Overwatch‘s Archives events were a yearly way to explore more of the game’s lore and the backstories of individual characters. Originally called Uprising, the name was changed to Archives to better encompass the full range of stories the team could tell. Archives events frequently featured PvE co-op segments against members of the villainous Null Sector, which would end up forming the backbone for Overwatch 2’s in-development PvE story mode.
Since the original Overwatch will no longer be running Archives events, we thought we’d take the opportunity to highlight some of the best skins that came out of the event. Almost every hero received at least one skin during an Archives event—usually a legendary skin—but there are a few that stand head and shoulders above the rest.
Here are the best Overwatch Archives skins.
Cadet Oxton
Cadet Oxton is one of Overwatch’s most iconic skins. It was featured in the companion comic Uprising, which helped give it its storied status. Besides being a fun, appealing skin thanks to its tiny hat and sleek blue armor, it has a lot of lore significance, particularly as it relates to the King’s Row Uprising and Tracer’s positivity and confidence in the face of battle. This legendary skin is definitely one to grab before the start of Overwatch 2.
Combat Medic Ziegler
Combat Medic Ziegler skin looks a little like Cadet Oxton, which make sense considering they were both released during the very first Archives event. Reinhardt and Torbjörn also received skins sporting a similar color scheme, but Combat Medic Ziegler wins out for the techno-angel look it gives Mercy. It transforms her wings into a more mechanical construction and gives her plenty of healing tools to use on the job, including syringes and pliers. Also, who can resist that fun medic’s hat?
Socialite Ashe
Socialite isn’t necessarily related to the story of Overwatch as a whole; instead, it specifically pulls from Ashe’s lore. The skin’s in-game description reveals that Ashe’s parents were both socialites, so she’s used to the world of glitz and glamour. While it might be easier to imagine her as the motorcycle-riding leader of the Deadlock Gang, Socialite proves she’s capable of holding her own in a variety of situations. The skin gives Ashe a hot-pink gun and a fantastic plumed hat and dresses B.O.B. up as her butler. It’s a fun, flashy skin that’s not to be missed.
Equalizer Lucio
Like Socialite, Equalizer is a character-specific throwback skin rather than one that aims to develop Overwatch lore as a whole. Equalizer is based on Lucio’s original design during Overwatch‘s concept art days: his base skin was originally going to have an animated pattern on the legs, but the design team decided it was too distracting and scrapped it. They brought back the design in a more muted fashion for Equalizer, which restores the animation and gives Lucio an undeniably rad pair of skates in the process.
Blackwatch Cassidy
Cassidy’s Blackwatch skin is a nod to his lore as it relates to Archives. Before going out on his own and squaring up with the Deadlock Gang, he was a member of the Blackwatch division of Overwatch, which participated in covert operations that were kept quiet from the general public. Like Reaper’s similar Blackwatch skin, this skin is sleek, subdued, and ready for action. It’s a dark, interesting departure from Cassidy’s normal look.
Scion Hanzo
Despite the fact that Hanzo wasn’t—and still isn’t—a part of Overwatch, Talon, or Null Sector, he was still given some love during Archives events. Scion is a legendary skin that shows how Hanzo looked when he ran the Shimada clan, his family’s criminal empire, after the death of his father. This skin was a huge hit among fans, and it’s not hard to see why: it gives the archer an immaculately sharp suit that he’d likely wear to shady business meetings. The timeline of this skin likely aligns with the Young Genji skins; Hanzo served as leader of the Shimada clan for a short time before his elders convinced him to murder Genji.
Pajamei
Archives events aren’t necessarily known for featuring cute or silly skins, but Pajamei is an exception. This legendary Mei skin dresses the scientist in the outfit she wore in the “Rise and Shine” animated short, which documented Mei’s escape from the Ecopoint: Antarctica base. In the short, Mei wakes up from a nine-year cryostasis experiment wearing this outfit. She looks very cozy in a Summer Games sweatshirt (a reference to a different Overwatch event), polar bear-print pajama pants, and yeti slippers. Players can use her homemade cryoblaster prototype to adorably demolish their enemies.
