While most of the heroes in Overwatch 2 have received a new and improved character model with the release of the new title, many in the community have pointed out that Reinhardt's makeover is less than an upgrade. While the tank's original model had him wearing his helmet, it seems that Reinhardt preferred to keep it off in Overwatch 2.
Although the new default skin shows off the German giant's cheery face and gnarly eye scar, many players have poked fun at the grown-out beard featured with Reinhardt's new model, with some fans joking that it makes him look identical to Santa Claus. Nearly every hero in Overwatch 2's roster has had an updated model to fit the game's improved graphics and design choices, but players are still able to don each hero's original Overwatch 1 skin if they want.
The matter was raised in a post from SoloEmi3 on Reddit, asking others in the community if they shared the same dislike for Reinhardt's new beard. The post includes a side-by-side comparison of Reinhardt's in game model and his 2D icon art, emphasizing the differences between the two. It seems that Blizzard went a bit too overboard on the beard, growing it out to a much bushier length than that seen in the character's icon art while giving it a feather-like texture on top of that.
While the similarities to Santa Claus are fully apparent, many fans feel like the goofiness in the finalized look detracts from the more heroic visage that the developers were likely going for. Even so, the new helmet-less visage for Reinhardt makes the hero's human side much more apparent, perhaps to clarify that Reinhardt is a fully human character rather than a robotic warrior like some of the other heroes seen in Overwatch 2.
The community's partial dislike for Reinhardt's somewhat festive beard is just one of many complaints that some fans have had for the game over the past couple of weeks since the game launched. It's safe to say that Overwatch 2 had more than its fair share of bugs, server issues, and queue problems throughout the release period, and many longtime fans have expressed their concerns for the microtransactions involved with the new shop and battle pass mechanics that have been introduced with the sequel.
Fortunately, Overwatch 2 brings plenty of new cosmetics to the table, and players are welcome to use any of the skins owned from the original Overwatch as long as their Battle.net account is merged. Whether a fan of Reinhardt's new default skin or not, fans are perfectly capable of covering up the beard with the classic helmet if they so desire.
Overwatch 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.