Hammond is an intelligent hamster who controls a quadrupedal robot mecha that can transform into a high-speed wrecking ball equipped with a grappling hook.

His skill kit would have included aspects of magnetism, with one ability to draw in enemy bullets, store them, and then fire them back at opponents.

[4] Another train of thought was to see if Overwatch could support a "cute" character, and their artists came up with several animal-based concepts, including the infamous Jetpack Cat.

[3] While they liked the idea, they decided to put the design on hold to focus on the initial roster of characters for Overwatch's release.

[3] The team came back to explore Wrecking Ball while developing out the Horizon Lunar Colony map, which features into Winston's backstory, while at the same time planning on a new Tank hero.

[6] One ability that was tested involved Wrecking Ball gaining momentum as the character rolled through the level, causing more damage to enemy heroes.

Goodman said that with Wrecking Ball's combined abilities, the character has a way to get into a defensive line, survive long enough, and escape quickly due to the mech's mobility.

[9] Wrecking Ball's release was an interregnum from preceding Overwatch add-on content, which was based on new villains and geopolitical conflict.

[14] Hammond's backstory was first introduced through changes made to the Horizon Lunar Colony map in May 2018, and later expanded upon the character's announcement.

[15][13][10][16] In the game's story, Hammond is a hamster and one of the test subjects at the Horizon Lunar Colony, given heightened intelligence by the human scientists, from which he gained a liking for mechanics.

He modified the escape pod to become a battle mech, through which he competed in Junkertown's robot combat arena under the ring name Wrecking Ball, becoming its champion.

[10][16] Wrecking Ball is one of the playable "hero" characters in the team-based multiplayer first-person shooter video game Overwatch.

[19] In the "Storm Rising" special event during April 2019, Wrecking Ball was given a new highlight introduction that parodied the Dramatic Chipmunk meme.

[22][12][23] Due to the game's storyline, players assumed the character would be a monkey companion to Winston, based on his scientific facility's backstory.

[25][26] Many players and media outlets complained about the name choice of "Wrecking Ball", preferring "Hammond" instead, which is shorter and easier to use in callouts.