The competitive, team-based shooter Overwatch has been going strong for 3 years, and to this day, new characters are still popping up with fresh gameplay mechanics that shake up team compositions and competitive metas. Nicknamed Hero 31 prior to release, Sigma is the newest addition to Overwatch’s roster, and is a Tank class from the terrorist group Talon. He has an eccentric personality, and is able to bend gravity to his will.
So what can he do?
Hyperspheres: Sigma launches two bouncy, explosive balls as his primary fire ability, whichis great for breaking through choke points and damaging shields.
Experimental Barrier: A barrier that can be propelled and dismissed (much like Symmetra’s) which has 1500 HP.
Kinetic Grasp: This is Sigma’s ability to stop bullets and turns 40% of the incoming damage into shields , some downright Matrix-shit.
Accretion: Sigma gathers a lump of debris and KOBEs it towards enemies, dealing splash damage and knockback.
Gravitic Flux: Sigma’s Ultimate, with which he lifts enemies in an AoE, then slams them onto the pavement like the trash that they are, dealing 50% of their max HP in damage.
Now who is this agent of Talon, really?
Sigma used to be known as Dr. Siebren de Kuiper, a Dutch astrophysicist stationed in The Hague, Netherlands.
He was working on an experiment to harness gravity when everything went wrong and a black hole was accidentally created. Although the black hole did not sustain long, something snapped in Dr. Siebren’s mind, and due to this and the gravitational anomalies that happened in his vicinity, he was quarantined in a secret government facility and given the name Subject Sigma. In there, the psychological damage he sustained took its told and slowly drove Sigma insane, making him extremely volatile.
Of course, Talon knew all about him, and intended to use him as a living weapon. They broke him out to use him for his scientific brilliance, and while under Talon, he grew to master his telekinetic powers. Now, with gravity at his will and the zeal to unlock the secrets of the Universe, Sigma wreaks havoc on the battlefield, all while struggling to keep the pieces of his fractured mind in place.
Verdict From a gameplay perspective, it’s not hard to see the introduction of Sigma changing up team comps and making a real impact in the Competitive scene. Sigma’s powers go very well with those of Doomfist, D.Va, Reinhardt, and Wrecking Ball, as his Ult is an excellent set up for their Ults, and these combos may be extremely effective at dispatching entire teams at once. His primary fire also excels at breaking shields, making him a great counter against the likes of Orisa and Reinhardt.
Here comes Sigma: the one to bring chaos to order. Do you think he's the new tank breaker? Or just plain balls?
