The last map that Blizzard’s Overwatch released was the Busan King of the Hill map that had come out after the “Shooting Star” Animated short, which was was roughly half a year ago. Since then, the game hasn’t gotten a new map. Then, at the end of January, during the Lunar New Year event, Overwatch dropped a hint at something in Paris in this tweet:
Chance encounters lead to novel beginnings.
Get whisked away to Paris soon on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. pic.twitter.com/PGrVKw4JdH
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) January 30, 2019
It was sweet and subtle, and the speculations of it being the next map were soon being thrown out. And just a few days later, Overwatch released the new map into the PTR. This map, Paris, highlights the City of Love with unique curveways, hideouts, and iconic landmarks. It was revealed as a 2-Point Capture Map as well. Today, this map officially goes live:
Bon voyage! 🇫🇷
Your journey to Paris begins NOW on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. pic.twitter.com/gwPjjbjRP6
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) February 19, 2019
Though, it wasn’t the landmarks, pastry shops, or beautiful landscaping that caught the attention of players. Now, there were two new additions that have become highlights to those who’ve played the new map. The first, is the omnic singer Luna. This is the first NPC Omnic in the game that has a name, has a personalized model, and is voiced. A lot of theories have been surrounding her since the map went up into the PTR, and even more as little bits of information are found out about her through the map’s lore and world-building. Someone to keep an eye on, or just an extra fancy decoration?
The other thing that caught players’ attention in this map is the actual playable piano. Yes, a playable piano. Shooting one of the ivory keys plays the note that the key represents. And it has led for some interesting videos that show off some people’s piano playing skills and speed of shooting to finish a song. This became such a spectacle that one player went as far as getting his own keyboard to work to play the piano in real time.
But all in all, the Paris map has a lot of lore, is a lot of fun, and is currently up on the live servers of Overwatch.