The Complete Timeline of Overwatch Lore and Story So Far! (Up to Overwatch 2) 

Timecodes in Description! Comment with your favourite piece of Overwatch lore so far, and what you'd like to see in the timeline of Overwatch 2 lore and story! Like/Subscribe for more and if you enjoy (sorry it really helps :)) Hope this is a nice explainer for new Overwatch players and fun for existing Overwatch timeline fans to catch up! Fixed some audio and added Kiriko Animated short to make it complete complete for now! Love to hear your thoughts in the comments. It's an interpretation, but trying to make it as complete and relatively accurate as possible. Hope you enjoy and thanks for all the support over the years, you all made this possible :) Hammeh

I love that Bastions backstory is “what if we gave a sweet robot PTSD? OH, and an emotional support bird!”

What happened to Emile Lacroix is so heartbreaking. She was simply a ballerina. She wasn’t even part of Overwatch or any of the other organizations, she was simply married to someone who was. Then she was tortured, brainwashed into being unable to feel human emotion, and then ordered to kill the love of her life. And it seems on some level, she still remembers Gerard and her past life and even allows herself to mourn and long for them sometimes when she is alone. You can tell the original Emile is still in there somewhere, trapped in a void of non-emotion, unable to truly process the death of her beloved and that it was by her hand. Makes me wonder if she was smart enough to fake being completely brainwashed so that she could retain some of her original self, even if that meant she knew she had to kill him…

This is by far the best timeline of the story I have seen. I've watched a few others and they felt kinda all over the place and didn't cover the comic stuff as opposed to how this one feels very collected, tells the story in a linear way, and is overall just a very well made video. It deserves way more views and I hope it explodes very soon.

It's actually so impressive how they link the entire world together in a way that makes sense, theres: Japan, Korea, Russia, Australia, India, Egypt, Nigeria (aka Numbani), the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, the North and South US, Mexico, Brazil, and even the Moon from Winston and Hammond's backstory

This is so cool! I had no idea that a majority of characters weren't even technically Overwatch operatives at first. This has given me a greater appreciation of the entire cast. Thanks for posting this video this has been a great watch.

I wish Blizzard told us more about what happened in Switzerland base and between Morrison and Reyes. Basically what we know now are those facts: Gabe was original leader of the very first strike team. Althrough Jack was charismatic, he had some special way to reach for every other member of the team and bring best of them. Later he became formal leader. Jeff Kaplan at some point told that this actually wasn't the reason why their friendship cracked. Gabe wasn't jealous. Rather opposite infact, Gabe gladly stepped into the shadow, because he wasn't responsible for hard decissions anymore. Jack was forced to cover up for Gabe and Blackwatch. And, well, as we know from retribution comic and archive, Gabe believed that he can't do anything good for the world playing by the rules. So, Gabe did his own thing all the time: 1) He recruited Cassidy, Moira and Genji to Blackwatch. All of them are questinable candidates: one is a bandit, one is controversal scientist and one is member of mafia family. 2) Sent Cassidy in London during Uprising, ignoring the rules, basically. 3) Killed Antonio, instead of kidnapping him (which was already illegal) From code of violence we know that Doomfist carefully played on this idea, which Gabe already had: that you can't change the world for the better, if you are the part of the rotten system, if you obey the rules, which tie you up. Was it enough for Jack and Gabe to became enemies? Nope, I don't think so. Something both internal and external happened in Switzerland at the same time, as Jack says in his origin story. Funny thing is, noone knows, why exactly it blowed up in explosion. In code of violence, according to Reaper: "It had been almost a year since an explosion had torn the Overwatch Swiss headquarters to shrapnel. The last things he remembered were the flash of ignition, a terrible moment of searing heat, and Jack’s eyes, wide with horror. Then... impenetrable darkness." At first, it doesn't tell us much. But, we can figure out, that Reyes actually wasn't the one responsible for explosion. If he was responsible, why wouldn't he escape in time? He was rescued later by Moira, who was part of Talon by the time. That's convinient, isn't it? What's more convenient is that Moira's therapy damages Gabe on emotional level. He's obsessed with rage cause of it and tricked by Doomfist now. Well, I'm an optimist. Widowmaker slowly snapping out from damage Talon did to her. We saw her visiting Gerard's grave in Reflections. Maybe if she regaining emotions, it's not too late for Gabe. Then, according to Jack from Valkyrie: “I’m getting closer to finding the ones responsible. I’m getting closer to the truth.” The fervor that crept into his voice sounded like obsession. “The truth,” I said flatly. “The truth about what happened to Overwatch. About Talon. Switzerland. About everything. That’s my new mission.” “It doesn’t seem that new. Other than the masks.” “What would you have me do, then?” Jack snapped. “Fly to Gibraltar and join up with Winston? You think the same people who brought down Overwatch won’t take him down, too?” So, Jack also suspects that Switzerland and Talon are connected. From Retribution comic we can see that Talon operative blow up Rome HQ with hidden bomb, maybe something similar happened there. But it's probably bigger than we think. We know that Symm's boss also part of the Talon's council. And we also know that Sombra is looking into corporations, she tries to find out who are the ones who trully control the world. Something is coming. We have some missing pieces. Something happened after Doomfist arrest and before events in Switzerland HQ. Timeframe is big enough. I wish Blizzard told us more. How exactly Morrison survived and why he didn't save Gabe? Was he sure he died? How and why the HQ exploded, who was responsible? Was there really a fight between Gabe and Jack? What others operatives were doing at the moment? Sadly, Blizzard seems focused on the present lore.

