Freja in Overwatch 2: New hero abilities, ultimate, backstory & more

Blizzard has revealed Overwatch 2’s next hero, Freja, a new DPS that’s set to be one of the highest-skill characters in the game.

Every couple of seasons, Overwatch 2 adds a new face to its roster of heroes to keep the meta feeling fresh. Seasons 12 and 14 brought Juno and Hazard respectively, and the next new character has been officially revealed.

Freja was shown off during the Overwatch Spotlight event and she’s going to shake up the DPS category, so here’s a breakdown of her abilities and her backstory.

Do we know when Freja will arrive in Overwatch 2?

Freja is set to be the Overwatch 2 hero for Season 16, which is due to drop in April. New characters are released every two seasons, so after Hazard in Season 14, there will be no new hero in the following update.

However, if you can’t wait to try out the new DPS, a playtest will take place during Season 15. During this period, Freja will be available in Quick Play matches to give the devs an opportunity to see how the community responds and make balancing adjustments before her full debut.

Blizzard

Freja abilities

Revdraw Crossbow (primary fire)

• Rapidly fire automatic bolts.

Take Aim (secondary fire)

• Slow down your momentum to take aim with a high speed explosive bolt. Using Quick Dash refreshes Take Aim.

Quick Dash

• Vault in the direction you’re moving and refresh Take Aim.

Updraft

• Launch upward with a gust of wind.

Bounty Hunting (Passive)

• Every 5 Killing Blows, gain bonus ultimate charge.

Bola Shot (Ultimate)

• Fire an explosive bola. Hitting an enemy wraps them up and pulls in other nearby enemies.

Perks

Minor

• Tracking Bolt: Enemies hit by three regular bolts in quick succession are revealed for four seconds.
• Bounty Collection: Eliminations grant 2% Ultimate charge. Killing blows grant 4%.

Major

• Ready to Hunt: Updraft grants a temporary free use of Quick Dash.
• Job’s Done: After getting killing blows on five unique enemy players, permanently reduce the cooldown of Take Aim by 20%.

Blizzard

How to play Freja

Freja is a great all-round DPS hero in Overwatch, but she’s going to be one of the toughest to master. Her abilities may seem straightforward on paper, but chaining them together to get the most out of them is no easy task.

Her primary fire deals plenty of damage, but the first key thing to remember is that her crossbow fires projectiles. This is less of an issue at close to mid-range, but at longer distances, you’ll need to lead your shots slightly to land hits consistently.

Take Aim thrives at longer ranges, as it fires a single explosive bolt. Crucially, the initial hit can headshot if you’re accurate enough, so you’ll want to be aiming for the head to maximize your damage output.

Using this secondary fire also slows your momentum to give you a chance to line up the shot, meaning you’ll essentially freeze time but only for yourself. So, if you’re jumping through the air or strafing you’ll begin float, which is perfect for accuracy but also makes you easier to hit.

In my brief hands-on with Freja at the Spotlight event, I found it useful to also use Take Aim to hide from incoming fire, as it lets you temporarily hang in the air in hard-to-reach places.

The real key to her kit is using Quick Dash to refresh Take Aim. You get two charges, so you’ll want to keep an eye on both and time your dashes to reload your explosive bots and chain together one powerful attack after another.

Timing is also critical with her Ultimate. Bola Shot hinders the target it hits and pulls in nearby enemies, so it’s best used when enemies are already bunched together and you have plenty of teammates nearby who can take advantage, such as Bastion or Junkrat.

Blizzard

Backstory and lore

Freja is the first Overwatch hero to hail from Denmark, continuing the game’s commitment to exploring different nationalities and cultures.

She was part of the Overwatch team in its heyday, alongside the likes of Winston and Reinhardt, serving as a search and rescue specialist. Once the group disbanded, she looked to find meaning again by becoming a bounty hunter.

That’s everything we know about Freja so far, but we’re expecting to get more details about her as we approach Season 16. In the meantime, check everything you need to know about the new Perks system and upcoming Stadium mode.