Lunar New Year returns to Overwatch with eight new Year of the Pig skins

Overwatch continues its tradition of releasing Legendary skins with each new event that comes out, and 2019 is no different for Blizzard and their development team as they pay homage to one of China’s longest standing traditions. With this latest patch, Reaper, Hanzo, Reinhardt, Torbjörn, and Zenyatta’s Year of the Pig skins have been revealed. Many of the models used for this year’s Lunar New Year skins are based off fabled Chinese warriors with Reaper and Hanzo embodying some of their designs.

Squeal with joy! Overwatch Lunar New Year returns January 24. ? ? pic.twitter.com/CLBXmBCrEX — Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) January 17, 2019

This year’s Lunar New Year event kicks off January 24 and extends through February 18.

Sticking with tradition

Seasonal skins have been one of Overwatch’s strongest points of interest for their casual fan base since their release. Each year, Overwatch encapsulates the mood around each region with their thoughtful updates and whimsical recreations of each beloved hero on their roster. With the Lunar New Year skins, the influence in design stems from the past and Overwatch have once again delivered on that front with some elaborate Legendary skins that are worth the play time.

This year’s skins are mainly focused on esteemed generals and high-ranking officials that also appear in the historical novel, Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Reaper’s Lü Bu skin was the first to be revealed. The plumes on the top of Reaper’s helmet are reminiscent of the actual head gear the military leader would wear back in his era.

Hanzo’s Huang Zhong skin, Reinhardt’s Guan Yu skin and Torbjörn Zhang Fe all embody the look and feel of ancient Chinese generals. The skins on top of bringing their natural Lunar New Year flair also carry a distinct historical component that makes this year’s skin releases all the more interesting for players and fans alike.

Zenyatta’s Zhuge Liang skin is based off a Chinese politician and military strategist. In traditional fashion, Zenyatta finds himself donning a fancy new beard and hat that accompany his white and sky blue color scheme.

More surprises ahead

In addition to the original five skins announced on Twitter earlier this week, Overwatch Korea teased even more skins coming with this event as Tracer, Orisa and Brigitte are all receiving updates. Fans of Orisa can finally rejoice in having another specialty skin for the hero. In the two years since her release, this is just the third event where a skin for her hero have been added to the game.

After a couple seasons of neglecting new Tracer skins, Overwatch’s most popular hero will get a new skin in this Year of the Pig update. It’s important to note that the Tracer, Orisa and Brigitte line of skins are not all legendary as opposed to the first five skins that were announced. Although the clothing garb and design are similar to the legendary skins, Brigitte’s new outfit is simply called ‘General’ instead of opting for a historic component that could accompany her background in a similar way.