Overwatch Teams Up with Hello Kitty and Friends for Exciting 2026 Collaboration

Among the exciting developments coming to Overwatch next season, the collaboration with Sanrio stands out as both surprising and delightful, especially for fans of all things adorable. From February 10 to 23, players can expect a fresh lineup of cosmetics featuring Hello Kitty and her friends.

This Overwatch x Hello Kitty collaboration introduces six heroes dressed as beloved Sanrio characters: Juno takes on the role of Hello Kitty, Kiriko becomes Cinnamoroll, Mercy transforms into Pompompurin, D.Va channels My Melody, Widowmaker embodies Kuromi, and Lucio steps into the shoes of Keroppi. The collection will feature Legendary skins along with a variety of cosmetics, including emotes, voice lines, and player icons.

This latest crossover follows previous collaborations with franchises like Transformers, G.I. Joe, Street Fighter, K-pop group Le Sserafim, and popular anime series such as One-Punch Man, My Hero Academia, and Cowboy Bebop.

Art director Dion Rogers shared that this collaboration emerged from a “mutual thing” with Sanrio. “We reached out to Sanrio, they reached back, and we’ve been working on it for a while,” he explained during a press conference. “There are many fans on the team who love Sanrio, and as we’ve engaged in more collaborations, it felt like a natural conversation to see if we could make this happen.”

When it came to selecting characters, Rogers noted that “Hello Kitty has no mouth because she speaks from the heart, and we felt that Juno fits this very well. She’s from Mars and has a unique vision of the world.” He expressed surprise at how seamlessly the collaboration came together.

Rogers also mentioned that Pompompurin’s color palette aligns perfectly with Mercy’s design. “Some of the decisions come down to the color palette. Widowmaker also works well with Kuromi’s colors,” he added.

3D character artist Melissa Kelly highlighted the challenge of designing Sanrio-themed weapons. “Widowmaker’s weapon was the hardest to design because she has a sniper rifle, and… it’s Sanrio, so… it’s a little complicated,” she said with a laugh. “Lucio’s gun is already cute and round, so that’s easier. But we managed to create an adorable sniper rifle!”

As any Sanrio enthusiast knows, Pompompurin’s signature design feature is his very visible butthole. When asked about this aspect in relation to Mercy’s Pompompurin skin, both Rogers and Kelly were playful but confirmed that the butthole will indeed be visible on Mercy, just not in the expected spot. So, be sure to check out the Sanrio collaboration when it launches on February 10 to discover the surprise placement for yourself.