Meaning
What does Hanzo main mean?
A Hanzo main is a player in Overwatch, whose main choice of character is Hanzo Shimada, who is difficult to play well, thus maining him is often sneered at and is unadvised by most of your potential teammates.
Origin
What's the origin of Hanzo main?
Overwatch is a multiplayer first person shooter, released by Blizzard in 2016. Hanzo Shimada is a playable character in this game, namely he is a sniper, equipped with a bow.
Though Hanzo is capable of dealing a lot of damage, he requires a high aiming skill, something many players lack, which often makes you playing him more of a burden than help.
Nearly a month after the release of Overwatch, YouTuber FUNKe uploaded a video titled “Want to Main Hanzo?” which depicted and belittled players who are not willing to play any other character.
The video had gained great popularity and the term had entered the internet mainstream.
Spread & Usage
How did Hanzo main spread?
Shortly after the video, memes had swarmed the internet about maining Hanzo, from the Overwatch People group of Facebook, to iFunny to Reddit.
The highlight of the Hanzo main meme was when the former President Donald Trump was featured on a billboard, created by Cards Against Humanity, describing him as a Hanzo main, thus not being a team player.
External resources
- Mic.com – “Hanzo Main” Insult Explained: Here’s what that viral ‘Overwatch’ tweet is all about
- Urban Dictionary – Hanzo-main