Overwatch continued to protect the peace until it was disbanded years later under a cloud of suspicion, but its former members have returned to the fore in light of new threats to humanity. The story of Overwatch takes place on Earth in the 'near future' in the years after the 'Omnic Crisis,' a period in which robots (called 'omnics') rose up in rebellion worldwide, and the United Nations formed an elite group called Overwatch to combat them. However, as Overwatch 2 is being developed to be a faster game with five-versus-five teams rather than six-versus-six, several of the characters had tweaks or major rebuilds within Overwatch 2. Overwatch and its sequel, Overwatch 2, shares the same hero roster in the multiplayer mode.
The 2016 first-person shooter video game Overwatch, developed by Blizzard Entertainment, features 32 playable characters known as heroes and a number of supporting characters as part of the game's narrative, which is told through animated media and digital comics outside of the game. A promotional image of the 32 different playable characters on the fourth anniversary of release for Overwatch