The lore in this franchise is so fascinating, thank you for putting this video together!

ball and winston actually have an interaction in overwatch 2 that suggests some tension on hammond's part and that maybe there's more to the story than we really know! it's impossible to find in a regular game because there's only 1 tank, but here it is transcribed: winston: hammond, we were friends on horizon. where did we go wrong? wrecking ball: perhaps it was when you stole his rocket design. winston: oh, no! i found that in the system! it was an accident! wrecking ball: was it also an accident when you left for earth without him? and ball also has new kill lines for winston that are just pure savage. "you had it coming" and "archnemesis defeated"

I abandoned Overwatch a while ago due to the controversies... but kudos to those who kept the story of overwatch intact and beautiful. I shouldn't have stopped caring for Overwatch's art and stories.

Absolutely phenomenal work!! This is easily the best comprehensive breakdown of every piece of lore-related media we've been given. Can't see what else is to come!

THE RETURN OF THE LORE LEGEND!

I remember really enjoying your overwatch 1 lore vides back in the day (feels strange revering to overwatch 1 in past tense) so I’m glad your going into ow2 doing the same hopefully this video gets lots of attention 👍

This really needs a TV Series, a Movie, and many Novels!

I’m not even an overwatch fan or player but I love game lore. I’m stunned by the amount of work you have put into this video. Thanks for all u do! I was able to follow even tho I know nothing about the game ❤

as a new player, I appreciate this video, it's given me a full understanding of all of these complex characters that I was looking for

Hammeh, I don't know how to thank you. I've followed you since day 1 when the ow lore was a barren wasteland full of uncharted territory. I feel like we went through this journey together, all of us who stuck it out or came back to ow. I got extremely emotional watching this masterpiece. This game has been such a huge part of my life for 6 years now and it's been hard for all of us. I'm a pvp player but i know ow is full of people who love ow for so many different reasons and this video really encapsulates why. I couldn't help to notice how ow's lore/plot reflects ow team's irl struggles with the franchise. I really feel like this pvp 5v5 update was like a "recall" for so many ppl and it makes me very emotional that my game is thriving for the first time in years and i can talk about it to ppl irl about it without feeling ashamed or embarrassed that i was following a "dead/struggling" game. I never felt like ow really died but i understood what ppl meant. I played everyday to keep my mechanics and gamesense sharp hoping that it would pay off one day and it finally is. I'm only Diamond5 after two weeks of grinding rank but I'm truly falling in love with the game all over again and watching this presentation that was created from your heart, idk why but it gave me this feeling of fullness that i haven't felt about the game in a long time and i feel it now more than ever. Overwatch is so good. Everything about it is so rich and the storylines hit so hard. I relate to these "old soldiers" ana, jack, and gabriel while also feeling like a kid in a new generation with the new heroes that were inspired from ow's past. Thank you Hammeh, 💜

I congratulate you personally, until now I had not seen an explanation of the Lore as well worked out as it is, the dedication and effort behind this is quite noticeable, much higher than the average, I will follow your work closely

I needed this! My little cousins just started playing and I'm gonna send them your channel for all of their lore needs. It's so great to have you continuing to covering Overwatch lore for all the newer players. I definitely missed hearing you talk about the lore! Sending love from Seattle ❤️.

You know this is fictional because the UN actually does something.

Overwatch has some of my favourite lore/story out there! I’ve been following Overwatch since it was first announced and watching it grow has been amazing. I was very young when it came out, so I can only imagine how in awe a younger me would be at all of this. Overwatch has been my longest running hyperfixation! I’m sure little me would be so excited to learn I’m still loving this game. Thank you so much for this timeline video! It’s an amazing watch :)

Hammeh, I haven't really watched much you've made for a while, but it's incredibly nostalgic for me to come back to this channel for the first time since the early days of OW and see you still doing this. You're awsome.

