Tag Archives: McCree

Technology

Overwatch 2’s ‘Sexual Harassment Simulator’ Made A Brief Return

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Image: Activision Blizzard

Trigger warning: sexual assault and harassment.

An inappropriate Overwatch 2 game mode reappeared, but it’s not one to get excited about. The mode, titled “sexual harassment simulator,” was played enough times that it appeared as one of the most popular over the weekend for some players, according to PC Gamer, which spotted the reappearance just before Blizzard quickly pulled it down.

Another “sexual harassment simulator” was discovered in October 2022, but both tasked players with knocking down Overwatch 2‘s female heroes (like Mercy and Widowmaker) while playing as the cowboy Cole Cassidy and repeatedly crouching over their bodies, apparently, as PC Gamer reported, with the word “raping…” until the character in question is labeled “pregnant” as an AI-controlled Torbjorn supposedly fills the role of the baby. This is disgusting on so many levels it’s not even funny, especially because players are forced to play as Cassidy, previously known as McCree, the same name as the ousted Activision Blizzard developer who took part in the controversial “Cosby Suite” meetups.

A screenshot of the custom mode was posted to Overwatch’s official subreddit by user Joyolo13, who simply asked: “What in god’s name?”

“Lol I remember seeing this every day in [Overwatch 1],” said Redditor sw1nky. “Can’t say I’m surprised it’s still around, [to be honest].”

“McCree is back in the game I guess,” said user FoulfrogBsc.

Kotaku was unable to find the custom game mode in Overwatch 2 as it appears Blizzard took the “sexual harassment simulator” offline—for now. So, it seems the company is aware that such a mode exists but might be having a hard time preventing it from reappearing in the game.

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“Inappropriate or explicit content has absolutely no place in our game,” a Blizzard spokesperson told PC Gamer when the outlet asked about the first version of the mode last year. “We immediately removed the user-created game mode once made aware of its existence. We are continually working to improve automatic filters to prevent inappropriate user-created content, and manually removing any that are not caught by the system.”

Kotaku reached out to Activision Blizzard for comment.

While this is at least the second time the “sexual harassment simulator” has popped up in Overwatch 2 specifically, players noted that a similar mode existed in some form in the original Overwatch game. At the time, players posted PSAs to warn the community about the offensive content. Of course, not all player-created game modes are this egregious. But it is concerning that this issue has come up more than once within a few months.

 



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Overwatch Battletag Changes Free Following McCree Controversy

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Image: Activision Blizzard

Blizzard recently announced that Overwatch players will be able to change their battletags for free through next Friday, November 5.

The news comes shortly after the reveal that original Overwatch character McCree becomes Cole Cassidy this week. Previously, changing one’s Overwatch username required a $10 fee. This latest offer, which can be requested via customer support ticket, doesn’t stack with previous free name changes.

“As we introduce a new name, you might have the desire to do the same,” the official Overwatch website reads, referring to the controversial circumstances behind McCree’s name change.

Last August, Blizzard let go McCree’s previous namesake, veteran World of Warcraft and Diablo designer Jesse McCree, following reports of his participation in the studio’s infamous “Cosby Suite” meet-ups. While McCree wasn’t named in any of Activision Blizzard’s numerous ongoing abuse cases, his presence at the booze-fueled, harassment-filled convention parties apparently looked bad enough to prompt this series of events

Other notable Blizzard departures from around the same time include president J. Allen Brack, Diablo IV director Luis Barriga, and World of Warcraft designer Jonathan LeCraft. Fortunately for the devs left behind, no Overwatch characters were named after them.

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“We have a deep, talented roster of developers already in place and new leaders have been assigned where appropriate,” a Blizzard rep told Kotaku in August. “We are confident in our ability to continue progress, deliver amazing experiences to our players, and move forward to ensure a safe, productive work environment for all.”

Overwatch community response to the free battletag change has been largely positive, though many are using the opportunity to argue against being charged ten bucks to do so normally. Some players also promised to change their names to McCree out of some confusing protest to the Overwatch update, but so far there’s no proof any of them have actually bit the bullet.

