Terrifying Overwatch bug makes Ana constantly scream during match

Theo Salaun

Overwatch can be a very stressful game, especially if you’re playing support. A new glitch takes that to the next level, by making Ana scream randomly, over and over again, throughout the duration of a match.

If you’ve played a support like Ana in an Overwatch match, then you know all too well how scary the experience can be. Maybe your tanks have over-extended and left you to fend for yourself. Maybe the enemies have a pair of dangerously quick flankers like Tracer and Genji. Whatever the case, being an Ana can be a scary time.

If you have played Ana, you’ve probably let out a couple squeals yourself. And it seems that the inner workings of Overwatch are reading players’ minds, as a recent bug brings out those shrieks in-game — even when Ana is completely safe.

In a clip shared by Reddit’s u/joshumax, they seemed to be playing a custom scrim and were entirely focused on healing their team while defending on Blizzard World. Suddenly, their Ana lets out a guttural shriek of terror. Then, like a proper campfire horror story, the wails continued.

As far as glitches go, this has got to be the most realistic one around. It makes sense for a support with low health and low mobility to get scared and scream every once in a while. This is at least more sensible than bugs like Brigitte’s recent one, which can make the shield-wielding, land-locked healer fly to her death sometimes.

While this Ana glitch is realistic for those playing her, it’s still uncharacteristic of the hero. As a 60-year-old former military sniper, she is known for having calm nerves and a steely resolve — so randomly screaming is an uncomfortable development.

Ana Amari Snow Owl Skin Overwatch
Ana is usually wise and calm, like her owl outfit.

In the comments, everyone feels pretty similarly. Redditors fall into two camps: one group that’s appreciative of Overwatch representing scared player feelings and another group that’s more concerned with Ana’s mental health.

At the moment, there’s no clear answer as to why this glitch is happening. The scream itself is reminiscent of Ana’s when she’s charged by a Reinhardt, so it’s possible that some files got mixed up for one match randomly. Only time will tell if the Egyptian sniper continues to yell.

About The Author

Théo is a former writer at Dexerto based in New York and built on competition. Formerly an editor for Bleacher Report and philosophy student at McGill, he fell in love with Overwatch and Call of Duty — leading him to focus on esports for Dex.