Anran redesign draws criticism from fans and voice actor

Blizzard offered a first look at new hero Anran in Overwatch after an Overwatch Spotlight, first in a trailer and then during a weekend-long hero trial. Players were unhappy with what they saw — not her gameplay, but her appearance. In August 2025, Blizzard introduced Wuyang in the cinematic “Elemental Kin,” which teased his sister Anran; the cinematic, a tie-in comic and concept art had presented her as a "cool older sister." The in-game model reduces her nose size, narrows her cheekbones and adds a sharply tapered jaw so her chin ends in a dramatic point, a look many note is very similar to Kiriko's in-game model.

Character models, particularly female characters, sharing features is not new for Overwatch — if Freja had purple skin, some say she and Widowmaker would be hard to tell apart — and fans pointed out that Anran, Kiriko and Juno share a lot of facial features. Wuyang’s in-game model looks slightly different from his cinematic version but still resembles the version seen in “Elemental Kin.” Blizzard did not respond in time.

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