Overwatch's competitive season 18 is currently underway, which highlights how far the game has come since its launch in 2016. In that time span, the game has added 10 additional heroes to the roster, as the game launched with 21 and now has 31 playable characters. While many will argue any day over an Overwatch tier list, there's one simple facet to the game that all players love: skins.
Most popular online shooters, Overwatch included, contain cosmetic skins that allow players to showcase their bragging rights in-game. Blizzard's team-based shooter currently has at least 337 non-default skins in the game, with Common skins being the default, Rare skins being recolors of Common skins, Epic skins being advanced recolors and simple outfit changes, and Legendary skins being unique outfit changes, as well as coming with extra voice lines.
Notably, most of these have to be unlocked via microtransactions such as loot boxes, but others have special prerequisites or events tied to their unlock. Overwatch has 101 skins that cannot be obtained from normal loot boxes, making them more unique or rare than their typing would suggest.
There's 1 unlocked that was a pre-order bonus (Noire - Widowmaker), 3 unlocked by visiting BlizzCon, and 5 unlocked by owning the Overwatch Origins edition. The Summer Games loot boxes, the Winter Loot boxes, and the Lunar New Year loot boxes all have 19 skins locked behind them. The Halloween Loot boxes (20), the Archives loot boxes, and the Anniversary loot boxes lock 20 skins, 18 skins, and 22 skins, respectively.
Because of this unique and broad spectrum of skins in Overwatch, it's clear that there will always be debate as to which skin is the best, but that doesn't mean players love them any less. Therefore, here are the best Overwatch skins available in the team-based shooter as of September 2019.
NOTE: Each skin denotes what type of loot box or event box they can be earned from. Most of these can also be purchased directly normally or during the associated event.
Tracer (Slipstream)
This skin is unlocked by owning the Overwatch Origins edition.
Reaper (Plague Doctor)
This skin is unlocked from standard loot boxes.
Widowmaker (Noire)
This skin could only be unlocked by pre-ordering Overwatch. It can also be unlocked by those who pre-order the forthcoming Overwatch Nintendo Switch port.
Pharah (Qinglong)
This skin is unlocked during Lunar New Year event.
Reinhardt (Gridironhardt)
This skin is unlocked during the Summer Games event.
Mercy (Pink)
This skin was unlocked during the Breast Cancer Research Foundation event, and notably, Overwatch's Pink skin for Mercy raised almost $10 million dollars for research.
Torbjorn (Blackbeard)
This skin can be unlocked from standard loot boxes.
Hanzo (Okami)
This skin can be unlocked from standard loot boxes.
Winston (Wukong)
This Winston skin can be unlocked during the Lunar New Year event.
Zenyatta (Cultist)
This Zenyatta skin can be unlocked during the Halloween event.
Bastion (Overgrown)
This skin is unlocked by owning the Overwatch Origins edition.
Symmetra (Dragon)
This skin is unlocked during the Halloween event.
Zarya (Barbarian)
This skin is unlocked from standard loot boxes.
McCree (Sherlock)
This skin can be unlocked during the anniversary event.
Soldier: 76 (Grillmaster: 76)
This skin can be unlocked during the Summer Games event.
Lucio (Ribbit)
This skin can be unlocked via standard loot boxes.
Roadhog (Sharkbait)
This skin can be unlocked via standard loot boxes.
Junkrat (Krampus)
This skin can be unlocked during the winter event.
D.Va (Black Cat)
This skin can be unlocked in standard loot boxes.
Mei (Pajamei)
The skin can be unlocked via Archives.
Genji (Oni)
This skin can be unlocked in standard loot boxes.
Ana (Snow Owl)
This skin is unlocked during the winter event.
Sombra (Demon Hunter)
This skin was unlocked by attending BlizzCon 2018.
Orisa (Immortal)
This skin is unlocked via normal loot boxes.
Doomfist (Black Hand)
This skin is unlocked via normal loot boxes.
Moira (Banshee)
This Moira skin is unlocked via the Halloween event.
Brigitte (Shieldmaiden)
This skin is unlocked during the Anniversary event.
Wrecking Ball (Jack-O'-Lantern)
This skin is unlocked via the Halloween event. This is Wrecking Ball's only event skin.
Ashe (Safari)
This skin is unlocked via standard loot boxes. Ashe does not have any event skins as of September 2019 but will likely get a Halloween and/or winter skin this year.
Baptiste (Pirate)
This skin is unlocked via standard loot boxes. Baptiste does not have any event skins as of September 2019 but will likely receive one during the Halloween or winter events this year.
Sigma (Talon)
This skin can be unlocked via standard loot boxes. Sigma does not have any event skins as of September 2019 but will likely receive one during the Halloween and/or winter events.
Overwatch is out now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with a Switch port set to release on October 15.