Soldier: 76 originated as a comic book concept conceived by former Blizzard employee Chris Metzen in the early 2000s, and is later modified and repurposed for inclusion in Overwatch.

Soldier: 76 was originally developed by Overwatch's creative director Chris Metzen in the early 2000s as part of non-gaming related projects within Blizzard, and which he later adapted for a comic story used in Digital Webbing Presents #16, published in July 2004.

Then-lead writer Michael Chu noted that Soldier: 76 is a character who is "near and dear" to Metzen and that he gave permission to the developmental team to incorporate him into Overwatch.

His bravery and work ethic earned him the attention of the "soldier enhancement program", and he later joined the Overwatch organization alongside his friend Gabriel Reyes.

Five years later, however, Morrison resurfaced as the vigilante "Soldier: 76", becoming the focus of an international manhunt following a series of attacks against former Overwatch facilities, stealing weapons and advanced technologies.

[9] In the "Bastet" short story released by Blizzard in January 2019, it is revealed that Morrison had a past relationship with a man named Vincent prior to his tenure in Overwatch.

His abilities are Sprint, a forward run with no duration limit or cooldown, and Biotic Field, a deployable device which regenerates the health of allies in the immediate vicinity.

His ultimate ability, Tactical Visor, puts up a head-up display that allows his rifle to automatically track enemies in his line of sight for a brief period.

[27][31][32] Matt Kim from USGamer drew an analogy to British author J.K. Rowling's method of revealing the sexuality of the Harry Potter character Albus Dumbledore, which he described as abrupt and lacked any meaningful context.

[34] Jade King from TheGamer expressed hope that Blizzard will build upon goodwill generated from the first game's queer representation and treat Soldier: 76 and Tracer, its most important LGBT characters, with greater respect for the upcoming Overwatch 2.