Overwatch 2 beta ends with enigmatic message – is Blizzard bringing a new fox heroine?

The Overwatch 2 beta ended with a cryptic message from Blizzard. The community is speculating about a fox hero that could appear in Overwatch 2 in the future. There are several indications that this is the case.

On July 18, 2022, the Overwatch 2 beta ended. Players received several notifications from Blizzard of new content.

Just before the beta went offline, players discovered a mysterious message in chat. The fans suspect: Blizzard is planning a fox support hero.

Blizzard provided two other clues that clearly alluded to Fox support:

• In the Overwatch 2 trailer
• In Blizzard’s statement

Here you can see the English Overwatch 2 trailer, in which there is a fox clue:

V2hhdCBkb2VzIHRoZSBmb3ggc2F5Pw==

What was the cryptic message? The message read “V2hhdCBkb2VzIHRoZSBmb3ggc2F5Pw==“. (via Twitter). At first glance, it appears to be a random string of characters. However, the players cracked the code and realized that this is base64 text.

What does the message say? Base64 is a computer programming language. If you enter the text into a translator, the message reads: “What does the fox say?” (translated: What does the fox say?) (via base64decode.org)

Trailer and news from Blizzard – Find the fox

What did the trailer hint look like? In the trailer you see above, you can find the fox clue between 01:16 and 1:20. In a few seconds you can see a shimmering blue fox running through the landscape.

What did Blizzard say on the official website? On July 19, 2022, Blizzard released a statement on its Overwatch website. The end of the Overwatch 2 beta has been announced. In a paragraph, Blizzard addresses the fox:

“We will continue to balance heroes based on what we learn from the beta and perhaps additional considerations (like a certain unannounced fox hero joining the support rooster)” (source: playoverwatch.com).

With that, the community seems to have secured a Fuchs support hero. It remains to be seen when Blizzard will comment on the new hero with specific information. We’ll know more by October 4th when Overwatch 2 launches.

What’s behind the fox? In the community, the fox is known as “Kanezaka Fox Girl”.

Kanezaka is the name of a map in Overwatch located in Japan. The fox in the trailer seems to be in this environment. He walks through ghostly “torii” architecture, also of Japanese origin.

In January 2021, Blizzard released a backstory that may be related to the fox: sword master Asa Yamagami tells of a fox shrine and that he will ask a fox spirit for strength and wisdom in battle. He’s also hoping for luck from a Kitsune Nine-Tails (via playoverwatch.com).

A kitsune comes from Japanese mythology and represents a fox with supernatural powers. It also has the ability to transform into a human.

Perhaps the Kanezaka fox girl will play a role in this Overwatch 2 backstory.

What do you think of Blizzard’s mysterious fox support heroes in Overwatch 2? Write it to us in the comments.

Overwatch 2 had something else already integrated into the beta. Twitch streamer xQc has been spotted by gamers in a somewhat absurd reference.