Every new competitive season, Blizzard releases a massive balance patch to Overwatch 2 that often results in drastic meta shifts. For season six, over half of the heroes in the game were adjusted in some way, and the game’s newest hero, Illari, made her debut.
The main changes in the season six patch on Aug. 10 were adjustments to armor health, widespread tweaks to tank heroes, and changes to Kiriko and Lifeweaver alongside Illari’s release.
Despite the changes in the patch, the main shifts in the meta have come from the release of a new hero and a buff to a quite surprising choice of hero: Bastion.
With these changes, we have Dot Esports’ updated hero tier list for Overwatch 2, season six.
Our Overwatch 2 tier list is meant to keep the average player in mind. This tier list takes into account what someone might experience in the high Gold and low Platinum ranks of the game, as well as what heroes are especially prominent in professional play and the Top 500.
The goal of this list is to let players know what the best heroes are in the game, as well as guide players to the top picks to rank up with. Everyone might want to play the “meta” heroes to rank up quickly, but if you find them too mechanically challenging, there are ample hero selections for each role that will allow you to focus less on what abilities to use and more on situational awareness.
Overwatch 2 tank hero tier list
- Best choice: Orisa, Junker Queen
- Great picks: Doomfist, D.Va
- Good: Sigma, Ramattra, Reinhardt, Zarya
- Map/composition-dependent: Winston
- Not recommended: Wrecking Ball, Roadhog
The standout tank since the season six patch has been Orisa. With an increase in her damage falloff range and a huge buff to her Fortify ability—meaning she now gets a 125 HP bonus instead of just 75—Orisa is an absolute unit on any Overwatch 2 map. She is one of the tanks in the game with the strongest presence with her huge HP pool and ability to push enemies out of her way.
Ever since receiving buffs during the mid-cycle season four patch many months ago, Junker Queen has been a standout tank in Overwatch 2. Despite her dominance, she received no changes in the season six patch. So if you’re used to playing her already, keep doing what you’re doing—no need to learn Orisa if you’ve never chosen her in a match before.
The biggest downside to Junker Queen is how unique she is to play. Without a shield, her sustainability is heavily reliant on keeping up her bleeds and timing Commanding Shout. If that task is too tough for you, it might be worthwhile to pick a hero with a simpler kit.
Doomfist is another tank that has been noticeably rising up the ranks since the season six patch. A character that has seldom seriously been viable since his switch from a DPS to a tank, Doomfist players seem to suddenly be finding their niche this season.
D.Va’s buffs to her Boosters give her the slightest bit more mobility than she had before, enabling her to be more effective in a certain playstyle. Use her Defense Matrix efficiently and she can be a reliable choice.
For those who want to play the shield game, we actually recommend Sigma over Ramattra this season. Both heroes have a lot to offer and can also pack a punch if you regularly queue into matches where your DPS isn’t necessarily up to snuff, but a quiet buff to Sigma’s movement in the latest patch gives him a more solid tank presence.
At the same time, Reinhardt is one of the most-played tank heroes in the game with a solid win rate, according to Overbuff, for good reason. His simplistic kit is easy for nearly any player to wrap their head around. With a shield and the ability to charge in, he’s an excellent tank that will let players focus more on situational awareness and less on maximizing the usage of a variety of abilities. A favorite tank of beginner players, Reinhardt can be fantastic in the right hands.
Only play Winston if your team is set on running a dive composition. Winston goes from being a top-tier pick to less than ideal if you’re not going to run him with other dive heroes like Tracer, Genji, or Sombra.
The loss of Roadhog’s one-shot mechanic makes him practically unplayable, and Blizzard announced a few months ago that his rework wouldn’t be coming in season six, making him a difficult hero to justify playing. Selecting Roadhog or Wrecking Ball is something you’ll only want to see from players who have practiced their mechanics significantly. Both have the potential to be lethal disruptors, but they don’t always mesh well in a team setting.
Overwatch 2 support hero tier list
- Best choice: Baptiste
- Great picks: Illari, Ana, Lúcio
- Good: Kiriko, Zenyatta, Moira
- Composition-dependent: Mercy, Brigitte, Lifeweaver
Baptiste has quickly risen the ranks to be one of the most effective healers in the current meta for season six. His incredible burst healing combined with his immortality field make him one of the most diverse supports in Overwatch 2, and in the right hands, he can do as much targeted damage as a hit scan DPS. In addition, it seems he is thriving even more alongside the game’s newest support as his partner.
