u/SCREAMBLACK

Let me preface by saying A) I don't really know or care about Overwatch lore that much, and B) I am a card-carrying Robot Girl Simp. I'm down bad for Aigis from Persona 3, I had a huge crush on EVA from WALL-E as a kid. So when I say that the lengths the devs stretched to make Shion look the way she does are too far even for me, you should believe it.

Aigis works in Persona 3, not because the game is more subtle about wanting an android waifu (it isn't) but because the audience lacks frame of reference for how robots look in the setting. If I were to say robots in P3 aren't supposed to be cute blonde girls I would have to provide an example proving this, which I cannot. With the other androids being Metis and Labrys, clearly in the Persona universe robots all look like cute girls. I accept this.

Shion's big problem is that she's a Capital O Omnic, which are distinct from the generic robots the setting also has. There are two playable Omnic heroes, (Three if you include Bob) and they have a signature look. We, the audience, have a frame of reference for how an Omnic is supposed to look. Which means the Overwatch creators have to go out of their way to justify the way she looks.

And whatever lore reason is provided, the real answer is obvious: "we want a sexy robot lady" (ideally one that can help sell skins.) Now I accept that Overwatch is a free-to-play game, and the soft relaunch earlier this year would have been a total flop if the game still cost money to get into. The recent crop of character designs have reflected this shift, and there has been a backlash steadily brewing about how the new designs have lost the oddball charm of the originals, but the game needs to make money at the end of the day. If the choice is "streamlined conventionally attractive designs" or "no game at all", I can accept it. It probably isn't that dire in reality but for all I know Kiriko is single-handedly keeping the servers running.

Unlike the human characters, Shion has to have an explicit justification as to why she looks distinct from the other Omnic heroes, but to me at least, it's almost impossible to ignore the monetization angle, something that ideally you don't want players to think about. It's an element of the design that I find extremely distracting and impossible to ignore. We all know that's the truth, but the game should not be drawing so much attention to it. The actual in-universe justification given (That she modified herself to look human knowing it would freak people out) is dwarfed by the truth in a way that ought to be obfuscated.

It's really unfortunate because I do really like the design, her voice acting is fantastic, and her animations are great. IF this exact same character had come out in a different sci-fi game I'd be simping like a crazy person. My neighbors would be complaining about all the barking and I don't even have a dog. But her being an Omnic just has too much in-universe baggage to the point that it's distracting.

What's especially odd is that, while it's too late now, there's a very simple fix. Just remove the dots on her forehead and ctrl-F some dialogue to imply that she's a cyborg a la Metal Gear Solid 4 Raiden, or Genji. In universe, she's essentially O-ren from Kill Bill, and it's not like you need to be a robot to have had your life ruined by the mafia. And the uncanny aspect of her face would still work, if not more effectively, being a human who looks like a robot poorly trying to pass herself off as human.

I was indifferent to stuff like the Anran Face fracas, but I guess I do actually understand their perspective after all. I can't even goon to the robot yakuza boss mommy because I'm too hung up on the lore, and I don't even care about the lore.

TL;DR: Shion looks so different to the other Omnic characters that it begs for an explanation. The obvious explanation is that she needs to be hot to sell skins, which, while everyone knows that's true, Shion draws attention to it in a way that makes it impossible for her design to feel natural.