Behind the eye-catching skins and collaboration content in 'Overwatch' is a development team working in Seoul. Launched in 2022, Blizzard Korea Studio is not merely an organization supporting Korean live operations, but an actual 'Overwatch' development organization that creates real in-game content alongside the development team in Irvine, California. At 'Overwatch Day' held in Busan, Dospi Jin, Head of Blizzard Korea Studio, took the stage to share the content created by the Korea Studio so far, as well as the development process behind the LE SSERAFIM collaboration.

Studio Head Dospi Jin explained that although Blizzard Korea Studio is physically separate from the headquarters in Irvine, California, they collaborate closely as a single 'Overwatch' development team. The team includes not only artists who create heroes and skins, but also designers who plan game features and modes, programmers, UI/UX designers, and developers responsible for content production and live releases. In effect, they cover a broad spectrum of development—from art creation to feature implementation and actual content launches.

Since its establishment in 2023, Blizzard Korea Studio has steadily participated in designing various skins, collaborations, and new characters. As past projects were revealed one after another at the event, the host even asked, "Was all the hot content made in Korea?" Jin laughed and answered, "We did work on quite a lot." He explained that ensuring a character's personality, lore, and gameplay fantasy are clearly captured in the final visual is what Korea Studio values most.

A prime example introduced that day was the collaboration between 'Overwatch' and LE SSERAFIM. The first collaboration, held in 2023, was also the first time 'Overwatch' collaborated with a K-pop artist. From the very beginning, what the development team pondered was not simply placing two famous brands side by side on screen, but how to naturally weave the worlds of LE SSERAFIM and 'Overwatch' together through narrative.

The starting point that emerged from this was the question: "What would Overwatch heroes look like if they were fans of LE SSERAFIM?" That is why, in the first collaboration, heroes were depicted not as stars on stage, but as fans attending a concert. In early rough sketches, the team explored various directions regarding what kind of casual everyday wear to dress them in instead of their usual combat gear, and how to bring out the distinct personalities of both the heroes and LE SSERAFIM while maintaining a cohesive aesthetic for the collaborative content.

Continuous discussions were held with LE SSERAFIM's side as well. Ultimately, casual street fashion was built around blue tones and denim fabrics inspired by LE SSERAFIM's stage outfits. On top of this, elements like concert tickets, lightsticks, and fan merchandise were incorporated, expressing through design the excitement of fans anticipating a performance. Rather than simply dressing game characters in a famous pop group's costumes, the team sought to embody in the skins the very scenario of the heroes being actual LE SSERAFIM fans.

In the second LE SSERAFIM collaboration, the story took a step forward. The heroes, who were fans waiting for a concert in the first collaboration, became performers putting on street shows themselves this time around. The location was set near Busan Station, which appears in 'Overwatch''s Busan map. To convey a stronger sense of energy and confidence compared to the first collaboration, the development team actively incorporated primary colors along with street and hip-hop styles based on LE SSERAFIM's stage outfits.

Another key challenge was ensuring that while highlighting each character's individuality, the five would look like a unified performance crew when stood together. The team reviewed various combinations ranging from outfit silhouettes to color schemes, material choices, and accessory placement, with the final key art set against Busan Station. Jin expressed that being able to introduce this work in Busan itself made it even more meaningful.

The atmosphere during development was exceptional as well. Dospi Jin shared that throughout the production of the LE SSERAFIM collaboration, the entire development team enjoyed working as if they had "become a LE SSERAFIM fan club." He explained that not only in Korea Studio but also in the Irvine development team, there are many K-pop fans and Korean developers, making the opportunity to weave Korean culture and K-pop into 'Overwatch' a truly special experience.

The collaboration with LE SSERAFIM does not end here. Jin hinted at an upcoming third collaboration, noting that the heroes were fans attending a concert in the first collaboration and grew into performers staging their own shows in the second. Although specific details were not revealed, he referenced the LE SSERAFIM logo featured in the Season 4 'Heroes of Busan' trailer, adding, "Please look forward to what new side of them you will meet this time."

The collaboration with LE SSERAFIM does not end here. Jin hinted at an upcoming third collaboration, noting that the heroes were fans attending a concert in the first collaboration and grew into performers staging their own shows in the second. Although specific details were not revealed, he referenced the LE SSERAFIM logo featured in the Season 4 'Heroes of Busan' trailer, asking fans to "look forward to what new side of them you will meet this time."