Winston (Overwatch)
Winston is a male video game character who features in Overwatch.
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Biography
Specimen 28 was one of a number of gorillas that were taken by the Lucheng Interstellar corporation and among the test subjects for the Horizon Lunar Colony. The site was to serve as the first step in humanity's renewed exploration of space with the gorillas being used to test the effects of prolonged habitation in space. Dr. Harold Winston was one of the scientists at the base where he conducted gene therapy on the gorillas. Specimen 28 showed rapid brain development and was taken under Dr. Winston's wing. He came to teach the gorilla about science and inspired him with stories about human ingenuity. One day, the young ape stole Harold's glasses and the scientist decided to show Specimen 28 the Earth from a view of the Moon as it was over Africa. Prior to that point, the ape had only ever seen the desolate lunar surface of the Moon.
The young gorilla passed his days assisting with the scientists' experiments, watching the distant blue world outside his habitat window, dreaming of the endless possibilities that awaited him there. He enjoyed life at Horizon, and regarded the human scientists as his family, and Dr. Winston his father. In time, he also became good friends with the hamster subject designated Specimen 8, or "Hammond". Lexigrams were used as part of his education process, and one day on Lunar New Year, Dr. Winston challenged the young ape to read Journey to the West. The gorilla's imagination was captured by the heroic monk Tang Sanzang and his ragtag group of disciples' quest for redemption. As a result, the ape was reminded of his younger days every Lunar New Year; Dr Winston telling him the story remained one of his most treasured memories. But his life was thrown into chaos when the other gorillas led an uprising, killed the mission scientists, and claimed the colony for their own. With nothing left, and unwanted by his fellow gorillas, the ape took on the name of his beloved human caretaker. So named "Winston," the ape built a makeshift rocket using Emergency Pod G-42, using designs he'd found in Horizon's computer system. In truth, the rocket had been designed by Hammond. Winston escaped from Launch Bay 14 to Earth, landing at Watchpoint: Gibraltar.
Having landed on Earth, Winston found a new home with Overwatch, an organization that represented everything he had come to admire about humanity. Winston was finally able to live up to the heroic ideal that had been instilled in him. However, he knew that one day, he would have to return to his former home. While in Overwatch, Winston looked up to Ana Amari. Gabriel Reyes appears to have detested his presence within the organization. Hollywood once asked him to feature in a movie. While a member, he paid his taxes to the Swiss government. Overwatch enforced restrictions on his research, and while Winston chaffed at this, he understood that a measure of caution was needed. Winston met Fareeha Amari at least once when she was a child. He let her ride on his back, much to her delight. Winston was responsible for designing the chronal accelerator, providing a solution to Tracer's chronal disassociation. Winston would watch over Tracer's training at the Overwatch Headquarters, with the help of Dr. Ziegler, and believed that if she showed no signs of trouble, she would be ready for active duty. After the King's Row Uprising, Winston became a member of the Overwatch strike team, alongside Tracer and Genji Shimada.
Under the command of Captain Sojourn six years ago, Winston took part in an operation in Havana alongside Mercy, Tracer, and Genji. Their objective was to apprehend Maximilien, who was travelling through the city in an armored convoy. The Overwatch team engaged, with Winston destroying a number of Talon vehicles. This included Maximilien's limo, but when Winston got to the wreck, he found that the omnic had fled. Tracer reassured him that he would not get far on foot, but Sojourn warned them against overconfidence. The team tracked Maximilien down. In exchange for leniency, he agreed to arrange a 'meeting' with Doomfist, informing them that Talon's leader would be in Singapore in three weeks. Overwatch acted on Maximilien's intel. Alongside Genji and Tracer, Winston fought Doomfist in Singapore. Winston initially tried to defeat Doomfist using his tesla cannon, but was ineffective, and he was sent hurtling. He eventually came to his feet, but not before Tracer and Genji had been incapacitated. Unleashing his primal rage, Winston charged Doomfist directly, and engaged him in close quarters. Winston defeated Doomfist, who was imprisoned. A newspaper article of the time coined the phrase 'primal punch' when reporting on the event. Years after the event, this catchphrase remained associated with Winston's actions.
