Overwatch 2 players torn over first-of-its-kind cosmetic & its “sad” missing detail

Brad Norton
Reinhardt Mythic weapon skin

Overwatch 2 just introduced the first-of-its-kind Mythic-tier weapon skin for Reinhardt, but the community is torn due to some missing visual flair.

Two years on from its release Overwatch 2 now has its first weapon skin at the Mythic tier. The Bound Demon Reinhardt weapon skin was unveiled on July 23 and instantly added to the game.

This first-of-its-kind cosmetic in OW2 follows a similar pattern to cosmetics we’ve seen in other Activision Blizzard titles like Call of Duty. With four distinct levels, it evolves as you play, reacting to your eliminations and providing unique kill effects the better you perform.

Upon spawning in, the weapon has its standard appearance. At five eliminations, it begins glowing as the flames heat up. At 10 eliminations, the weapon emits a brighter yellow light as flames take hold of its design.

While some players were quick to praise it as “one of the best weapons in the game,” backlash soon took hold of the conversation. On one hand, many responded to its cost of 80 Mythic Prisms, $70-$80 USD depending on which bundles you buy, as you can’t purchase that exact amount.

However, another angle of criticism focused instead on what many are labeling a “sad” lack of visual flair. Obviously, the evolving skin details are a new level of pizzazz we haven’t seen before in Overwatch 2, but it turns out, at least according to some early testing, others in the lobby won’t be seeing your evolving weapon skin effects.

As you rack up eliminations and see your weapon heat up on your screen, others won’t be able to witness your hot streak. This could be an intentional design choice, as some players argued it’s a way to avoid further visual clutter in an already busy-looking game.

Though given the cost of the cosmetic, with players looking to flex on their opponents, some have called for it to be an option. “I wish there was a toggle for this. I wouldn’t mind seeing skin effects as the enemy/teammate, makes fights look cooler,” one player chimed in.

It’s worth noting, this has been an inconsistency with a bunch of Overwatch 2’s recent high-tier cosmetics. For some Mythics, special visual effects and even sound effects can’t be seen or heard by others in the match, while some can. On this occasion, it appears that Rein’s fancy new weapon falls into the former camp and it’s left the community torn.