'Overwatch' news: Christmas update goes live with holiday-themed items; Blizzard responds to criticism on Mei's new legendary-class skin

The holiday-themed Winter Wonderland update for "Overwatch" is finally here, and it introduces a number of wintertime loot boxes filled with new cosmetic items for everyone.

The seasonal update was released by Blizzard Entertainment last Tuesday for Windows PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. More than a hundred new items are up for grabs, and players can get them by unlocking winter loot boxes scattered around. Similar to the previous "Overwatch" events, the contents of those boxes are random. However, players can be sure that they'll earn at least one Winter Wonderland item in every box.

Existing "Overwatch" maps Hanamura and King's Row will have new wintry looks thanks to the latest update, and new Christmas-inspired costumes will be made available for Lúcio, McCree, Mei, Pharah, Reaper, Roadhog, Sombra, Torbjörn, Tracer, Winston, and Zenyatta. Although fans were generally happy with the patch, some felt let down when they saw Mei's "legendary"-class skin.

Players have reportedly criticized Mei's new skin for looking too similar to her existing skins. It can be found at random loot boxes, but players also have the option to purchase Mei's legendary skin. It comes at a big price, though, making many fans think that buying it is not really worth the money.

"Overwatch" director Jeff Kaplan recently responded to the criticism by posting a statement on the game's official forums, offering fans some insight into how the skins are conceptualized and made. He also extended his apologies to fans who felt that their expectations were not met.

"Sorry you are disappointed with Mei's winter skin," Kaplan wrote. "We don't have a specific rule for what makes something Legendary or Epic. We just sort of make a gut call based off of what we think is cool. Coolness is very subjective, and based off of the community reaction it seems like our gauge was off on this one," he went on to say.