The Overwatch 2 PvP beta was the community’s first chance to truly test out all of the hero reworks coming to the highly anticipated sequel. While some changes are more impactful than others, every hero has been tweaked to fit into the new 5v5 meta, which is more focused on aggression and mobility.
Unfortunately, not everyone has had the opportunity to try out the PvP beta just yet. Here are the hero changes that are shaking up the met and gameplay in Overwatch 2.
Bastion
Bastion can no longer heal himself in Overwatch 2. Instead of being a bipedal bot able to turn into a turret, it’s now able to freely turn into a tank. His tank form has a cooldown.
Bastion was also given a new alternative fire, A-36 Tactical Grenade, which bounces off walls and explodes on impact with the ground or enemies. Bastion’s ultimate has the robot transform into Artillery mode, firing three powerful artillery shells that rain down on a targeted area.
Brigitte
Once said to be OP, Brigitte has been changed up a lot over the years since her release. Now, Brigitte’s Shield Bash will knock enemies back and deal damage rather than stunning enemies.
Cassidy
It’s not only a name change for the BAMF. Cassidy has lost his Flashbang, an ability that stunned heroes on impact. Instead, Cassidy was given a Magnetic Grenade that locates nearby enemies, sticks to them, and deals explosive damage.
Doomfist
Doomfist has been moved to a tank role and given more health. Once a melee-focused DPS, Doomfist has been completely reworked to make him a little less glass cannon. He has a new ability called Power Block that protects him, allowing him to push forward with confidence.
Doomfist no longer has his Uppercut ability. His Seismic Slam has been modified to work similarly to Winston’s jump, damaging and slowing enemies he lands on.
Mei
Mei was a menace in Overwatch 1, with many calling her “evil” due to her oppressive freezing ability. Mei can no longer freeze players with her Endothermic Blaster in Overwatch 2. She can still deal damage and slow enemies, but being completely frozen is a thing of the past. Well, unless you use Mei’s ultimate, Blizzard. This will completely freeze enemies.
Orisa
Orisa has gone through major changes, making the robot more aggressive rather than staying back with a shield. This is due to the new 5v5 meta that has teams focused on mobility rather than hunkering down with two tanks.
Orisa’s Protective Barrier shield and Halt! abilities were removed. Instead, Orisa was given an Energy Javelin that can stun and knock back enemies as well as a Javelin Spin that blocks incoming projectiles and keeps enemies back. It also gives Orisa a speed boost.
On top of that, Orisa’s Supercharger ultimate was replaced with Terra Surge. This allows Orisa to unleash energy after a chargeup that damages nearby enemies. All of these new abilities make Orisa a force to be reckoned with. This essentially makes Orisa players a lot more reckless, but she’s powerful enough to get away with it.
Reinhardt
Reinhardt has been given some changes to force him into a more aggressive role. His Fire Strike projectile now has two charges. He can also cancel out of his Charge attack. This allows Reinhardt to more safely engage with enemies instead of staying back with a shield.
Sombra
The hacker has a few ability changes that make her deal more damage. Her Hack ability removes enemy abilities for a shorter duration but also exposes their location to her teammates. Hacked enemies also take more damage from Sombra. To add to her damage, Sombra’s EMP deals 40% damage to enemies caught in its area of effect.
Winston
This aggressive tank saw just one small change. His Tesla Cannon was given a secondary fire mode. Now, the weapon charges up and then releases a ball of electricity on top of its usual continuous energy blast.
Zarya
Zarya’s had a slight tweak to her Particle Barrier and Projected Barrier that makes a big difference in her gameplay. Now, both of these abilities share a cooldown. Zarya can either apply bubbles back and forth between herself and a teammate or between two teammates.
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