another character that’s supposedly queer. In the game, Lifeweaver interacts with fellow support character Baptiste, an ex-Talon medic, and, in so many words, Lifeweaver asks him to dinner. Here’s the exchange below:

Lifeweaver: “I’ve got reservations at a fantastic restaurant, but I’m not too sure who to invite.”

Baptiste: “I know a guy.”

Lifeweaver: “Is he by chance a dashing ex-mercenary from the Caribbean?”

Baptiste: “[Chuckling] He might just be.”

Yes to more queer characters! 

We can’t wait to see how this all plays out when Lifeweaver becomes playable in Overwatch 2’s fourth season on April 11.

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