Overwatch patch brings changes to more than half of heroes

Fariha Bhatti Published 01/03/2019

A new Overwatch patch is now available for testing on PTR servers, and includes the introduction of new hero Baptiste as well as balance adjustments for over half the game’s roster.

A total of 18 heroes have received changes across two patches in the last week. In addition, a new sound is added indicating when hits land on enemy targets while damage is boosted.

The initial patch was released on the PTR alongside the release of Baptiste, with the second update arriving the following Thursday. Most of the updates are hero buffs, with Junkrat, Pharah and Soldier: 76 receiving damage buffs to their primary weapons.

McCree can now deal additional damage to tank heroes as his ultimate ability causes 550 damage after fully locking onto targets, doubled from 275. To keep the hero balanced, his Fan the Hammer secondary fire has been nerfed to 50 damage per shot.

Doomfist’s cooldowns have been reduced after being increased in previous patches. Both Seismic Slam and Rising Uppercut now have a cooldown of six seconds instead of seven. Sombra also has a 50% cooldown on her hacking ability when targeting health packs.

Widowmaker’s ultimate has been reworked so that her sight will now reveal enemy health bars to the entire team, in addition to enemy locations. The improved ability will now end with her death, rather than carrying on for its set time regardless.

Lúcio’s speed boost abilities have also been reworked, as his team speed boost has been reduced by 10%. His personal boost from wallriding has been increased.  Lúcio players will also notice that the mechanic’s behind his weapon’s secondary fire have changed. Heroes such as D.Va can now be booped mid-flight, as enemy heroes’ initial speed before being hit will no longer affect the distance they are pushed back.

Ana and Reaper are the only heroes to be nerfed without compensatory buffs. Ana’s Nano Boost ultimate no longer has an immediate healing effect of 300, with overall healing reduced to 250. This is meant to decrease her ability to heal larger health pool champions as effectively.

Reaper’s life steal mechanic will now be less effective, restoring 40% of all damage dealt instead of 50%.

As the patch is only on the PTR server, it’s currently unavailable to console users. All changes made to heroes are for testing purposes and are subject to further change before going live.

Fariha Bhatti

About Fariha Bhatti

Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.

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