Key Takeaways
- Overwatch 2 players find Junkrat’s Riptire ping shows “Punch Kid” meme icon, not the tire itself.
- The “Punch Kid” image is from Overwatch’s early days, referencing one of the first cinematic trailers.
- Overwatch fans are surprised by the discovery, wonder if it was a placeholder that was never removed.
An eagle-eyed Overwatch 2 player discovers a curious detail about Junkrat’s Riptire ability, as pinging it after it explodes shows the icon of a popular Overwatch meme instead of the tire itself. Despite years of updates and countless hours logged by players, Overwatch 2 continues to surprise with quirky details hidden in plain sight.
Overwatch 2‘s ping system is a tool that allows teammates to communicate more easily. This feature lets them call out specific enemies, positions, or abilities without relying on voice or text chat, by simply pressing a button. Overwatch 2’s ping system has been praised for its accessibility and versatility, as it easily gives players new ways to interact within the game. An entertaining clip showed how crucial pings can be in Overwatch 2 to make quick callouts, sometimes turning the tides of events during a team fight.
Related
Overwatch Classic Players Want Blizzard to Bring Back Missing Feature
Following the arrival of the Overwatch Classic limited time mode, players want Blizzard to bring back an original feature currently missing.
An eagle-eyed player known as ZappsWorld on Reddit noticed an interesting quirk with Overwatch 2’s ping system. When players ping Junkrat’s tire after it explodes, the icon displayed isn’t the Riptire itself. Instead, it’s the “Punch Kid,” a familiar face from Overwatch’s early days that also exists as a spray in-game. The icon depicts a cartoonish child mid-punch, which some fans speculate is a placeholder that Blizzard never replaced. Since the Riptire no longer exists after its explosion, the “Punch Kid” could be the default icon used when players ping an element that doesn’t currently exist in their game.
Junkrat’s Riptire Ping Icon Makes Overwatch 2 Players Scratch Their Heads
The “Punch Kid” image first appeared in the original Overwatch cinematic trailer released in 2014. A kid with his right arm in a cast visited the Overwatch museum with his brother, getting excited about the various heroes and their accomplishments. Upon seeing Doomfist’s gauntlet, the kid mimics Winston punching Doomfist with his Primal Punch. This image depicting the kid punching in the air quickly became a fan favorite and even a meme among the Overwatch community. Blizzard leaned into this fandom by adding the “Punch Kid” as a spray in Overwatch 2. For longtime fans, the spray serves as a nostalgic nod to the game’s roots as it first appeared in Overwatch’s launch video ten years ago.
Finding this “Punch Kid” hidden within Junkrat’s ping system is a fun reminder of the series’ history, especially now that Blizzard has introduced Overwatch Classic. This limited-time mode revisits the gameplay of the original Overwatch, letting players rediscover the popular 6v6 game mode, as well as the heroes’ old mechanics and past metas.
Leave a Reply