Annedro, also known as Annie, is a highly skilled Overwatch player who has grinded the competitive ladder on her twitch streams; so much so, that she was recognized by Florida Mayhem and signed professionally. Annie is openly bisexual and transgender during a time where many people in the LGBT community feel they need representation.

Many skilled players got into gaming at a very early age, what was the first video game you played and do you think other games have helped you in your Overwatch play?

Annie: The first game I ever remember playing was the 1996 Jurassic Park FPS "Trespasser". I was super young and had a fascination with dinosaurs, and even though I was only about 7, I was able to convince my parents to let my play the game. From there I started playing every single Pokemon, to every single call of duty until I got my first computer. From then on I played thousands of hours of Garry's mod and Counter Strike which I think helped develop my mouse and keyboard skills until I picked up Overwatch at it's release.


Being both Trans and Bisexual, how do you feel the LGBT community is represented in the gaming community?

Annie: Just like all forms of old and modern media, I think it falls short. For a very long time, there were almost no games made with LGBT characters at all, and when one was put in, the age old reaction of "Why does this even matter? It's fiction" seems to pop up. This is incredibly apparent to Soldier 76 coming out and high level figures such as xQc calling it useless, as well as other game characters having a sexuality defined only to be called pandering to SJW's. Another issue is when the characters are made by developers who aren't LGBT and try to represent us using caricatures that end up reinforcing harmful or violent ideologies.

One example is from the game "Catherine" in which several trans-women are depicted as the "twists", deceiving the male protagonists and seducing them only to find out "They were really a man and you liked them all game haha!!!" but what this ends up doing is justifying discrimination and violence towards trans people. The players of the game who felt anger for the protagonist, are suddenly skeptical of all women they meet, scared to be seduced for months until a trans identity is revealed, which they can then justify anger and violence towards the individual. But these are fear mongering stories written by people who are obviously not trans and have very little understanding about it.

Almost every trans person will disclose their trans status upfront to avoid heartbreak and being murdered. But a story about that will not win multiple game awards for it's great puzzles. These are just a couple of many issues, but it's getting better. One of the draws of Overwatch is that is has representation, but I still get called homophobic and transphobic slurs daily while playing, so there is still a very long way to go until the majority of gamers develop any sense of empathy.


Is there anyone you see as a role model and why?

Annie: I have many role models that change constantly so it is hard to pick just one. I'm incredibly inspired by Chelsea Manning for her activism, Kevin Parker for his musical brilliance, and every woman I meet in e-sports.


What are your thoughts on the current state of Overwatch?

Annie: The current state? Better than it was this entire past year. Mercy moth meta and grav-dragon was painful as a tank player and it's weird that people seem to have forgotten they were a thing. Horribly stale with zero counter-play (before they finally buffed transcendence and nerfed damage boosting ults) and every match was a mirror match. I only see GOATS about half the time, where as I remember the days where mercy, zarya, rein, hanzo were the only heroes you were allowed to pick. It isn't as good as the release, but it really isn't as bad as people seem to think it is. This is said before D.va and armor are nerfed too.


Do you have any advice for players looking to improve in solo or team play?

Annie: The only advice I have for people who want to improve in anything in life is research, practice, execute. For specifically Overwatch, get VOD reviews, acknowledge your mistakes, focus on yourself and never micromanage your team because then you are not playing correctly, do not play if you are tilted, and accept the absolute chaotic randomness that is Overwatch competitive and keep on keeping on.


How did you get involved with Florida Mayhem?

Annie: The president, John, had been watching my stream for a week or so before he finally reached out to me on Twitter asking if I was interested in partnering with them, since he really enjoyed my passion for streaming as well as my wholesome community. I wasn't even sure if it was real or not, but once I did I was incredibly hyped, since I had only been streaming for 11 months and already achieved my biggest goal which was being professionally signed. They've given me a ton of exposure and support, and I'm incredibly lucky to be able to be a part of their team.


Are there any Overwatch League matchups you are looking forward to for season 2?

Annie: All of them! Hard to pick favorites since I play with the majority of the pros on the ladder. I just want to seem some awesome plays all around.


Now to get serious, what is your favorite food/snack and why?

Annie: I love fruit snacks to seem healthy, pita & hummus to actually be healthy, and flaming hot cheetos because I'm a damn gamer.


The path to pro is a rigorous journey for many aspiring players, what are your thoughts on the support given to the Contenders and Open Division scene?

Annie: Blizzards support for the T2 and T3 scene is pretty pitiful. You would think Jayne worked for blizzard with how hard he is carrying the scene on his back. Hosting tournaments, connecting pros, building hype. Blizzards marketing team has yet to even mention anything about T2 and T3, nothing in the launcher or anything. They don't even enable in-game drops for contenders matches, but they will put it on a streamer with 7 viewers. They don't even really support streamers that much either, they just started to with drops and a new streaming studio. Before that, it didn't even seem like they knew what streaming was. Just a pretty large disconnect overall it seems.


Who is your favorite Overwatch hero and why is Reinhardt?

Annie: Haha, I'd say that Reinhardt is definitely my best character mechanically wise, but Hammond is actually my favorite character to play. His kit is incredibly fluid and smooth, unlike Reinhardt who has animation locking and persisting bugs that Blizzard constantly ignores. It feels great to launch yourself into the back line and kill 5 people with your ult + slam, and not to mention all the environmental kill potential and spin-to-win cheese I've been able to pull off. Plus I love to annoy my team with his squeaks.


If you would like to see more of Annie, follow her on twitter https://twitter.com/AnneDroMedia and twitch https://www.twitch.tv/annedro