That's not the only similarity, as Squirrel Girl also has a similar ultimate ability as Junkrat, unleashing a stampede of squirrels at her opponent that eradicates foes, a la Junkrat's Rip Tire ability. Squirrel Girl also has a trap ability in the form of Squirrel Blockade that briefly stuns her f

With Overwatch, the charming hero shooter from Blizzard, launching this week, we want to make sure that you're as prepared as possible to help your team dominate. Overwatch's main focus is clearly on the interplay between its dynamic characters, so in order to become competent, you'll need to understand how every character works. Throughout the week, we'll be publishing guides on each of the 21 launch heroes, three at a time, with the hopes that you'll be able to recognize certain patterns on the battlefield.

There are certain developers out there that make games that are far more polished than everything else out on the market. Blizzard pretty much leads the charge here, and Overwatch is absolutely no exception. In my over one-hundred matches played during the Overwatch beta, I haven't experienced a single dropped frame or moment of lag. Think about that for a second. We live in an age where AAA games routinely launch broken, so for a beta (though this beta is essentially a final build) to be more polished than the final release of its closest competitor, that really says something.

Much has been made of the rivalry between Blizzard and Gearbox Software, with the former seemingly attempting to hinder the success of the latter at every turn. Overwatch's Open Beta's Early Access period launched at the same time as the full release of Battleborn , making this the second time that version of the two titles have gone head to head with playable builds. There are a ton of similarities between the two titles, as both have over twenty playable heroes that each have a distinct personality and set of skills, but Overwatch and Battleborn are less similar than one might initially imagine. Whereas Battleborn is essentially a third-person MOBA mode with a campaign (despite Gearbox's complete avoidance of that four letter acronym over the years), Overwatch is an arena shooter in the vein of Team Fortress 2.

To that end, there’s only so far community/consumer-made satire can go and as hilarious or as insightful or indeed unsettling some of these "creations" might be, we’re not the ones in charge. Or better put, the ones who lie on the other side of that seemingly impervious wall that separates "the industry" from the rest of us. If there’s ever to be a time when that barricade at least feels like it’s been breached, it’s when a developer or creator does the [hard] work for us. So when the likes of Hideo Kojima proves (yet again) he’s more than happy to poke fun at what should be his pride-and-joy …that’s great. Admittedly funny too, while I’m at it. It’s great because, as mentioned, it helps de-myth this alleged disconnect…and proves that those working hard behind the scenes, are not (as much as you might think) all in it for the green. That some of them actually care about the reaction and presentation of certain themes, characters, whatever as they as much the critically-analysed presentation of the end product.

Overwatch's Tracer is a perfect example of why Blizzard has created a game with a more appetizing personality than Gearbox. With a press of the E key, Tracer has the ability to warp back to a previous position, restoring the health and ammo she had at that point. Around half of the time one utilizes Tracer's Recall skill, she'll use her adorable English twang to drop the line, "Ever get that feeling of déjà vu?" Now, this is the type of quip that could be obnoxious if delivered imperfectly or too frequently, but it actually winds up being wonderfully charming every time. Combine this with her shrills of joy whenever she uses her Blink skill to warp around the map, and it's clear why Blizzard has made Overwatch's first hero the face of the franchise. With Battleborn, each character feels like the cheesiest character in a Borderlands game, and they never seem to be quiet. Add this to the fact that curse words are bleeped out, despite the fact that they're used frequently, and it often feels like Gearbox missed the mark on Battleborn's personality, which is a shame considering that its visual style is so striking and engaging.

The more obvious parallel is Mantis' ultimate attack, which is nearly identical to Zenyatta's. Both characters unleash auras. Not only do the auras continuously heal while they are active, but they also increase movement speed, which is helpful when trying to maintain a capture point or push a team toward an object

Another major factor in Overwatch's superior focus is its combat readability. In other words, it's far easier to recognize what's happening on the screen at any given moment and react accordingly. It's easy to figure out what powers each hero has, how they would use them in any given situation and the potential counters to each hero's strategy. The sheer amount of lunacy on the screen at any given moment does make Battleborn exciting, but it's often extremely tough to figure out the best strategy to take in a given encounter. What makes Overwatch special is that high-level play isn't hindered by its combat readability, so both new and old players have the potential to plan out their moves in the best way possible. Battleborn, for all of its chaos and excitement, doesn't necessarily do a great job communicating with the player (this can also be seen in its awkward menu system).