Illari was, without a doubt, overpowered on release. Her healing and damage outputs were so powerful, in fact, that Blizzard quickly responded with a mid-season patch adjusting just Illari on Aug. 24. Despite the nerfs to her Heal Pylon and main weapon, she is still a very strong choice and continues to be picked in the Overwatch League. She especially thrives alongside Baptiste.
Ana’s combination of healing throughput and DPS potential at any distance makes her one of the most powerful and flexible support heroes in the game. Nano Boost is still one of the best fight-altering support Ultimates in the game, whether you use it on a tank or DPS hero, and Ana still remains near the top of our support rankings. One thing’s for sure: none of your teammates will ever be upset at you for picking Ana.
Lúcio always tends to get a boost in his effectiveness when tanks like Orisa are also trending in the meta since he can help eliminate her biggest weakness: her speed. As long as you coordinate speed boosts with your team, Lúcio can be an incredible asset, especially in the new Flashpoint mode.
Kiriko is still a solid choice as a support and feels mostly in a balanced state right now. She got a few minor changes in the season six patch, but still largely fills the same role she did in season five.
Mercy and Moira are excellent choices as the main healer if you don’t feel as comfortable with your aim on Ana or Baptiste. Mercy is best used alongside a DPS that can reliably deal a good amount of targeted damage, so picking her still depends on your team composition.
Zenyatta, as always, is a bit of a niche pick for support players who have mastered the art of balancing healing and damage output. He is a tough hero to start out on, but a great Zenyatta player can change the course of a ranked game in seconds.
Brigitte’s viability revolves less around what’s on your team and more around what the other team is running. The shield-wielding youngster is the ultimate anti-dive support player. If you find yourself or your teammates getting picked off regularly by an enemy Tracer, Brig is the best defender around.
After substantial buffs in season six, Lifeweaver might finally be playable. The niche nature of his utility makes it difficult to justify playing him over any of the numerous other support heroes with more consistent output, though there is a chance he could develop into a niche yet effective pick like Zenyatta.
Overwatch 2 DPS hero tier list
- Best choice: Sojourn, Tracer, Soldier: 76
- Great picks: Hanzo, Bastion, Symmetra, Torbjörn, Echo
- Good: Pharah, Reaper, Ashe, Widowmaker, Cassidy
- Map/composition-dependent: Mei, Junkrat, Sombra, Genji, Cassidy
Sojourn is one of the most versatile DPS heroes in Overwatch 2’s lineup. Her incredible mobility aids her in this new patch for season six, because she can not only escape treacherous tank abilities but can also easily flock to her teammate’s powerful support utility. Her primary fire is very strong, and she is also a great hero to start on for beginners learning the ropes.
Yet, there are few heroes in Overwatch 2 that have the capability of carrying a match like Tracer does. While it takes time to get used to her light health pool of just 150, Recall and Blink give her some of the game’s strongest survivability in the right hands. This combination of survivability and pickoff potential can help players soar up the ranked ladder once they’ve practiced enough to consistently one-clip enemy supports.
Soldier: 76 is another great option in the current meta, because of his incredible burst damage. With so many strong support heroes in the pool right now, having a DPS that can target them down fast is key. For the same reason, Hanzo is an excellent pick this season.
Bastion and Symmetra are the big winners of the season six patch, and the two unorthodox DPS heroes have suddenly become more effective. With the trend in the meta being high damage and high heals, having a Bastion or Symmetra can literally melt the opposing team right in front of you. Torbjörn and Echo can both have a similar effect.
Ashe and Cassidy are both fair choices as mid-range DPS. The main issue surrounding Cassidy is the continuous—and potentially unwarranted—changes to his Magnetic Grenade that have left players confused about the purpose of the piece of utility in the first place. Widowmaker, as always, should be a reserved pick for players in the game with the very best aim, since her map presence can be practically invisible without hitting your shots.
Due to the current power of hit scan heroes, Pharah isn’t a recommended pick, though she can be effective to counter Illari, specifically to quickly bring down her Heal Pylon.
Reaper can be used as a flanker, but you’ll likely want to use him more in brawl-style composition, and the same goes for Mei. Meanwhile, the rest of the roster is usable, but it might vary widely depending on the situation. Sombra is suitable in a dive, and her hack can counter especially pesky heroes like Wrecking Ball. Junkrat is an excellent choice for defending a choke, but lacks range and flexibility. Genji doesn’t have enough raw damage in this meta to sustain through a fight.
