McCree’s Overwatch voice actor claims hero name change “needed to be done”

The voice actor who played McCree in Overwatch claims the hero’s name change “needed to be done” to help people feel comfortable moving forward, but acknowledged it’s only a “small consolation”.

Activision Blizzard’s lawsuit turned the world upside down. It revealed shocking details about the company’s culture and environment in the workplace that involved countless female employees being subject to abuse, discrimination, and harassment.

The company has been trying to purge the toxicity by firing employees involved in those incidents in the hopes that it will help lay the foundation to foster a new culture where all employees are treated equally and respectfully.

And since McCree’s name is a reference to one of the employees implicated in that pervasive culture, the Overwatch team decided to rename him after players demanded the change.

The consensus is that it was the right move.

In an exclusive interview, Matthew Mercer, the voice actor who played McCree, claimed that the character’s name change “needed to be done” in order for people to feel comfortable moving forward.

Mercer explained that when the news about all people getting abused and mistreated by individuals within the company broke out, it broke his heart.

“My heart has been breaking since the whole thing went down,” he said.

For that reason, he believes that while it’s only a “small consolation,” he’s on board with the character’s name change.

• Read More: Behind the Scenes at the OWL: Reactions to the lawsuit

“It needed to be done for a lot of people to feel comfortable moving forward with the story of Overwatch and the characters.”

“Some can say that it’s just a name and that it is ridiculous to change it, but it’s a name that also represents a connection to a lot of people’s pain and abuse. And if we have the opportunity to make it better, then I can’t help but be behind that.”

McCree’s new name hasn’t been publicly released yet, but the fact it’s changing at all is a step in the right direction — even if it’s a small change.

• Read More: Overwatch 2 fans fear sequel is “rushed” following report

However, it’s not enough on its own to convince players the company’s internal culture has turned a new leaf. Not yet, anyway. There will need to be plenty of real-world changes to convince them otherwise.