Genesis (miniseries)
An animated miniseries exploring the origins of the Omnic Crisis.
Genesis is an American animated miniseries of shorts created by Blizzard Entertainment, based on the Overwatch video game franchise. Released on YouTube, the three-part series premiered on July 6, 2023. It is notable for being one of the studio's first 2D animation projects to focus on the overarching narrative of the franchise rather than individual character backstories.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Science fiction
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Episodes
- 3
- Runtime
- 5–7 minutes
- Company
- Blizzard Entertainment
- Network
- YouTube
- First aired
- 6 July 2023
Facts from the source article.
Premise
The series depicts a company called Omnica Corporation creating sentient robots known as omnics, resulting from global research on artificial intelligence. As technological advances allow omnics to take over many tasks, Omnica hires robotic prodigy Dr. Mina Liao to further develop them. These developments lead to the Omnic Crisis, a war between omnics and humans, prompting the formation of the global task force Overwatch.
Development and release
Blizzard had long used animated shorts, comics, and other media to tell stories that were largely missing from its games, a deliberate transmedia approach. On June 30, 2023, the studio announced Genesis, a miniseries that marked a shift from focusing on individual character backstories to the broader Overwatch narrative. It was one of Blizzard’s first 2D animation projects to do so, employing an anime art style and presented as a documentary from a human viewpoint. The first episode, “Dawn,” premiered on July 6, 2023, ahead of Overwatch 2’s “Invasion” update. The second episode, “Innocence,” followed on July 13, and the final episode, “Rebirth,” on July 20. The series arrived shortly after Blizzard abandoned a long-planned co-op PvE mode that was meant to carry many narrative elements.
Reception
Scott Duwe of The Daily Dot described the Genesis trailer as "freakishly timely," pointing to its depiction of helpful AI turning against humanity. Kenneth Shepard of Kotaku expressed surprise that Blizzard hadn't invested in an animated series sooner, given that earlier Overwatch animated projects told "disparate stories." After the series concluded, Shepard called it a "glorified trailer," noting its documentary format conveyed information about themes without exploring them. He acknowledged that certain moments carried "gravitas" and praised the "gorgeous animation and cinematography."
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