Gaming

Soldier: 76’s Ex-Boyfriend Is Already In ‘Overwatch’

by Amanda Yeo  9 January 2019
Overwatch's Soldier: 76

Want more Junkee in your life? Sign up to our newsletter, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook so you always know where to find us.

Yesterday, the world learned that Overwatch‘s harness-wearing silver fox Jack “Soldier: 76” Morrison is gay. Many rejoiced, though fans wished his queerness was referenced within the game itself rather than confined to bonus material. Now, a day later, that wish has come true.

In short story Bastet, released yesterday, grumpy old man Jack looks over old photographs with friend and comrade-in-arms Ana Amari. These include a photograph of Jack with his ex-boyfriend Vincent, who has since moved on but for whom Jack absolutely still holds a torch.

Fans went wild, as this was the first information ever released regarding Jack’s sexuality. Head Overwatch writer and author of Bastet Michael Chu also took Twitter to confirm that yes, Soldier: 76 is gay.

However, as welcome as this revelation was, all of this was outside the game itself — until now. That all-important photograph has since been added to Overwatch, though you’ll have to do a little work before you can see it.

Announced today, Overwatch‘s new Ana’s Bastet Challenge asks players to watch specific Twitch streams in order to earn sprays — graphics players can apply to surfaces within the game, like stencil graffiti. Most of these pertain to Ana, as the short story and challenge are technically about her.

But as much as we all love sniping mum, right now we’re here for soldier dad, and one of these brand new sprays is the photograph of Jack and Vincent with their arms around each other.

To get the spray, first you’ll need to link your Blizzard and Twitch accounts via Twitch’s connections page. Once they’re linked, you can earn sprays simply by watching selected Twitch streams during this event. A list of the participating streams can be found here, though you can make sure you’re watching the correct stream by checking that a green “Drops enabled!” appears below the stream window.

You’ll need to watch a nominated Twitch stream for four hours to earn the Jack and Vincent spray. But it’ll be worth it, since it having it will let you place the image of the then-happy couple wherever you want on the in-game map. You can also earn sprays of Ana, though you’ll have to watch for six hours to earn them all.

Ana’s Bastet Challenge also asks players to win games in order to earn a player icon, a victory pose, and an epic Bastet skin for Ana. Winning three games in any mode will earn you a player icon of a cat head, while winning six games will get you a victory pose of Ana crouching. Win nine games, and you’ll be given the Bastet skin, a cosmetic item that gives the healing sniper a slick-looking cat mask.

The challenge runs until January 22, so you have two weeks to earn those sprays. Now we just need some voice lines.