Unused Overwatch Basketball Voice Line Refers to Kobe Bryant
Overwatch data miner Overwatch Interactions uncovered several basketball-related voice lines in the game's files Tuesday, one of which makes reference to the recently deceased basketball star Kobe Bryant.
The reference to Bryant lies in Reaper's line, "Kobe, eat your heart out." The line was likely recorded before news of Bryant's death Sunday. Blizzard did not respond to a request for comment on the voice lines.
A second line appearing to pay respect to Bryant in the wake of his death was spliced together by Overwatch Interactions and is not a line recorded by Blizzard.
Most of the other lines are innocuous references to making a basket with small variations according to the character. Ana and Pharah's lines parallel one another, for example, and Reinhardt's line refers to a "hole-in-one," as if he misunderstands basketball terminology. Lúcio is the only hero to have two lines in the list. Read them all below.
- Ana: "I've always been a good shot."
- Genji: "Nothing but net."
- Lúcio: "Nothing but the bottom of the net."
- Lúcio: "Oh, from downtown!"
- McCree: "Jackpot."
- Pharah: "Always was a good shot."
- Reaper: "Kobe, eat your heart out."
- Reinhardt: "Hole in one! Ha!"
- Soldier: 76: "Nothing but net."
- Tracer: "Nothing but net!"
- Zarya: "Nothing but net."
Overwatch currently marks successful basketball shots with confetti and fanfare, but characters don't acknowledge the baskets themselves.
Another unused Reaper voice line, discovered in 2016, makes reference to a famous call by basketball commentator Chick Hearn:
"The game's in the refrigerator. The door's closed, the light's out, the eggs are cooling, the butter's getting hard, and the Jell-O's jiggling."