I still remember when Kiriko first joined Overwatch 2 with her fox spirit, her healing ofuda, and that confident little smirk. I figured her cosmetics would be a grind, sure, but I definitely didn't expect someone to crunch the numbers and find that getting every nonseasonal unlock for her could take around five years. Yikes.

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That number still makes the rounds in 2026 because it perfectly captures how the free-to-play switch changed Overwatch 2. Loot boxes went away, a battle pass arrived, and suddenly earning cosmetics became a much slower dance. For Kiriko, the base list alone is a lot to chew on.

The Cosmetic Mountain

Here's what we're working with for Kiriko's nonseasonal stuff:

Cosmetic type Number
Skins 5
Emotes 3
Souvenirs 5
Weapon charms 5
Victory poses 2
Voice lines 9
Paid sprays 10
Highlight intros 2
Twitch drops 2 (11 hours of watch time)

All of that, except the Twitch drops, adds up to 15,600 coins. That's the currency you now need instead of hoping for good loot box luck.

The Weekly Grind

If you go the free route, you can earn 60 coins a week through weekly challenges. That's it. No bonus for playing a thousand matches or carrying your team as a support main. Sixty coins a week.

Do the math with me for a second:

  • 60 coins per week

  • 540 coins per season

  • 15,600 coins total for all of Kiriko's nonseasonal cosmetics

  • 15,600 ÷ 60 = 260 weeks

Let that sink in. 260 weeks is roughly five years of steady grinding. That's about 28 seasons. Before anyone says "just play the game," let me slow your roll: that's 28 seasons for one character, not counting any new cosmetics that drop for her later. By 2026, Kiriko has gotten more skins, emotes, and voice lines through battle passes and events, so the actual "everything" list is even bigger if you include seasonal and limited-time items.

Skins Alone Are a Commitment

If you only care about skins, you're still looking at a serious time investment. The five base skins cost 2,200 coins total, which means about 36 weeks of weekly challenges. That's over eight months just for skins.

And here's the kicker: buying your way out isn't exactly pocket change either. Without sales or deals, 100 coins cost about $1. So all 15,600 coins would run you around $156. For a single hero's nonseasonal items. I don't know about you, but my wallet felt personally attacked when I read that.

My Two Cents

Look, I get that free-to-play games need to make money. Skins, emotes, and weapon charms are optional, and Kiriko still plays the same whether she's wearing a basic outfit or something fancy. But there's a difference between "support the game" and "dedicate half a decade to one hero's accessory drawer."

The old loot box system had its own problems, no question. But it at least gave you a steady trickle of random stuff and the occasional rush of a legendary opening. Now the math is out in the open: either you grind for years, or you open your wallet. There's not much middle ground.

Still, I'll admit there's something charming about Kiriko's little fox spirit following me around. If I do decide to grind for her items, at least I'll have plenty of time to master her kunai.

Would I recommend chasing every single one of her nonseasonal unlocks? Honestly, no. Grab a skin you love, maybe an emote that makes you smile, and then go touch some grass. Because five years is a long time to spend on one character's cosmetics — even one as cool as Kiriko.

Data referenced from Statista - Video Games helps contextualize why Overwatch 2’s shift to a slower, coin-based cosmetic economy can feel so punishing at the individual-hero level: in free-to-play markets, live-service titles commonly rely on long-tail monetization where optional cosmetics and time-gated earn rates are designed to sustain recurring revenue rather than quickly complete collections—making a “five years for one hero’s nonseasonal items” outcome for Kiriko feel less like a fluke and more like an intentional pacing lever.