Tracer's victory pose sparked controversy nearly a decade ago when Overwatch 1 launched, with some players saying it was too sexually suggestive and placed too much emphasis on her hips. Blizzard later apologized and changed Tracer's pose. Now, former "Overwatch" director Jeff Kaplan has expressed his opinion on the matter, saying that Tracer's hips have never been "weakened."
Kaplan was asked about this during an IGN live broadcast of his new game California Legends. In response, Kaplan said: "We're not actually nerfing Tracer's hip. It's not changed at all."
Blizzard recently faced a similar issue and promised to redesign the face of new female hero Enron. Enron's facial design was criticized negatively by players for being too similar to other characters. Earlier this month, Blizzard announced An Ran's new face design, which emphasizes her mature temperament and enhances her similarity to her brother Wuyang.
In 2021, Jeff Kaplan left Activision Blizzard while Overwatch 2 was still in development.
Recently, Kaplan publicly discussed the reasons for his departure, revealing that it was because an executive pressured him to generate high revenue, otherwise Blizzard would face the risk of thousands of layoffs. Kaplan told YouTube host Lex Fridman that it was "the most outrageous moment of my career — it felt unreal to be in that situation."
While live streaming California Legends, Kaplan also addressed players who criticize the game without playing it.
"I understand your dissatisfaction, and I understand you expressing your opinion. But if a game comes out and you don't want to play it, and you haven't played it before - shut up!"
"Californication" does not yet have a release date.
