Overwatch 2’s designers went above and beyond in 2023, adding an impressive catalog of skins to an already stellar list of cosmetics.
Amid criticism of the price of various skins, bundles, and even premium battle pass rewards, many skins still caught our eye this year—and evidently the rest of the player base’s as well. The skins this year were bold, playing with color and textures but also highlighting various themes and even introducing exciting collaborations to our favorite Overwatch 2 heroes.
Yet even though a majority of the skins Blizzard released this year were worthy of equipping on our main heroes, there are a select few that stand out above the rest and were truly worth the cost. Here is our list of the best Overwatch 2 skins of 2023.
6) Water Warrior Sojourn
Sojourn is one of the newest heroes in Overwatch 2, having launched with the sequel in late 2022. But despite her actually being around longer than heroes like Kiriko, Illari, and even Ramattra, her skin catalog is severely lacking.
Many of Sojourn’s skins simply don’t highlight enough of the cool parts of her design like the skins of other heroes. Instead of using her half-robot body or rail gun in unique ways, sometimes her skins just fall flat—that is, except for the Water Warrior skin.
This skin was released as a part of the Overwatch World Cup mega bundle, making it an exclusive skin that also comes with a high price tag since it wasn’t able to be purchased outside of the bundle. This alone bumps Water Warrior Sojourn to last place on our list, but it doesn’t mean the skin isn’t exceptional.
Water Warrior Sojourn changes Sojourn into a fierce yet elegant water monster, emphasizing her strength and femininity in what is undoubtedly one of her best skins. The monochromatic color scheme of this skin, alongside the balance between sharp and feminine details, makes it Sojourn’s best skin of the year and one of the top skins on our list.
5) Saitama Doomfist
Overwatch 2’s collaboration with One Punch Man was certainly one of the cosmetic highlights of 2023 for many fans. Not only did this collaboration give us three incredible skins, but it also opened the door for more official collaborations in Overwatch 2—something the game had never seen before.
Though players who aren’t fans of One Punch Man or hadn’t seen the anime before probably thought the skins were bland, the Saitama Doomfist skin in particular toes the line perfectly between an accurate depiction of the character while also staying true to Doomfist’s design itself.
Of course, who else on the Overwatch 2 roster could have possibly gotten a Saitama skin but Doomfist? It just makes sense, and the comedy of this skin almost gets it a place on our list by itself.
The design of the skin is absolutely accurate to the anime, with Saitama’s outfit perfectly transferred onto Doomfist’s body. We get the classic yellow suit and flowing white cape, and Doomfist gets to retain a bit of his own personality by keeping the basic design of his massive fist weapon, just with a recolor.
4) Takoyaki Zenyatta
The only thing wrong with Zenyatta’s Takoyaki skin is it wasn’t in Overwatch until 2023. It seems like a no-brainer to pair Zenyatta, the one hero who throws orbs as his weapon, with the delicious Japanese treat takoyaki.
The takoyaki skin doesn’t just capitalize on the food being used as Zen’s weapon but transforms the levitating robot into a street food chef himself. It’s the perfect costume for Zenyatta, the friendly omnic.
The colors and patterns on his clothing are nothing short of stunning, and the textures used in the skin across the different pieces of fabric, his shoes, and even the takoyaki weapons all create a beautiful, cohesive skin. Zenyatta’s design lends itself to many strong skins, but this takoyaki skin is truly next level.
Maybe the best part of Takoyaki Zenyatta is his Orbs of Destruction themselves. The weapons have lovely crispy dough on the outside with swirls of mayonnaise and sauce covered lightly with chives and fish flakes. Zenyatta also has a new victory pose that goes perfectly with the skin, where he is holding a paper boat full of takoyaki. The attention to detail on this skin is clear, and that’s part of the reason it gets a solid place in our top five skins of the year.
3) Lilith Moira
Despite Blizzard releasing other collaboration cosmetics across some of its titles in the past, Lilith Moira seems like a no-brainer considering the success of Blizzard’s ARPG series Diablo. Finally, for 2023’s Blizzcon, we got to see Lilith Moira.
In general, Moira seems to have some of the worst skins of any hero in Overwatch 2. This is coming from the point of view of someone who has had to play her many times in competitive matches as a flex support player. Her skins just don’t hit the same as other heroes’ options. Often, the color schemes end up looking like a ’70s nightmare and don’t suit Moira’s personality at all.
But Lilith Moira is a completely different story. Aside from Moira’s initial likeness to the Diablo character, her silhouette and dark personality make the Lilith skin work on so many levels. We don’t think it’s controversial to say Lilith Moira is one of the best Moira skins.
Moira already has a lanky figure, and she is also one of the older heroes on the roster, meaning sometimes her skins, despite attempting to look young, actually age her in the opposite direction. Lilith Moira makes her look beautiful by capitalizing on her already existing features instead of trying to make her into something she isn’t. From the horns billowing off her head to her gorgeous, moody dress that highlights her height instead of masking it, Lilith Moira is a dream.
2) The LE SSERAFIM skins
After the One Punch Man collaboration paved the way for Blizzard to add even more goodies into Overwatch 2, the best collaboration of the year dropped with K-pop group LE SSERAFIM. The collaboration included a new song from the group, a music video complete with Overwatch 2 characters, and even a performance at Blizzcon 2023. But maybe the best thing to come from the collaboration was the LE SSERAFIM mega bundle in the game itself.
The bundle wasn’t cheap and included five exclusive skins for D.Va, Tracer, Sombra, Brigitte, and Kiriko. Our favorite out of the five is probably D.Va’s skin since her sparkling mech and cute K-pop-inspired outfit suit her hero design so well, but every one of the skins is worth equipping. In addition, the bundle came with a cute Pachimari weapon charm and emotes and victory poses for all five heroes.
The appeal of the LE SSERAFIM skins addresses a clear absence in game cosmetics as a whole of bright, fun aesthetics. Though some prefer more rustic and combative skins, others really just want to look cute and cool while they pulverize their enemies. I am, for sure, one of those people.
Even though I don’t personally log on to Overwatch 2 every day anymore like I used to, the LE SSERAFIM collaboration actually made me go back and pick up the game again just because I wanted to use all of the cute skins in the mega bundle.
1) Amaterasu Kiriko
Despite our love for everything about the LE SSERAFIM collaboration, one skin from 2023 stands heads above the rest on this list. There isn’t another skin from this year quite like Amaterasu Kiriko.
The Amaterasu Kiriko skin was released as a mythic-tier cosmetic at the very end of the season three battle pass. Mythic skins are special because they have different customization options within the individual skins themselves, meaning you can truly create a unique look for your favorite hero. Amaterasu Kiriko was one of the first mythic skins, but it still stands out as the best one in the game.
Not only is the Amaterasu Kiriko skin customizable, but every single customization choice looks beautiful. There are no awkward aspects that seem like they don’t fit well together, yet somehow each customization still feels incredibly unique. Her hairstyle, headwear, and even subtle face details change with each option—and even her kunai change shape.
The other thing that shines about Amaterasu Kiriko is Blizzard chose the perfect hero for an Amaterasu skin. Amaterasu is a Japanese deity from the Shinto religion. Her imagery revolves around the radiating sun, which is exemplified by the base customization for Amaterasu Kiriko.
With the recent controversy over white heroes getting Asian-themed skins, it just feels right to let Kiriko come to the forefront with the most beautiful skin of 2023.
