Blizzard has been hard at work keeping Overwatch players busy with a steady stream of content. To that end, a new assault map has been unveiled in public test realm and it will send players to the moon.
To The Moon
Public test realm is a controlled space Blizzard uses to test its biggest additions such as new characters and standard maps. It is only available to Overwatch's PC players since it allows Blizzard to get more instant feedback for what's being tested. This is where most fans have gotten their first look at new maps and characters.
The newest map that is coming to Overwatch will be called Horizon Lunar Colony, and it will throw players into assault matches in the abandoned moon colony. The map was teased on the Overwatch blog when Blizzard posted a story from Atlas News, a news organization in the world of Overwatch. Like most other assault maps, it will pit two teams of six in matchs where one team must take two control points to win and the defenders have to keep them from doing so. Other maps of the type include Hanamura, Temple of Anubis, and Volskaya Industries.
As it relates to the game's lore, this is a cool addition to the rotation. Much like Hanamura relates to Genji and Hanzo's youth, Horizon Lunar Colony was Winston's home when he was a young ape. Blizzard actually offered a first look at the map last year when it released its first animated short, "Recall." The colony is infamous in Overwatch because of an uprising by genetically modified gorillas. The gorillas killed most of the human residents and contact was lost from the base for years. Winston would escape and joined the titular team as he got older.
Is A New Character Coming?
While a new map is confirmed, there is still the question marks around this mysterious Hammond. Blizzard has proven that anything it throws out related to the game's lore will have some kind of payoff in the future. This was the case with Ana, Sombra, and Orisa, who were all teased in and out of the game before being added later on. That could prove to be the same case with Hammond, who could be another gorilla that lived in the colony with Winston. It will probably be a bit of a wait and see before Blizzard says anymore on this mystery.
