Heroes of the Storm Adds Overwatch's Zarya to Roster

Russian champion Zarya is to join Tracer as the second playable hero from Blizzard’s first-person shooter Overwatch present in popular MOBA Heroes of the Storm.

In an effort to capitalize off the popularity of its new first-person shooter Overwatch, Blizzard has added another one of the game’s characters to the company’s MOBA, Heroes of the Storm.

When Blizzard first released its latest shooter, the company announced that the British character Tracer would be coming to their long-term MOBA as a playable hero in the near future. Now the company have revealed that the Russian tank Zarya will be the second Overwatch hero to arrive in Heroes of the Storm.

Zarya will be making her appearance alongside new map Warhead Junction. Her abilities greatly resemble the ones the character has in Overwatch too, with the power to gain a personal shield and grant one to others part of her impressive arsenal of basic abilities. The heroine can also launch particle grenades, much like her secondary fire in the first-person shooter.

Her heroic abilities also resemble the character’s traditional skills, with one launching a bomb which draws enemies towards it for 2.5 seconds. Zarya has also been granted an additional ability however, with a bomb that pushes away enemies and slows their movement speed now a part of her already impressive roster.

For those who aren’t familiar with the Russian hero, Zarya was first introduced at PAX East, 2 years ago. Since then, she has made her debut in Overwatch where she acts as the sole female tank.

As for the new battleground, Warhead Junction was once a testing ground for nuclear weapons that has now fallen into ruin. Nuclear warheads will spawn about the map, allowing players to gather the devices and activate a nuke capable of dealing massive damage to enemy fortifications.

Zarya will hopefully be a welcome edition to the Heroes of the Storm cast, and it’s good to see that Blizzard is following through on its idea to add more Overwatch characters to the game. Tracer was a well-received hero which players have been able to get as a bonus, part of the Overwatch: Origins Edition bundle since the title’s release.

In other HOTS news, Warcraft fans can unlock Orcish character Gul’dan with their purchase of the Warcraft movie’s blu-ray. It’s an interesting way to unlock additional features, but Blizzard do it well, having gathered a significant fanbase for its handful of polished titles who are willing to pay for additional content.

Will you be playing Zarya in Heroes of the Storm, Ranters? Leave us a comment and let us know.

Heroes of the Storm is currently available for PC and Mac.