 

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Technology

Blizzard Has Officially Renamed Overwatch’s McCree

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Image: Blizzard

As you might recall, Blizzard announced it would be changing the name McCree – the popular cowboy gunslinger in its team-based first-person shooter, Overwatch.

In case you missed it, the character’s original name was named after one of the now ex-employees linked to the recent harassment and discrimination lawsuit – brought against Activision Blizzard by the state of California.

So, what’s McCree’s new name? It’s now Cole Cassidy. Here’s the full backstory:

“The first thing a renegade loses is their name, and this one gave up his a long time ago.

Running from his past meant running from himself, and each passing year only widened the divide between who he had been and what he had become. But in every cowboy’s life there comes a time when he has to stop and make a stand.

To make this new Overwatch better – to make things right – he had to be honest with his team and himself. The cowboy he was rode into the sunset, and Cole Cassidy faced the world at dawn.”

As part of this, Blizzard will be providing all players with a free Battletag name change:

As noted above, the new name Cold Cassidy will be added to Overwatch next week on 26th October, and it will obviously carry over to the upcoming release Overwatch 2.

You can learn more about this name change in our previous story:



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‘Overwatch’ hero McCree will be renamed Cole Cassidy on October 26th

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Overwatch hero Jesse McCree has a new name, and, no, it’s not Deadeye Dave. , Blizzard has renamed the gunslinger in the aftermath of his real-life namesake back in August. As of October 26th, McCree will be known as Cole Cassidy.

“To make the new Overwatch better — to make things right — he had to be honest with his team and himself.” Blizzard said in a tweet. “The cowboy he was rode into the sunset, and Cole Cassidy faced the world at dawn.”

The real Jesse McCree left the studio after the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing for fostering a “frat boy” workplace. While not directly named in the complaint, McCree reportedly took part in the infamous “Cosby Suite” where Blizzard employees, including former World of Warcraft creative director Alex Afrasiabi, allegedly harassed women. When it first announced the name change, Blizzard said it wanted to find one that better represented Overwatch’s ideals. It also promised it would no longer name in-game characters after employees.

Alongside the name change, Blizzard is changes to Cassidy’s kit. It may tweak his Deadeye ultimate to make it more deadly and allow players to use his Combat Roll in midair. The latter change should help with avoiding vertical knockback abilities from heroes like Doomfist and Wrecking Ball. You can try out the tweaks by launching Overwatch’s Experimental mode.

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Overwatch’s McCree has a new name: Cole Cassidy

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Overwatch’s outlaw bounty hunter, Jesse McCree, has a new name: He’s Cole Cassidy now, developer Blizzard Entertainment announced via Twitter on Friday. That new name will start appearing in Overwatch on Oct. 26.

Blizzard changed McCree’s name as part of a broader plan to remove references to real-life developers and former employees of the studio in the wake of a lawsuit. In July, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing sued parent company Activision Blizzard, alleging it had fostered a “frat boy culture” that subjected female employees to sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination.

Developers on World of Warcraft and Overwatch have since pledged to remove references to anyone implicated in the lawsuit — including renaming characters and locations named after employees. That includes former Blizzard Entertainment employee Jesse McCree, whose name was borrowed for Overwatch’s gun-slinging cowboy hero.

In August, the Overwatch development team announced it was changing McCree’s name. The team said in a statement that “it’s necessary to change the name of the hero currently known as McCree to something that better represents what Overwatch stands for.” The change, developers said, would impact the planned rollout of an in-game narrative arc that would have focused on McCree.

“Going forward, in-game characters will no longer be named after real employees and we will be more thoughtful and discerning about adding real world references in future Overwatch content,” developers said.

That pledge already extends to Overwatch 2, which previously featured references to former Overwatch game director Jeff Kaplan. Kaplan, who left Blizzard Entertainment in April, was referenced on signage in a pizza shop on the sequel’s New York City map, which has since been revised.



