Overwatch 2 developers reveal upcoming hero changes

Source: Blizzard

 

It's safe to say that the Overwatch community has been torn over the PvP changes coming to Overwatch 2. Going down to five players and only have one tank per team has been concerning to a lot of competitors and casual players. 

 

Overwatch 2 developers decided to hold a Q&A hosted by Overwatch YouTubers that addresses hero ability changes and tank role updates, explaining how the new 5v5 team composition will be an improvement instead of a source of frustration. 

 

 

Developers aim to "keep the spirit" of each hero going forward, but a lot of heroes will need reworks to fit into the new playstyle. One of those heroes is Bastion, who will be getting reworked "from the ground up." Developers also brought up McCree, who will possibly lose his Stun ability. This, developers noted, will lead to Tracer needing a rework as well due to a lack of counters.

 

Many heroes will also see changes to their ultimate. Developers explained in the Q&A that they will be looking at ultimate that "feel kind of cheap" to create more reasonable counterplay. One of their examples was Pharah, who usually blows people up with rockets before getting shot down. This felt "suicidal," prompting devs to figure out a way to keep Pharah alive a bit easier while also warning enemies of an incoming Barrage to keep it balanced. 

 

Overwatch tanks will have a new passive relating to ultimate as well. Heroes who shoot at tanks won't get as much ultimate charge. But tanks are seeing much larger changes on the horizon. Developers noted that the tank role might be completely renamed to something like "brawlers."

 

"Brawler is a great term," devs said during the discussion. "We've gone so far as to consider changing the name and icon of the category, moving away from tank and into something like 'brawler.' It's something we might still do." 

 

This will hopefully address some players' concerns with the difference between tanks (Reinhardt, Orisa) and off tanks (D.Va, Zarya). Since teams will only have one tank each, the role and function of tanks will have to adapt to this structure. For example, tank mains are concerned that they will face a lot of backlash from teammates if they pick a tank like Wrecking Ball instead of Reinhardt. 

 

For now, it's unclear what exactly all of the tank reworks will include. At BlizzConline, developers showcased some changes to Reinhardt that make the tank more aggressive and make players less likely to stay back with a shield up. Winston also received more fire power, meaning Winston mains will be able to get a bit more aggressive in their playstyle. 

 

 

But other changes are still coming. Developers are even considering making Mei into a tank. Or, well, brawler. Changes will keep being announced as developers hope to explain the decision to change PvP to 5v5 with one tank. 

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