Hefty Mauga nerfs in Overwatch 2 are coming ‘early next week’

It’s been a tumultuous first month for Overwatch 2’s newest hero, who many consider overpowered, and the development team at Blizzard seems to agree.

Mauga was added to OW2 as part of season eight, and he’s been lighting the meta on fire in both Quick Play and Competitive (two weeks later) since he joined. His survivability with a passive lifesteal, massive double chainguns, and short cooldown on his movement ability have made him quite strong. But a nerf is coming, and it sounds big.

OW2 lead hero designer Alex Dawson posted the news on X/Twitter today that the team is “targeting early next week” for some “harsher” changes to the tank, the most recent addition to the game’s ever-expanding hero pool.

Dawson said the update will include “survivability nerfs, ammo nerf, and more” and that the “changes may be harsher than what’s necessary” because the team had some “recent tech issues” including a failed nerf hotfix, and it wants “to be on the safe side of not strong.”

In a Reddit thread discussing Dawson’s announcement, players rejoiced about the news of the upcoming balancing to Mauga. One player said the ammo nerf “sounds great in particular” because “that it feels like he can just shoot forever is one of the main things that makes playing against him (especially on tank) so frustrating.”

Mauga’s been a big point of contention since releasing last month as many feel there aren’t many strong tank counters for him besides himself, support players feel like Ana is a must-pick for her anti-heal ability, and a buff right before the holiday break made him feel especially annoying to play against.

An official date for the update was not revealed besides “early next week,” so those feeling especially abused by the new tank may not have much longer to wait.