Overwatch Breaks Its Silence On McCree's Name Change Delay

Blizzard's "Overwatch" team announced Jesse McCree's name change after fan outcry following the serious allegations against the company involving the character's namesake. Unfortunately, the change meant pushing back the story and DLC arcs planned around the cowboy hero to incorporate his new name. 

Some players felt dissatisfied with the announcement, impatient to move on with the "Overwatch" story and DLC related to the gunslinger cowboy. In a Reddit thread titled "Does anyone know when Blizzard is actually going to give us McCree's new name?," one fan aired their concerns on the change and the little information provided to players. "The fact that Blizzard didn't include McCree's new name with their original statement felt like the decision was made in a rush," they wrote. They then asked if anyone had seen anything regarding what the new name would be so that they and the rest of the fanbase could "get used to the new name" before the imminent content arrived.

Blizzard's community management team took this as an opportunity to soothe the fandom's worries and give a more solid idea of what the name change involves.

Changing a character's name isn't as easy as it might seem. Reddit user Blizz_AndyB, listed as a Blizzard community manager, explained that "voice lines, localization, UI/UX elements, art assets, checking with the regions for cultural considerations, and publishing aspects" were just some of the points that the team needed to rework for the name change.

"I do not currently have an ETA I can share with you," they said. "However, I can assure you that work is underway on this task." They also addressed fans' worries about it seeming like a rushed decision, saying that the change was a "meaningful undertaking" that would just take "some time to achieve."

Jesse McCree launched with "Overwatch" as one of the heroes in the game's starting roster. The DPS cowboy has played a major role in many professional teams and is known by the fandom for his famous catchphrase, "It's high noon!" 

Since Blizzard announced the Cowboy's upcoming change, the fandom has had time to guess at his new name, and now complain about how long it's taking to change that name. His voice actor, Matthew Mercer, also broke his silence on the name change to agree it was necessary for people to "feel comfortable moving forward with the story of Overwatch and the characters."