E3: Overwatch's Junkrat Joins Heroes Of The Storm Today, Has A Hilarious Heroic Ability
Blizzard has brought another character from Overwatch to Heroes of the Storm: Junkrat, who serves as a ranged Assassin. This marks the second one in a row to make the transition from the hero shooter, following last month's release of Ana.
Junkrat in Heroes of the Storm is a pretty faithful recreation of the character. His trait, Total Mayhem, causes him to drop explosives when he dies, damaging nearby enemies after a short delay. Frag Launcher sends out a grenade in a targeted direction that bounces along until it hits an enemy (or reaches its maximum distance); it can also ricochet off terrain. Concussion Mine places a mine at the targeted location that can be manually detonated at any time to deal damage and knock enemies or Junkrat backward. Junkrat isn't hurt by the mine, but it can send him flying over terrain to escape from enemies if executed correctly. Finally, Steel Trap roots and damages the first enemy to walk over it.
Players have two Heroic options, as usual, and the first is another carry-over from Overwatch. RIP-Tire sends out a bomb that you can control for a limited time (complete with the ability to jump) and can be detonated to deal damage in an area. Enemies nearest to the bomb take more damage than those further away.
But more intriguing is the wholly original Heroic he gets for HotS: Rocket Ride. This causes him to jump onto a rocket and ride it into the air; from there, he can slowly adjust his landing spot as he comes back toward the ground. After a few seconds, he crashes, dealing damage and dropping Total Mayhem's explosives. Apparently having been blown to smithereens, he disappears from the map altogether, only to reappear back at the respawn Altar after five seconds. He can then ride the rocket out into the map with a 150% movement speed bonus until he dismounts.
Junkrat is out now in Heroes of the Storm. Today's update also kicks off the Hallow's End event, which adds a special quest, new skins, and other Halloween-themed cosmetics, as well as a special Brawl. You can read more about this (and other such updates) in our roundup of all the in-game Halloween 2017 events. You can also check out some images of HotS' new content in the gallery above.