Overwatch just killed off its first hero…kind of

Overwatch has entered a new era that puts storytelling first, and they’ve kicked things off by killing one of the game’s most popular characters.

2026 looks set to be one of Overwatch‘s biggest years yet, as Blizzard unveiled its plans for the long-running hero shooter at the Spotlight event.

Not only has the “2” officially been dropped from the name, but the game is switching to a yearly format that focuses on a single story, with five new characters arriving in Season 1. These new faces will join the existing lineup of heroes, with five more rolling out throughout the year.

But when it comes to old characters, it appears that Blizzard is finally feeling a little ruthless, as they’ve killed a hero for the very first time.

Doomfist just died in Overwatch, but mains don’t need to worry

In a cinematic shown at the start of the Spotlight event, Vendetta squares off with Doomfist for control of Talon, the evil organisation that serves as the main antagonist in the Overwatch universe. The fight ends with Doomfist being thrown from a window and plummeting, seemingly, to his death.

So, as it stands, Doomfist is canonically dead in Overwatch. But if you’re a Doom main, don’t worry, this won’t affect your ability to play as him. According to associate game director Alec Dawson, the events of the ongoing story won’t affect anyone’s spot in the game.

“There are no plans to remove any characters from the roster depending on what may happen to them,” he said in an interview with GameSpot. However, he added that the team wants its maps and heroes to “reflect” what’s happening in the narrative at any given time.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that Doomfist’s ‘death’ was left pretty open-ended, and they could easily bring him back in the future without it seeming too far-fetched.

Either way, this is a new direction for Overwatch where characters could actually die, even if they will always stick around in the game itself.