Overwatch 2 devs drop new patch to address support hero concern

Olivia Richman Published 13/05/2022

The second week of the Overwatch 2 beta has concluded, leaving Blizzard developers and Overwatch 2 players alike concerned about the state of the game’s support heroes.

The previous Overwatch 2 beta patch was said to be the one and only patch for this beta period. After giving Zenyatta a new passive meant to keep him at arm’s length from aggressive DPS heroes, developers felt there wouldn’t need to be another patch during the initial closed beta. But soon after, it seemed that developers felt yet another patch is necessary.

“While there was little difference at lower ranks, support heroes starting at high Diamond and above saw the highest jump in return visits to the spawn room. At these ranks, the increased pressure of a more skilled tank or damage player on the backlines has seemingly become too much for even high SR support players to handle effectively as compared with the live game. The most significant difference was at Grandmaster, where the support role saw an increase of 15% in frequency of deaths when compared to live,” developers explained at the time.

The Overwatch 2 team continued, explaining that support heroes need “additional tools” and more mobility options to be appropriately impactful in Overwatch 2. For this reason, the support role is now the developers’ top priority as the beta continues.

Hero balance updates in Overwatch 2 beta patch

Developers told the Overwatch community that the next balance patch will feature a lot of support hero changes based on community discussion. Here are the updates that were made in the latest patch.

Mercy

Mercy still hadn’t reached her full potential, developers said. This was mostly due to how complicated it is to pull off her “super jump,” which is necessary to her mobility. To combat this, players can now cancel Guardian Angel by using the crouch key. This will automatically launch Mercy into the air.

“This is an initial implementation of new functionality designed to give Mercy players more options in how they use Guardian Angel. Some Mercy players were already able to do similar boosts by using a somewhat complicated technique often referred to as ‘Super jump’. This new functionality will allow all players to more consistently perform similar boosts, while the original technique is still there and remains untouched,” developers explained.

Baptiste

Baptiste’s Regenerative Burst now heals for 50 instantly and 50 over time, instead of just 100 over time. Additionally, the instant heal portion will be doubled on targets that are at 50% or lower health.

Sojourn

It wasn’t just supports that got an update, however. New DPS Sojourn saw some changes to her Railgun:

Railgun primary rate of fire increased from 13 to 15 shots-per-second
Railgun maximum ammo increased from 40 to 45

While many players have called Sojourn overpowered during the beta, developers said that she actually felt a “little weak.” This small change will make her weapon faster and increase her magazine size to compensate further, giving her greater firepower.

Possible upcoming hero changes in Overwatch 2

Junkrat and Symmetra

It isn’t just support heroes being scrutinized by developers. Junkrat and Symmetra have been another topic of discussion altogether. Both heroes excel as shield breakers, but that’s not as impactful as a skill in the new one-tank meta.

Developers are exploring ways to “better reward” Junkrat’s direct hits. Symmetra’s Photon Projector is no longer as valuable, something else developers are contemplating.

Moira

Moira is flexible thanks to her mobility and self-healing abilities, helping her to deal with flankers effectively. But developers have decided to increase her utility to “increase her potential to be a playmaker.”

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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