The hunt for Sombra, Overwatch's new hero, is a riddle that has been driving Overwatch fans mad with anticipation. She was assumed to be revealed later this year, but over the weekend a Russian Overwatch group leaked an image of her that looks like it was captured from an internal Blizzard document, potentially spoiling her big reveal. Even though the leak hasn't yet been confirmed authentic, that's not stopping artists from using the two days since to adapt Sombra's supposed likeness into fan art.
Overwatch is well-known for its fervent fan art community, and we love it so much we went so far as to commission our own Canadian plant lady. Still, the speed at which fans seem to be turning out new Sombra art is surprising. Not that I'm complaining, though. While I am a bit sad that the cloak and skull mask of her early interpretations don't seem to be part of her new outfit, I think the leaked image of Sombra looks great. She has a menacing comic-book villain vibe that contrasts really well with her pastel violet colours. Also, that haircut is badass. With such good inspiration, let's see what spins artists are putting on this supposed reveal.
Miraliese's interpretation of Sombra takes the edge off but leaves all of the attitude. Playing up the violet colors with her makeup and hair dye gives her an '80s neon vibe that I think suits her really well.
Skycoder Portrait - Von Hollde
Von Hollde's beautiful interpretation of Sombra brings back a bit more of that animated aesthetic that Overwatch's characters tend to have. It also shifts the pink bars on her head down somewhat, so her haircut is nearly as dramatic as it appears in the leaked image. That's not a complaint though, as Von Hollde's take on Sombra is one of my favorites.
Sombra's player icon - izentonitrix
Stepping away from the portraits for just a minute, Reddit user izentonitrix has shared their interpretation of what Sombra's player icons would look like. The second one is a fairly standard recreation of Sombra's skull symbol, but the first one uses that badass haircut to make an icon that's so convincing, I'd be surprised if Blizzard wasn't already working on their own version.
What I love the most about this interpretation of Sombra is that Sasjakoning has managed to quell my main complaints and combined Sombra's leaked appearance with interpretations fans were previously working with. Using her skull as face paint is genius, and I'd love to see this as one of her alternate costumes.
Check this out - Marko Raassina
Oh, Marko. While everyone is busy drawing up their super-serious Sombra portraits, you just had to go and make this little comic.
Sadhira's portrait of Sombra is brilliant. I love how textured it feels, and Sombra's coy smile contrasts wonderfully against that threatening, clawed hand.
Shock1203's quick sketch of Sombra is actually one of my favorites because it fleshes out a punkish adolescence in her that most of the fan art I've seen ignores entirely. While details of Sombra's past are still hazy, the idea of her as a hoodie-wearing teenage hacker seems to fit her perfectly.
Saving the best for last, Pires' take on Sombra is nothing short of incredible. The use of color is much starker, giving Sombra a Blade Runner vibe I never knew she needed. Even better, Reddit user SmallRossman has turned it into a desktop background.