Had to run it back and replay everything after you started talking about Zero Hour, cause the music alone from that short makes me cry. Beautiful video, thank you for putting it all together.

I’m so thankful to have you back making lore videos, Hammeh. You are THE go-to source on OW lore content for me & have been for years. I greatly respect you & your work and I want to say that you brighten so many lives with what you do. This game means so much to many of us & awesome creators like you make things even better. Keep making great content & I hope that the channel explodes in popularity as hype comes back to OW & as the PvE gets started!

It’s been almost a year since this came out, and it’s the best lore video on RU-vid, can you please make an updated version of it

52:40 so it seems like Reaper has the potential to be redeemed, would be cool to see that happen in the PVE part of overwatch 2

So much work going into this... fantastic job!

That has honestly been the best recap video I've ever seen, i dont even want to think about how much time this must have taken. Thank you!

This was a great watch. Thank you for putting it all together. Seems like a HUGE piece of work

Hammeh, your lore videos back in 2016 was what got me into the game and lore in the first place, will always have a very special place in my heart for your channel.

Great video. I really like that now I know the comics and written stories through this. I find it crazy that the lore is so limited because there are so many interesting people and events. I think a few things PVE could touch on are a massive battle between Null Sector and everyone who is at the Gibraltar base, a Kiriko, Hanzo, Genji team up to save Kirikos dad and dismantle the hasimotos, Doomfist and Ramttra vs Soldier 76, Reinhardt, Ana, and Zenyatta, and anything with Lucio cause they have like never animated him for some reason haha.

You have such a strong connection to why I love Overwatch. Hearing your voice just takes me back. Keep up the good work.

thank you! been needing this, gonna treat this as a movie and binge

Your video is a great quality content and deserves to be translated in every language ever and should be considered official. This is the best storytelling we have ever seen, and the most complete yet summarized video that exists here on youtube. It's just perfect to understand everything about Overwatch lore.

I have already watched a lore catch up video and I have barely begun this video and already gave it a like. WE MISSED YOU HAMMEH!!

I'm so glad you made this, I really needed a refresher as I kinda lost track of some of the older lore trying to catch up on it all

Incredibly concise and citing your sources was much appreciated. Thank You for the thorough compilation.

Hey Hammeh. Just wanted to say thanks for all the content you've brought us over the years.

I'v been looking for a video like this one to understand the lore ever since I started as a f2p in this ow2. Thanks for the content sir, I rly enjoyed it.

This video was the reason I came back. Very well put together, definitely best ow lore video out there! Thank you!

i really enjoyed the video, bro! thanks for putting it together

This is easily the best lore and timeline video for Overwatch on youtube. I've really been loving McCree taking on a Nick Fury role and recruiting all the newer members of overwatch.

Really well put together, you're amazing dude keep it up!

Absolutely banger video dude. This is the best video on the topic I've seen and I learnt a lot. I hope you make an updated video when more lore is released!

I really thank you for this video as I am a new player in Overwatch 2. This video was enjoyable and informative. I quite appreciate you for covering this all.

THANK. YOU. I've been searching a video like this for days

This makes when Cassidy meets Echo again so much sweeter. Loved this vid

Absolutely amazing. You put so much time, love, and effort into this video and it shows. Thank you for this!

mannnn this was sooo good.. well done to you seriously that was a lot... honestly amazing work x

Your way of storytelling is mesmerizing ❤

This was a fantastically put together video & much needed for me to keep the story of Overwatch in mind as I play though it! Though, in my hot take, I believe that Cassidy's name change is actually canon within the story of Overwatch, around the time of New Blood. According to Sombra's voice line about learning his real name & he commented on that "It's not Joel" suggests that Cassidy might have given up his birth name to become McCree, as a way to sound more badass within the Deadlock Gang & to hide his original family to any connections back to him, in case they get hurt or harassed trying to locate him to collect his bounty & bring him to justice. After spending so much time looting within the Deadlock Gang, covert operations of Blackwatch & other various oddjobs he's not proud of after the disbanding of Overwatch; he finds that after the Recall had been activated, he found the time to reflect on his past regrets & mistakes. Spurred by Ana to recruit the New Blood into the newly re-formed Overwatch proper, he gave himself the new identity "Cole Cassidy" as a means of wiping his moral slate clean & to once again throw off various bounties he would have picked up across the globe. While his face is the same that others would recognize his past actions, in the public eye, he'll finally be recognized as a proper hero within the story of Overwatch moving forward, despite his dark history. This is just my headcanon, of course. There wasn't any in-canon explanation & it was Blizzard's attempt to wipe clean of one of their "situations" & stating that his name has always been Cole. But it makes a lot of sense to me when looking back at past media with the previous name, like the comics or Deadlock novel & it's very fitting that an outlaw with no name would do something like this, just like "The Man with No Name" made famous by Clint Eastwood, which is clearly an inspiration for Cassidy.

