Some of the most oppressive forces in Overwatch 2 are being tuned down to better adhere to Blizzard’s balance standards in the new five-vs-five gameplay.
Blizzard has announced the first round of hero changes coming to Overwatch 2 since its release earlier this month, following confusion over the lack of balance adjustments in the Halloween Terror update and a supposed “leak” of buffs and nerfs. Though not many heroes are being tuned this time, those that are have fully enjoyed the five-vs-five gameplay present in the sequel, while one another has teleported around maps a bit too freely. These changes are expected to release in the game on Nov. 15.
Players have been very vocal about the sheer strength of both Genji and Sombra, two damage heroes with large amounts of mobility that can shred through entire backlines by themselves, leading to nerfs in this patch. Genji is having his maximum ammo and shuriken damage reduced greatly, though his damage remains untouched. Sombra will no longer be able to hack enemies that are already hacked and will deal less damage to them, giving squishy targets a bit more time to react.
Among the tanks being nerfed is Zarya, whose barrier charges have made her an even more oppressive option, now being able to fully charge her Particle Cannon almost twice as fast. Both the duration of her barriers and their cooldowns are being nerfed to ensure they aren’t being spammed excessively. D.Va’s damage is also being slightly nerfed through her Boosters, though she’s receiving a bit more spread on her Fusion Cannon in compensation.
Overwatch 2’s newest hero, Kiriko, has become an oppressive support option thanks to her various forms of utility and the large amount of damage she can deal with her kunais. But where Blizzard is looking at her kit in her first nerf is her ability Swift Step, which allows her to teleport to nearby allies—even through walls. The invulnerability window she gets for a very brief period after using this ability is being lowered to open up more opportunities for counterattacks after Kiriko warps away.
Interestingly, Sojourn did not make the list of hero adjustments, despite many players—both casual and professional—deeming the DPS hero greatly overtuned with her mobility and the power of her railgun. Fans noted the other day that nearly all of the top 50 damage players use Sojourn in some capacity, though no nerfs to her kit appear to be in sight.
All of these hero changes will be released in Overwatch 2 on Nov. 15 but will be active during the Overwatch League Playoffs on Oct. 30. Blizzard previously shared that it is not looking at balancing heroes throughout the duration of seasons but rather updating them as each season comes, so it is likely that no further balance changes will take place in season one.
