Blizzard released the newest adjustments in Overwatch’s Public Test region, where several characters got buffed or nerfed. Here’s are more details from the official patch notes.
D.Va
- Defense Matrix
- After being activated, Defense Matrix will begin regenerating following a 1-second delay (formerly .5 seconds)
Developer Comments: Defense Matrix was too efficient when tapped repeatedly, instead of being held. Now, the recovery delay matches the ability cooldown.
Hanzo
- Hanzo will now experience a 30% decrease in speed while aiming (formerly 40%)
- Maximum projectile speed has been increased by 30%
Developer Comments: Hanzo has the potential to deal a lot of damage, but he can feel really inconsistent, even at a medium distance. By increasing the projectile speed, we’re extending his reliable range, making it easier to land shots without having to perfectly predict enemy movement.
Mei
- Blizzard
- The Blizzard projectile now pierces barriers
- Radius has been increased from 8 meters to 10 meters
Developer Comments: Mei has an interesting toolkit, but her ultimate often felt like it was too difficult to use effectively. Consequently, it felt weak compared to many other ultimate abilities. The freeze effect has been piercing barriers for some time now, but the projectile would still be blocked. Now, you can throw it down exactly where you want it, so it’s much easier to utilize the full radius effectively.
McCree
- Deadeye
- Now drains over a .25-second period (instead of displaying a 50% reduction on the ultimate meter when activated and 0% when confirmed)
Developer Comments: If players managed to counter or avoid McCree’s ultimate, it would often regenerate very quickly since only half of the ultimate charge was spent. Now, this ultimate works like every other ultimate that has a duration.
Mercy
- Caduceus Staff
- Healing Beam
- Healing-per-second has been increased by 20%
- Resurrect
- Resurrected allies will be able to maneuver after 2.25 seconds (reduced from 3 seconds)
Developer Comments: Resurrection now allows teammates to jump back into the fight more quickly, which should help Mercy survive after activating her ultimate. Mercy’s healing is also getting a boost to solidify her role as a strong, single-target healer.
Genji
- Double jump no longer resets when wall climbing
- Dash
- No longer deals damage to traps like Widowmaker’s Venom Mine or Junkrat’s Steel Trap
- No longer bypasses Junkrat’s Steel Trap
- Swift Strike
- No longer interrupts quick melee attacks
- Dragonblade
- Duration of Genji’s ultimate has been reduced from 8 seconds to 6 seconds
Developer Comments: Genji was a little too difficult to pin down, and these changes will balance his speed. Swift Strike no longer cancels the recovery time from a quick melee attack, so players will no longer be able to get a free melee attack before using Swift Strike. Lastly, Dragonblade’s duration was long enough that it often felt too difficult to reasonably counter.
Lúcio
- Amp It Up
- The boosting of movement speed has been decreased by 30% (from a 100% increase to a 70% increase)
Developer Comments: Thanks to Lúcio’s speed increase, he was almost a must pick in every lineup.
Roadhog
- Chain Hook
- If the hooked target isn’t in Roadhog’s line of sight when retracting the hook, they will be moved back to the position where they were originally hooked
Developer Comments: This change means that hooked targets will be less likely to slide along walls, potentially ending up in an odd place after they’ve been reeled in.
Zenyatta
- Orb of Discord
- The amount of damage amplified by a target with Orb of Discord has been decreased from 50% to 30%
- Orb of Destruction
- Damage has been increased from 40 to 46
Developer Comments: Zenyatta is in a far better place since the last update, but the strength of Orb of Discord has turned him into an almost mandatory pick. These changes reduce Orb of Discord’s effectiveness, but his damage-dealing potential has been increased. The amount of damage that he delivers should feel largely unaffected by the change.
Again, keep in mind that the changes are only in the game’s Public Test region. The adjustments will be added to the main regions later. You can read more from the patch notes here.
Overwatch is available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
