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Just in time for the Halloween Terror event, Overwatch patch 1.41.0.0 is adding some new features while providing some slight reworks for several heroes and their abilities.
The main addition through this patch? Blizzard is pushing all of the Halloween themed loot live, including several new legendary skins like Pharaoh Ana, Warlock Ashe, and Will-o’-Wisp Tracer. Junkenstein’s Revenge is also back, letting players enjoy a PvE experience with spooky elements.
Along with the event going up, Blizzard also added two more legendary skins to celebrate 25 years of Azeroth for the upcoming Blizzcon. Illidan Genji and Tyrande Symmetra will only be available for Blizzcon attendees or players who have purchased a digital ticket to the event.
As for general updates, the developers have finally changed the layout of the Arcade menu, which will now show seven cards and display more options from the growing selection of game modes. Season 2 for the competitive ranking queue of three-vs-three Lockout Elimination is also live.
Moving on to the actual changes made to the characters, Sigma received the biggest rework by far.
Due to how mobile the hero is and the ease in which he can maneuver his shield to defend himself and allies against oncoming opponents, the developers have made some of Sigma’s weaknesses more prominent. Specifically, with Kinetic Grasp, he can no longer block Chain Hook or Whip Shot, making Roadhog and Brigitte more viable counters.
Experimental Barrier
- Regeneration rate reduced from 175 to 150 per second
- Now has a one-second cooldown after recalling the barrier
- Initial 0.2 second cast time removed
Blizzard also added a cooldown and reduced the rate of regeneration for the barrier once it is recalled, which should make Sigma players more cautious in where they toss out their defenses.
Likewise, Symmetra was hit with some nerfs to her turrets and Photon Barrier.
Photon Barrier
- Duration reduced from 15 to 12 seconds
- Health reduced from 5000 to 4000
Sentry Turret
- Damage per second reduced from 50 to 40
Neither are character breaking, but it does change how Symmetra players will choose to engage based on the loss of turret damage.
On the other hand, Roadhog got a slight buff in the form of an extra shot to his Scrap Gun, which will allow him more time to lay into barriers without having to reload. This, along with the Sigma nerf make him a great counter for the character.
Sombra also got a nice change based completely on her Translocator.
Translocator
- Cooldown increased from four to six seconds
- Cooldown now begins immediately upon deploying the beacon or if it is killed by an enemy
This rework essentially just makes the ability more of a utility when actually in combat. Once it is thrown, the cooldown starts, rather than when it is used. Allowing for multiple new strategies or quick exits.
The last big hit came in the form of Doomfist getting nerfed on both the offensive and defensive side. With how the DPS hero adds shields to himself after hitting opponents, reducing the damage and Shield health gained is a brutal change.
Rocket Punch
- Time to reach max charge increased from one to 1.4 seconds
The Best Defense…
- Shield health gained per hit reduced from 35 to 30
In the dev notes pointed out that this change was made to give players a slightly longer period to react to the powerful attack while also hindering the hero from surviving long encounters. The changes may seem minor, but it will become an annoyance for anyone who likes playing and punching things.
All of these changes also came with the typical bug fixes to make Overwatch a more polished experience for the millions of players who like to rally up and move the payload. You can read the full details and breakdown for every change on the official Overwatch website.
