Overwatch is full of interesting characters, and not all of them have become playable in-game. While the most prominent examples include the Junkertown Queen and Mauga, Maximilien is another character that Overwatch fans have shown interest in controlling.
Much of the interest in a playable version of Maximilien likely comes down to the character’s role in the story. A high-ranking member of the Talon organization, Maximilien runs a casino and essentially bankrolls the terrorist group. Having close ties to its leader Doomfist, the Storm Rising mission from the Archives event sees Overwatch hunting down the Omnic for information. While they do succeed in doing this, it seems like many would still like to see Maximilien become a playable hero in the future.
If Maximilien is ever used outside of Storm Rising and Overwatch’s comics, Reddit user Spktra believes they have come up with a perfect set of abilities for the character. The abilities are accompanied by a neat piece of art made by fellow Maximilien fan MaxSobolev, with the piece showing the stylish Omnic with his instantly recognizable red eyes and tie. Intriguingly, Maximilien would not be a Damage hero, with the character instead taking on the role of a healer.
With Overwatch needing more Support heroes, this would make him a good addition, and the various abilities would help the character stand out from the other characters in his role. His “Golden Wing” pistol would play into his position of a money handler, as the gun would fire slow-but-deadly coins at his adversaries. An interesting alternate fire lets the Omnic scan their teammates with their watch, instantly seeing their statuses. An “Identification” ability provides a similar functionality, with enemies scanned instead. Maximilien players would then get a look at all the stats of their chosen foe, being able to tell their team to focus a specific enemy or prepare for a certain Ultimate.
The “Pick A Card” ability makes this Overwatch hero concept stand out, as each does something different. Hearts heal while Diamonds increase damage, and Clubs boost movement speed while Spades lower cooldown time. Maximilien’s passive ability would let him hear enemy footsteps easier, giving him a chance to escape flankers or an invisible Sombra. Finally, his Ultimate would allow him to deal heavy damage to a single enemy or recharge a teammate’s Ultimate incredibly fast - something that could allow a strong ability like Zarya’s Graviton Surge to be restored in the middle of a fight.
Overall, the concept is extremely interesting, with the Overwatch fan saying in the comments that they want to see a Support hero with more of a focus on utility than healing. If Blizzard ever takes interest in making Maximilien a playable character, something like the “Pick A Card” ability could certainly be worth taking inspiration from.
Overwatch is available now on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.