Overwatch: Genji’s Sword Markings Revealed, What They Really Mean
Overwatch is full of colorful characters with detailed backgrounds, some of them involving their iconic weaponry. This applies to the Japanese character Genji Shimada, who has his own in-depth backstory filled with betrayal, suffering, and inner turmoil. Fans have taken a closer look at the character and the inscription on his infamous weapon leading to the discovery of an epic tale of vengeance.
Redditor BrokenArcher was able to translate and decipher the words which revealed a name, as well as a bizarre story about the blade.
The words on Genji’s sword are 干将 (Gan Jiang), which is the name of a famous swordsmith in ancient China as well as a famous sword made by him.
Gan Jiang was ordered to make a sword for the emperor back then, but it took him 3 years to make the sword so the emperor killed him right after he finished. What the emperor didn’t know was that Gan Jiang made a pair of swords, named after him and his wife, 莫邪 (Mo Ye), also a famous swordsmith. Gan Jiang knew he would be killed so only gave the emperor the female sword, and secretly kept the male sword where only his wife knew. When their son came of age, he wanted to avenge Gan Jiang with the male sword. The emperor somehow dreamt of the son’s face and his motivation to kill him, so he posted a huge reward for someone to kill the son and bring his head.
One day when the son felt very desperate and started crying, a swordman showed up and promised him that he would kill the emperor as long as the son gave him both his head and the male sword. The son committed suicide and let the guy have his head. The swordsman brought it to the emperor and said: “you should boil the head if you hate the guy that much”. But water wouldn’t boil; the emperor asked why, and the guy suggested him look closer. When the emperor got closer to the pot, the swordsman cut off his head with the male sword that he received from the son, thus avenging Gan Jiang with his own sword.
It’s a strange and bloody tale to be sure, and gets even more strange when another Redditor added part of the previously revealed Blizzard lore to the mix:
The son’s head stares at the emperor the whole time, and his body remains standing until the swordsman kills the emperor. Also, the swordsman cut his own head off after that, causing three heads to boil in the pot simultaneously. By the time their bodies were discovered, the heads couldn’t be told apart, so all three were buried together in a grave later known as, “the Grave of Three Kings”.
It’s wonderful to see fans so dedicated to discovering the hidden depth behind heroes such as this. Overwatch is available now for PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. Let us know your thoughts about the inscription on the sword of Genji Shimada and more in the comments section below. Don’t forget to also check out the Year of the Dog event going on right now for the hit FPS from Blizzard.
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Chris Calles1560 Posts
Known as "Stash" or Yippee Calles. He's a student of everything, avid adrenaline junkie, and creator of random things. When he's not delving into a game, book, or movie - He's out teaching himself new things or taking part in some pretty epic adventures. You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr.
