Blizzard Entertainment has confirmed that the character McCree’s name is going to change in current and future Overwatch content. McCree was named after former Blizzard developer Jesse McCree, who was recently let go from the studio after his name emerged in several reports amidst the ongoing Activision Blizzard lawsuit regarding widespread discrimination and sexual harassment against employees.
Now, Blizzard has issues a message in which it says that McCree’s name is going to be changed in order to “live up to [their] values”, and the developer says that going forward, it will be “thoughtful and discerning about adding real world references in future Overwatch content.”
As for the exact details regarding how McCree’s name being changed will be handled, Blizzard says specific details are going to be shared later on. That said, the new narrative arc that was supposed to kick off in Overwatch this September has been delayed until later in the year, since Blizzard wants to integrate McCree’s new name in that as well. Instead, a new FFA map will be released in September.
McCree’s name had already come under the spotlight in the Overwatch community recently, so it’s good to see Blizzard responding to that. Here’s hoping more significant and fundamental actions are also being taken to improve things behind the scenes.
A message from the Overwatch team. pic.twitter.com/2W3AV7Pv6X
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) August 26, 2021
