Overwatch's new Hero Shion copies Apex Legends' homework but gets a better rating

Then Monitorings major relaunch, it has been releasing memorable heroes at an impressive rate. The five heroes who came next Monitoring removing the 2 from the name is all winners; fans love Emre's Halo vibes, the long-requested Jetpack Cat's lifeline allows for some wild teamwork, Anran's fast, fiery style feels fresh, Domina's Emma Frost attitude took the internet by storm, and Mizuki can be a beast in the right support player's hands. Sure, Anran's face model needed a rework and season 2 hero Sierra suffered from questionable balancing and a debatable “boring” design, but the hype surrounding season 3's Shion suggests that Blizzard has hit a new home. But for Apex Legends fans, she might actually look a little familiar.

Visually, Shion is quite unique. Unlike Monitoring the universe's other Omnics, she has a human appearance, with long white hair, a metallic face mask that resembles a high-tech geisha look, normal hands, and a body that can easily pass as a real person's. She looks like something out of the blue Cyberpunk or Blade Runner franchising as opposed to a Apex Legends character, so at first glance the comparison may not seem so fitting. But mechanically, there are some clear parallels to Respawn's latest Legend, Axle, although Shion's standout character design allows the abilities to be packaged in a much cooler way.

Shion lets go next Monitoring Season 3 on June 16, with a brand new core map and battle pass dropping alongside her.

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What Overwatch's Shion and Apex Legends' Axle have in common

The most obvious similarity between the latest Monitoring and Apex Legends characters is actually the Shion feature that fans have been talking about the most: her bike. Shion can hop on a futuristic motorcycle during a match, either riding it out of conflict and to safety, or using it to propel himself in the middle of a fight. Axle, on the other hand, is essentially a living bike in her own right, as she can use a wheel from her knee via her passive ability. Said passive speeds up her glides and gives players full significant directional control over the movement ability. Just as Axle players will spend their time sliding around the map as opposed to running, it's safe to assume that Shion users will be on their bikes very often.

What kind of weapon is that?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

What kind of weapon is that?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Easy (7.5s) Medium (5.0s) Hard (2.5s) Permadeath (2.5s)

The similarities don't end there, though Apex Legends' Axle also has an ultimate ability similar to Shion's Execution. While Shion's ability is a regular cooldown, lacking the launch element of Axle's Kickstart and looking like an X pattern instead of a drone, it essentially has the same purpose. Axle uses Kickstart to finish off low health targets or set them up for the kill, and Shion uses Execution to clean up enemies she's weakened with her Kira guns. Additionally, both characters seem to crave action and violence, and boast edgy personalities (although Axle seems slightly more level-headed than her Monitoring equivalent). These similarities are hard not to notice, but Shion is more than just an Axle clone, as she has a few things that make her more appealing as a character.

Why Shion is a more interesting character than Axle

While Axle was particularly exciting simply because she was the first legend in nearly a year, character-wise she doesn't have as much going for her as Shion. She's pretty bland visually outside of the steering wheel on the back of her foot, not standing out as much as an all-white robot speaking through her throat. In general, Shion has already received a story trailer and will likely appear in several Monitoring comics and lore drops throughout Season 3, while no stories from Outlands for the latest Apex Legends season means that Axle feels underdeveloped in comparison. And when it comes to mechanics, Shion has more to offer. Her Ultimate allows her to charge enemies like a Beyblade, and therefore Monitoring is a hero shooter instead of a battle royale, she has a signature weapon that is not used by any other character in the game, giving her even more personality.

Drag weapons to fill the grid

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The other big advantage Shion has over Axle is that she likely won't feel as overwhelmed out of the gate. Sure, her gameplay trailer makes her abilities look devastating, but that Monitoring heroes who oppose Shion do not shoot back or get healed. And after Sierra was criticized for feeling overpowered throughout Season 2, Blizzard will likely be extra careful not to release another DPS character that feels broken. Axle, on the other hand, has been considered overpowered by many Apex Legends fans due to constant slide spam, with console players in particular feeling like there's nothing they can do to compete with a skilled Axle user. So while there are some similarities with the ability, Shion looks to be a more interesting hero from a visual, mechanical, and lore standpoint. Also, she won't (hopefully) be as overwhelmed at launch as Apexs 28th legend turned out to be.