I never knew Brigitte and Mercy were technically sisters through adoption, there should be more specific interactions with that.

Meis part made me cry, imagine going into cryogenic sleep or years with your friends with you and suddenly waking up after the many years to find out that the friends you Went into cryogenic sleep with are no longer with you

Fantastic work Hammeh, really helped put things in perspective and bring everything together!! I can't imagine how long this must have taken. Thank you so much!!

An amazing and stunning timeline video! Definitely astonishing! Thank you so much!!

Loved the video! Very informative

I can't imagine how long this took your. Thank you, this was great.

Thanks for the hard work, this was fun to listen to as I start getting back in to OW again

Thankyou so much Hammeh this was explain everything Good Job! :D

Very well done video, Thanks for summing this up for those of us that are getting back into the lore after taking a little break from the games!

Personally I can't wait to see what antiques and challenges the Last Bastion will go through, seems to me like he's gonna have to face not just his ptsd but also probably some prejudice from his new teammates along the way. Good thing he'll have his emotional support bird and daddy Torbjorn to help him through it!

I stopped playing Overwatch a while ago (for a few reasons), but I will never get tired of the lore of this game. I love it so much

This is such a good video! You’re work is greatly appreciated. I stopped playing comp just to listen and focus on this. 🤣

you clearly put a lot of work into this video thank you so much! :)

Very detailed and excellent video! Keep it up!

Nice video mane, you deserve all the attention you're getting

Blizzard needs an animated series similar to League of Legend's Arcane. I hate league, and hate playing it, but Arcane is actually a pretty solid watch

Thank you so much for this! I'm currently writing a crossover between Overwatch and Team Fortress 2 and I found myself overwhelmed by all the different information Overwatch has along with the time jumps and skips. This is much more comprehensible and really helps explain a lot of different characters and their origins.

I didn't really follow any lore stuff after the Cassidy cinematic so this really helped me catch up before the OW2 campaign comes out

Although the voice was really low and I had to turn on captions, this really made me understand the overwatch 2 lore. And I thank you for that

You are amazing at explaining the lore extensively while not making us confused.

Ahh I needed to get to this sooner, I forgot just how interesting Overwatch Lore is. And also a return to the legendary lore man himself that got me interested in the game! A great video by the way! Can't wait for the PvE stuff and the more story driven things coming.

Wow that was very good recap of Overwatch Lore. Nice!!

18:52 he's name will always be Jesse McCree

Thanks for this, you sound like an actual hooman, taking time to to resay stuff, and come with some funny comments here and there, and you've helped so many understand so much

Thank you very much for this, Ive been a bit confused with the timeline for Overwatch now that Overwatch 2 has come out and want to learn more about it before PVE releases

Oh my goodness this feels so nostalgic! I’m so excited!

really getting back into this game on pc now with my friends and loving it. I've missed playing it and i'm super ready for the future

Absolute phenomenal video

Forgot to comment before the reupload. Glad to see you back Hammeh! I can't wait for PVE/story mode to be released even though it will probably take at least 6 months... Overwatch has such a cool world and art style, but pvp modes sometimes feel like torture to play.

THIS IS PERFECT THANK YOU SOO MUCH!!! You earned a sub

Bastion: made for peacekeeping Also Bastion: a hellspawn in the game that needed to be nerfed.

Fun Fact: My addiction to lore started with learning about October 23rd 2077, now I know basically all of Halo lore, I’m working on Overwatch Lore, and I’m playing Cyberpunk… 2077 is something I can’t escape.

Amazing video

Amazing video, thank you!

I really enjoyed this! Good job! You gotta do it again to include LifeWeaver and Illari lol

Love this, thank you, the OW2 trailer of my boy Rein always brings a tear to my eye!

I just want more lore for Lucio and Sigma

Why couldn't this be a campaign story instead of separate medias? I never even KNEW that there was comics and animations full of meaningful lore.

Thank you for this Hammeh! Makes theory crafting much easier :))

it's nice to look at the lore every once in a while, to see what's been added

Glad to see your channel is still alive, came back once overwatch 2 became relevant

excellent timeline! so precise and easy to understand and reminds me of how i love this game.

The amount of time and work this must've taken! Fantastic job!

Brilliant video

Thanks for the video

Loved this!

Great video!

finaly all the lore in 1 video looking forward to the updates and addendums

This is great I missed Overwatch lore videos!