I’ve been an avid Overwatch fan since it released back in 2016. I remember playing the free weekend around Christmas that year and inevitably getting completely hooked.
Because of my dedication—and many, many hours of gameplay time—to Overwatch 1, I was skeptical about Overwatch 2 when it was announced as a free-to-play game. This skepticism only grew in the weeks and months following its release. While becoming free to play is a great way to bring more players to the franchise, it also resulted in the game becoming far more aggressively monetized.
The monetization of skins in Overwatch 2
The first Overwatch was fairly minimalist when it came to in-game purchases. You could buy loot boxes for a chance at unlocking more skins, but the skins themselves were always earnable at a surprisingly generous rate, and never exclusively locked behind a paywall.
Unfortunately, Blizzard decided to change things and do the very opposite, going all out with skin costs in the sequel—so much so that skins have been a hot topic of complaint since OW2‘s launch. It all just makes me miss Jeff Kaplan so much more.
When I saw the outrageous prices of skins in the OW2 shop, I swore to myself that while I would still play the game (I do still enjoy it, after all), I would never, ever buy anything from the shop.
My oath remained unbroken for a whole year. That is, until today, dear reader. The Overwatch 2 devs did something that I wasn’t expecting: They tempted me with K-pop. The Le Sserafim collaboration caught my attention from the beginning, as I do love a bit of South Korean pop music. BTS is my favorite band of all time, and they led me to discover and enjoy music from lots of other South Korean artists, Le Sserafim included.
I wasn’t planning on buying anything, though, until I watched the Perfect Night music video that gave us glimpses of D.Va, Brigitte, Kiriko, Tracer, and Sombra in outfits that became in-game skins. It was then that I knew my wallet would never forgive me for what I was about to do.
The Le Sserafim x Overwatch 2 collab
As soon as the collaboration went live, I headed over to the in-game shop to see what the damage was going to be. I was expecting it to be bad, but to buy the mega bundle—which includes the skins for all five of the characters, as well as dance emotes, victory poses, a weapon charm, and name cards—is a whopping 6,800 coins.
This equates to almost $70, which is the same amount as the regular edition of Spider-Man 2 and more expensive than the likes of Alan Wake 2 and Elden Ring. You can also get each individual skin for 1,900 coins or the individual hero bundles for 2,500 coins.
The mega bundle is quite possibly the most expensive bundle OW2 has released, so when I break my oaths I apparently like to break them to the extreme, as I went ahead and bought it anyway. Yes, I am a huge hypocrite. No, I have no regrets.
Is the Le Sserafim x Overwatch 2 bundle worth it?
So, is this bundle actually worth your hard-earned money? The answer obviously lies in your personal preferences, but I’m going to put it out there that this bundle is definitely not worth the money unless you are either majorly into Le Sserafim or K-pop in general, or you are particularly fond of the skins’ cute aesthetics.
If you do fit into one of these categories, then there is a lot to enjoy about these skins. I personally think that D.Va has the best one, as both she and her mech get an adorable Le Sserafim-themed makeover.
Kiriko and Sombra also get some awesome changes to their outfits, hair, and weapons. Kiriko’s blue and yellow hair buns under her pink beanie are cute yet daring, with punk aesthetic combining with her K-pop cutesiness. Her kitsune companion also gets some cute little stars on its face as an extra touch. Kiri’s look is a great example of a design that remembers the character’s personality and blends it effortlessly with the theme in question.
I really like Sombra’s look as well, particularly her long braids. They have a cool, ombré color scheme and a technology-themed texture, both of which are prominent elements in Sombra’s various outfits. Adding it to her hair is an awesome idea that not only fits with Sombra’s character but also the K-pop theme.
Brig’s look is a little less different from her base outfit, but her skin is still unique to the Le Sserafim theme and very much in-line with her strong yet gentle nature. I particularly like the random USB charger coming out of her mace.
Tracer definitely has the worst outfit, not because it isn’t a fun look, but because it looks the most like a simple recolor of her base skin. She gets some hoop earrings, a blonde hair recolor, and some extra Le Sserafim accessories, but that’s about it.
Expecting people to pay 1,900 coins just for Tracer’s Le Sserafim look feels far more ludicrous than charging that amount for any of the individual skins for the other four characters.
Final thoughts on the Le Sserafim x Overwatch 2 bundle
There is no denying that this bundle is ridiculously overpriced and only furthers the argument that Blizzard is bleeding their fans dry with Overwatch 2 skins.
That being said, K-pop fans like myself are sure to get a kick out of the adorable outfits along with the Antifragile choreography emotes and the victory poses. Le Sserafim stans that play Overwatch 2 are winning the jackpot with this collab, and even though I’m a BTS stan through and through, I thoroughly enjoyed the K-pop style and references in this bundle.
From Sombra’s “saranghaeyo” belt (meaning “I love you” in Korean) to the characters’ Korean heart poses, if you enjoy the culture surrounding K-pop or South Korean entertainment in general, then there is plenty to enjoy with the collab.
