It looks as though we might be pushing a payload in New Zealand soon.
It looks as though the first details of two more possible Overwatch maps for 2017 have been uncovered by dataminers. Redditor Richard Gryffon – who was also responsible for uncovering the first recent hints of the 2017 Summer Games Icons – says that he recently stumbled across two new maps in the game’s files.
Although he’s not been able to find any images, sounds or references to the maps in question, it’s certainly an exciting find nonetheless.
Here are the names of the files that he found:
Map 1
- hlc_cp
Map 2
- maunganui_es
Map 3
- utopia_c
Horizon Lunar Colony
It’s the title of the first datamined map here that inspires confidence in the other two. It’s clear that ‘hlc’ stands for Horizon Lunar Colony, while the ‘cp’ after the underscore stands for Control Point. Since it’s a map that’s about to hit the live game, we’d like to think that this datamine has some real weight behind it.
Maunganui
Following the same pattern as the first, the second map is called Maunganui. Upon further investigation, Mount Maunganui is a major industrial suburb within the city of Tauranga, New Zealand. It’s referred to as Mauao, or “The Mount”, by the Maori people, as there is a large lava dome which rises above the town. In short, it looks like a sunny town that’s flanked by ocean, with long stretches of beach and a mountain topping it all off.
The closest hero who matches this map is Roadhog, and we reckon it would be a great way of expanding on his backstory. Even though his nationality is unconfirmed, he’s rumoured to hail from New Zealand.
We’ve dug up all the evidence we could find that may point to Roadhog being a Kiwi:
- Roadhog’s real name is Mako Rutledge. Mako means “Shark” in the New Zealand Maori dialect.
- He’s got two Legendary skins called “Islander” and “Toa”, which point to his origins as an islander. What’s more, “Toa” stands for “Brave/Bold/Victorious” in Maori.
Note that there’s an “es” after the underscore this time, which suggests that this could be an Escort map. Imagine how great it would be if you pushed the Payload through the streets, along the beach and up Mount Maunganui itself!
Roadhog’s a mysterious hero who hides his face behind a mask, and we really don’t know much about him. We’d love to find out what sort of personality lurks beneath the mask – and a new map would be the perfect place to tell his story.
Perhaps he’s got a softer side to him? In much the same way that Horizon Lunar Colony sets the scene for a younger Winston, maybe we’ll see the environment in which Roadhog grew up?
Utopia
Finally, the last map is entitled “Utopia” which would almost certainly be a reference to Symmetra’s backstory. Note, however, that the official lore has her originating from a place spelled Utopaea, India – note the spelling difference.
Here’s a brief summary of where Utopea fits into her lore:
- Symmetra grew up in Southern India, and this is where the Vishkar Corporation began their process of creating new, self-sustaining cities to house the nation’s displaced population. One of these cities was Utopea, and when Symmetra was a child she was plucked from her home and placed in Vishkar’s Architec Academy located here.
Again, looking at the “c” following the underscore, we can discern that this will be a Control map like Oasis and Ilios before it.
Making Utopea a Control map makes sense, as it allows us to explore various parts of the city and the Vishkar academy through three different perspectives. An Assault or Escort map wouldn’t cover enough ground to do the city justice.
Considering Utopea is home to the Architech Academy, we’d expect it to have a clean, modern look with some serious architectural wow-factor. Symmetra can create a teleporter, so we’re also imagining teleporters integrated into the map design itself – which anyone can use. If these Architechs can create basically anything with their Hardlight technology, then we’re in for a treat when this map potentially surfaces one day.