The genetically engineered gorilla scientist left his isolated lunar sanctuary behind to formally enlist in a premier, multi-national peacekeeping task force dedicated to global security. Eager to honor the legacy of his late human mentor and leverage his immense cognitive abilities for the betterment of the world, the brilliant primate quickly established himself as a central technological innovator and frontline vanguard for Overwatch. Working alongside elite international specialists like the cybernetic strike commander Jack Morrison and the brilliant medical scientist Dr. Angela Ziegler, the heavy-weapons expert designed ground-breaking tactical gear, including a specialized chronal accelerator that stabilized a displaced time-jumping pilot named Tracer. His scientific contributions were matched by his sheer battlefield utility, where his custom-built tesla cannon and heavy jump pack allowed him to spearhead dangerous combat deployments against the rogue, rogue-robotic armies of the Omnic Crisis. However, the organization's golden age was violently cut short by intense political scrutiny, internal black-ops corruption, and public distrust, culminating in the legal ratification of the Petras Act, which officially outlawed all activity by the peacekeepers. Forced into an unceremonious early retirement, the dejected simian scientist withdrew to a secluded, high-tech research facility at Watchpoint: Gibraltar, burying himself in deep-space monitoring while reluctantly obeying the international ban on heroism.
He was forced to break international law and abandon his forced isolation when a ruthless terrorist faction launched a surprise raid on his cliffside sanctuary. While monitoring deep-space communications at Watchpoint: Gibraltar, the brilliant primate's facility was violently breached by Reaper, a ghostly mercenary executing a high-stakes cyber-attack on behalf of the shadow organization Talon. The hostile infiltration aimed to extract the encrypted global registry of all former peacekeeping agents, intending to systematically locate and assassinate the disbanded heroes. Overpowered by advanced sonic weaponry and facing the imminent theft of the classified data grid, the resourceful scientist tapped into his primal rage, shattering his physical restraints to systematically dismantle the terrorist strike team with his custom-built tesla cannon. Having successfully repelled the lethal security breach, the reawakened hero recognized that the world was once again sliding into global chaos and structural collapse. Refusing to remain a bystander, the defiant simian made the historic choice to officially bypass the international legal ban on his organization, activating a secure, long-range transmitter to initiate the global Overwatch Recall and summon his old allies back to the front lines.
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, Winston was a large, bipedal anthropomorphic mammalian creature that possessed the biological physical traits of a silverback gorilla integrated with high-tech armor and custom accessories. Winston possessed a thick coat of dark black fur that covered the majority of his muscular body, with a highly prominent patch of lighter silver-grey fur emblazoned across his back. His facial structure featured a broad black snout, deep-set dark eyes, and a wide jaw. Perched across the bridge of his snout was a pair of thick, black-rimmed reading glasses that were securely fitted to his head. For his uniform, Winston wore a custom-engineered, white and grey alloy titanium mesh armor suit designed by Overwatch. This armor ensemble featured large protective pauldrons over his shoulders, a reinforced chest plate featuring a glowing blue power core, and a heavy, high-tech jetpack assembly permanently mounted to his upper back.
Since a young age, he has shown limitless curiosity for the world around him, but also has a fondness for stories, especially those passed down from generation to generation.
By his own admission, he tends to overthink things, was a perfectionist, and tends to ramble.
In his off-time, he enjoys peanut butter and bananas.
Powers and abilities
Winston was born a member of the primate race where Winston was a member of the genetically engineered gorilla species native to the Horizon Lunar Colony. On a basic feats level, Winston's altered physiology granted him massive physical strength, stamina, and durability far exceeding that of a baseline biological silverback gorilla, allowing him to carry heavy machinery and withstand blunt-force impacts. Due to his genetic therapy, Winston possessed an elite tier of human-level cognitive intelligence, making him a master scientist and mechanical engineer capable of inventing advanced technologies like a localized chronal accelerator. While Winston typically maintained complete control over his actions and spoke fluent human language, a specialized mutation in his genetic makeup allowed Winston to enter an alternative biological state known as Primal Rage when pushed to severe emotional limits. In this state, Winston abandoned human speech, dropped to a quadrupedal stance, and experienced a massive influx of physical health and raw physical power that allowed him to leap immense distances and overpower multiple armed opponents using physical strikes.
As a gorilla, his strength was exceptional.
In the field, he was armed with a Tesla Cannon weapon which fired a medium range electric beam after being held.
Winston’s barrier projector extends a bubble-shaped field that absorbs damage until it's destroyed. Allies protected by the barrier can return fire from within it.
Notes
- Winston was created by Blizzard Entertainment where he was voiced by actor Crispin Freeman and featured in the Overwatch universe.
Appearances
- Overwatch: (2016)
- Overwatch 2: (2022)
External Links
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