PAX East 2015: New character, McCree, adds some wild west flavor to Overwatch

In addition to revealing the first female tank for Overwatch, Blizzard also announced a second playable character in their upcoming multiplayer shooter. He goes by the name McCree, and he’s described as the “ultimate futuristic gunslinger.”

Equipped with his Deadeye revolver, McCree is a western-themed character that’s perfect for the more “talented shooter player.”

McCree has your standard fire with left-click, but his alternate fire is really where this character can shine, as he unleashes all the remaining shots in his gun. Other abilities include a Flashbang that stuns enemies for a second and combos “amazingly” with his other abilities. Blizzard acknowledged that his ultimate ability, “Deadeye,” might be a bit overpowered right now, but it basically takes account of everyone in front of McCree and draws a targeting reticle on each of the enemies in sight. If the reticle gets small enough, McCree fires, basically killing anyone it hits.

Bringing it all together, and this is probably where the real skilled players will shine, is his combat roll abilities. In addition to giving him the mobility to escape bad situations, it adds some nuance for more skilled players by reloading his Peacekeeper revolver as he rolls. As you can guess, you can pull off some pretty amazing combos making use of this ability.

Personally, I didn’t enjoy McCree’s playstyle all that much. Maybe that means I’m not a skilled player, though I found my stats to be above average for my first time playing. I like the idea of a futuristic western character, but I found the other “offense” class characters to be more fun and effective in dealing damage. To each their own though, I’m sure there will be plenty of talented McCree players able to make full use of his kit.

Stay tuned for our hands-on experience with Overwatch at PAX East.

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