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Blizzard to change name of Overwatch’s McCree following sexual harassment lawsuit

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Blizzard says it plans to change the name of Overwatch’s gunslinger character following the explosive sexual harassment lawsuit brought against Activision Blizzard by the state of California. The character was originally named “McCree” after Jesse McCree, a former longtime Blizzard staffer who appears to be pictured in the so-called “Cosby Suite” reported on by Kotaku.

Blizzard hasn’t shared a new name for the character yet, and the studio will delay an in-game narrative arc where he played a “key part” due to the change. The company also committed to no longer naming in-game characters after real employees.

Recently, some Overwatch League casters had chosen to not say the gunslinger character’s former name, instead calling him “the cowboy.”

The planned change follows promised updates to World of Warcraft to remove “references that are not appropriate for our world,” which may have referred to references of former World of Warcraft senior creative director Alex Afrasiabi in the game. Afrasiabi was singled out in the lawsuit for his problematic actions while at Blizzard. He was fired from Blizzard and appears to have worked for the company until June 2020.

The change also follows a recent decision by Blizzard not to create skins for Overwatch League MVPs after sexual assault allegations surfaced against former Overwatch pro and MVP Jay “Sinatraa” Won.

When Blizzard confirmed that Jesse McCree was no longer at the company this month, it said that longtime employees Luis Barriga and Jonathan LeCraft were gone, too. Blizzard’s former head of HR Jesse Meschuk and former president J. Allen Brack also left earlier in August.

This week, California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) accused Activision Blizzard of “withholding and suppressing evidence” needed for its investigation in an amended complaint. Employees walked out in protest of the company’s initial public response to the lawsuit in July.



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Jesse McCree, Diablo 4 Director Gone From Activision Blizzard

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Screenshot: Blizzard

Diablo 4 game director Luis Barriga, lead designer Jesse McCree, and World of Warcraft designer Jonathan LeCraft were let go from Blizzard on Wednesday, two sources with knowledge of the move told Kotaku.

The news was delivered to development teams today but has not yet been officially announced. A source confirmed to Kotaku that the three developers’ names are no longer visible in Blizzard’s internal directory or Slack. Activision Blizzard did not immediately return a request for comment.

One source who learned of the news said Activision Blizzard did not give a reason for the departures, but they come as the company reckons with a California lawsuit alleging widespread sexual harassment and discrimination at the Overwatch and Call of Duty publisher.

Jesse McCree, the namesake for Overwatch’s beloved cowboy fighter and most recently a designer on Diablo 4, was one of several current and former Blizzard developers who appeared in an image of a BlizzCon 2013 “Cosby Suite” obtained by Kotaku. The suite contained booze and a giant portrait of Bill Cosby and reportedly belonged to World of Warcraft developer Alex Afrasiabi.

Afrasiabi is one of the few people called out by name in California’s lawsuit, which accuses him of sexually harassing and groping female coworkers. Bloomberg reported that the nickname for the suite began as a joke about ugly carpeting and predated the sexual assault allegations about Bill Cosby becoming widely publicized, though some Blizzard sources have disputed that origin story. Two former Blizzard employees told Kotaku that the suite’s reputation had always been menacing because of Afrasiabi’s behavior. Afrasiabi-related references have since been removed from World of Warcraft, though there’s no word yet on whether or not Overwatch and its gunslinger will see any changes in light of the latest news.

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Jonathan LeCraft and Cory Stockton, currently a lead game designer at Blizzard, were also pictured in the suite. Two sources confirmed to Kotaku that Stockton was put on leave last week but appears to remain with the company.

Luis Barriga has been at Blizzard since 2006, and as game director has been one of the faces of Diablo 4 since it was initially revealed. The game is still deep in development and doesn’t yet have a release date. Last year, veteran game developer Rod Fergusson announced he was leaving Microsoft and Gears 5 studio The Coalition to join Blizzard and oversee the entire Diablo franchise.

Additional reporting by Patricia Hernandez

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