Blizzard looks to kill double shield meta with nerfs to Orisa, Sigma

gabhernandez Published 15/08/2020

Overwatch has received new patch notes and the most notable of the bunch were nerfs to Brigitte and Sigma.

Orisa and Sigma’s ability to spam shields and block massive amounts of damage has dominated the competitive meta, which has been coined the “double shield meta.” 

While Orisa also took a hit, Sigma received a nerf to his shield that dropped his barrier’s health from 900 to 700 while also decreasing the regeneration rate from 120 to 80. The cooldown on the shield was also increased from 10 to 12 seconds. This is likely to have the biggest impact of all the changes in this patch, as Sigma’s shield has always felt more durable than any other similar abilities.

Brigette nerfed alongside Sigma and Orisa

Brigitte was the second hero to take a big hit. In the Overwatch League, fans rarely see a match without Brigitte in it. To lower her versatility and power, her healing potency was lowered and her base health was also reduced, theoretically making her more situational. 

Other changes include a reduction to Orisa’s base armor, and her Halt! ability had its radius reduced and projectile speed increased. Pharah received a movement increase and an increase to the power of her ultimate ability. Roadhog got a small buff for his hook combo, Symmetra got a buff for her Teleporter’s cooldown, and Zenyatta got a small increase to his damage.

OWL Vice President Jon Spector has revealed that this will be the patch used in the playoffs. The response to this news has been mostly positive. Most fans were tired of the Orisa and Sigma duo and were bored with the double shield meta. This season’s playoffs begin September 3.

It is unclear if Spector includes the Grand Finals in his definition of playoffs but with the games starting on October 8, fans could see another small patch before then. That said, it would not be surprising if the Grand Finals were played on this patch as well.

Read Also

Twitch

Will Kai Cenat Grow His Twitch Subscribers in the Remainder of 2026? Khizar Mundia Twitch streamer Kai Cenat is one of the most popular personalities on the platform, with his number of followers climbing with every new event that he announces. However, his subscriber numbers have been less straightforward. The American went on an unexpected break after shattering Twitch subscriber records with his Mafiathon 3, but eventually returned with Streamer University 2026. The creator did become the most-subscribed Twitch streamer after his return, but ...

Dota 2

Yandex to repeat?: BLAST SLAM VIII preview, predictions, and more Michael Hassall If you can believe it, we’re already on the eighth edition of BLAST SLAM, as BLAST SLAM VIII kicks off tomorrow (Sep. 29) pitting 16 of the world’s best Dota 2 teams against each other in what promises to be the first big challenge of this young season. Let’s face it: At PGL Wallachia, we were missing a lot of the heavy hitters. No TI15 champs, no PARIVISION, not BetBoom, ...

News

New York Sues Polymarket Over Gambling Laws As Prediction Market Hits Back Michael Hassall The New York Attorney General, the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the State of New York has filed legal proceedings against prediction market giant Polymarket alleging it is an unlicensed gambling company. First reported by Reuters earlier today (Monday, Sep. 28), Polymarket immediately launched a countersuit challenging the lawsuit’s claim that they constitute a gambling company, and kicking off a legal battle that could have huge implications for ...

Twitch

iShowSpeed Answers Fan Questions: Opens Up About Mental Health and One Piece Khizar Mundia Darren “iShowSpeed” Watkins Jr. recently did an extensive Q&A where he answered several fan questions, talking about things such as mental health and loneliness despite being massively popular, while he also debunked being a One Piece “larper”. iShowSpeed is arguably the biggest IRL streamer in the world right now, with 2026 being a major year for the creator. Whether it was livestreaming the 2026 FIFA World Cup or being listed ...

Dota 2

Unstoppable Yandex crush NAVI in one-sided PGL Wallachia finals Michael Hassall Team Yandex has swept the grand finals of the PGL Wallachia Season 9 Dota 2 tournament, defeating Natus Vincere (NAVI) in a 3-0 drubbing this past weekend (Sep. 27). As predicted, the revitalized Yandex, hot off the signing of former Team Falcons star Ammar "ATF" Al-Assaf, crushed their youthful opponents in a three-game sweep in the best-of-five finals. Here’s how it happened: After upsetting the star-studded LGD Gaming roster (albeit ...

Twitch

Kai Cenat Reportedly Becomes First Streamer To Broadcast From Inside a Volcano Khizar Mundia Twitch star Kai Cenat caused a major stir online when he announced his Exploring the Unexplored IRL series — and he has now gone live from the first country, Iceland, streaming from inside a volcano. IRL streaming is one of the best ways to gain exposure and become a bigger creator. Two of the biggest current examples are Darren “iShowSpeed” Watkins Jr. and Rangesh “N3on” Mutama. Speed has been a ...

Dota 2

Team Yandex to win it all? PGL Wallachia Season 9 Finals preview and predictions Michael Hassall The first big event after TI15, PGL Wallachia Season 9, wraps up this Sunday, Sep. 27, and it’s set to be a hell of a show. After a solid week of action, with some surprise eliminations along the way, we’re down to just three teams from the original 16. Team Yandex, LGD Gaming, and Natus Vincere (NAVI) remain, having battled through some big upsets to get there. Yandex are hot ...