Overwatch's new hero Shion takes a shot at a classic American novel

Overwatch's latest hero Shion arrives with strong opinions — including a voice line that throws shade at a beloved icon of American literature. Polygon got an exclusive look at the interaction ahead of the hero's release.

The jab is delivered through one of Shion's in-game voice lines, continuing Overwatch's long tradition of heroes referencing pop culture, history, and each other in their idle and interaction dialogue. The specific target is described as a "girlboss icon" of American literature, though the source keeps the exact reference as a reveal rather than spelling it out.

Meanwhile, Blizzard's current Community Crafted limited-time mode — designed by content creators Guxue, Apply, Ocie, and mL7support — is doing something very different with the roster. Every hero except Shion got reworked for the mode, and the results range from subtle kit tweaks to outright chaos. Soldier: 76 can now carry his Biotic Field instead of placing it, and his Ultimate locks onto every on-screen enemy simultaneously. Ramattra's ultimate drains enemy life to heal himself. Ana has a jetpack and doubles her healing output on critical headshots. Most memorably, Jetpack Cat can now carry Symmetra and Torbjorn turrets on her back, turning her into a flying artillery platform. D.Va gets a Defense Matrix that converts absorbed damage into extra Self-Destruct power, and Doomfist gets Uppercut back alongside an empowered ability system.

The Community Crafted mode sits somewhere between Overwatch's chaotic annual April Fools' Day events and the build-focused Stadium mode — and Kotaku notes Blizzard may be quietly using it as a testing ground for future tweaks. None of the changes have crossed into the live game yet, but the mode gives a window into what the game's balance could look like if the developers leaned harder into spectacle over structure. Shion's exemption from the reworks is notable — as the newest hero, keeping her kit untouched likely reflects Blizzard's caution around freshly released characters.