The roster of heroes inOverwatch 2being so diverse means that there is a huge variety of character backgrounds for fans to dive into. Ashe’s story saw her coming from wealth,Hanzo and Genjiwere part of a criminal empire, and Wrecking Ball was a test subject from the moon. Of all the origin stories, Zarya’s position as a world champion weightlifter is surprisingly tame, though like the pro gamer D.Va there is more to her than just her hobby.
Zarya is a protector of the Russian people, and because of that role she is someone who has hated Omnics at one point in her life. However, over the years Blizzard has released stories that challenge her point of view on the series’ robots while also setting up big things for Zarya inOverwatch 2’s upcoming PvE campaign. For those that see Zarya as little more than the strongest woman onOverwatch 2’s hero roster, it is worth catching up on her lore.
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How Overwatch 2’s Zarya Has Evolved
When she was young, Zarya had her Siberian homeland destroyed in a conflict withOmnics, with the Russian military’s defeat of the machines coming with the downside of a war-torn country. Worse, the battles had an even harsher outcome for Zarya, as her father died during this time. Growing up in a battle-damaged home without her dad pushed Zarya to gain enough strength that her people would never suffer so greatly again, explaining both her love for weightlifting and her military service.
Despite thriving as a weightlifter, Zarya had to withdraw from competitions to protect her village from more Omnic attacks, and her success as a soldier saw her being gifted her particle cannon from Katya Volskaya - a character fans will know fromSombra’s animated short. With this weapon, the same one that players wield in theirOverwatch 2matches, Zarya continued to fight for her people and keep her home safe.
Eventually,Zaryawas tasked with tracking down Sombra, who had manipulated Katya into being her puppet. When on this mission, Zarya found herself in Numbani, and was understandably unsettled to see Omnics living in harmony with humans. However, despite spending her whole life fighting them and seeing them as monsters, she slowly started to warm up to one in particular: a hacker named Lynx Seventeen. Though she eventually found Sombra alongside Lynx, she decided to let her go so that she could save Lynx instead - an act that even shocked Zarya herself. She also discovered that Katya was using technology from kindhearted Omnics to battle the corrupt ones in Siberia, which only added to Zarya’s conflicted feelings.
Much likeTorbjorn and Bastion’s bond has made the former hate Omnics less, this event is crucial to Zarya’s character development. Unfortunately, she had another life-changing experience when she was forced to abandon her childhood town, as the Omnics had broken through the Russian defenses and the military was forced to retreat. Obviously, she still went to help, and on her way she ran into Cole Cassidy. Cassidy assisted her in saving her sisters and some children, getting them to safety. Despite losing her hometown, Zarya was offered a new home with Overwatch, with Cassidy promising that she could make an even bigger difference in the reformed group.
As great of a soldier as Zarya was, it was hard to argue against this line of thinking, and she agreed to join the new Overwatch organization. With Zarya and other recruits likeD.Va, the second coming of Overwatch could thrive, and the future is certainly looking up with the former weightlifter as part of the team. Though she started off pumping iron, Zarya has had a far greater impact as Russia’s defender, and her willingness to grow beyond blind hatred for Omnics opens up some interesting narrative opportunities inOverwatch 2.
Overwatch 2is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
