New Overwatch Patch Provides Some Dynamic Hero Changes

The Overwatch Update Also Brings a New Map

Blizzard is constantly delivering more to their hero shooter Overwatch, and more means more balance changes. In the latest patch, Patch 1.23.0.1, a variety of features and changes have been implemented alongside the usual fixes.

The most noteworthy changes are those implemented for the heroes of Overwatch. Tracer has received her first nerf in a long time. Minor as it may be, it reduces her potency by decreasing the damage of her Pulse Bomb. Junkrat has received a similar nerf, albeit probably more drastic. Then there’s Hanzo, whose Scatter Arrow has been replaced by a new ability. Support class Brigitte now has a smaller cone of effect for Shield Bash. Meanwhile, Lucio’s wall ride has increased in speed. You can view all the specifics in the patch notes below.

Brigitte

• Shield Bash
  • Cone angle reduced from 90 to 60

Developer Comments: When fighting against Brigitte, it often felt like Shield Bash was able to hit players who felt like they were out of its range and should have dodged it. On the flip side, when playing as Brigitte sometimes players would hit the wrong enemy in the middle of a fight. With the cone being reduced, the ability is more accurate to its visual representation.

Genji

• Deflect
  • Hitbox size has been reduced

Developer Comments: The hitbox on Genji’s Deflect was big enough that it would sometimes reflect projectiles that were pretty far away from him. We’ve tightened up the hitbox, which should solve this problem while still fully protecting him from projectiles that would hit him from the front.

Hanzo

• Storm Bow
  • Projectile speed increased from 85 to 100
• Sonic Arrow
  • Cooldown decreased from 20 seconds to 12 seconds
  • Duration decreased from 10 seconds to 6 seconds
  • Radius decreased from 10 meters to 7 meters
• New Abilities
  • Lunge
    • Press jump while in the air to leap horizontally
  • Storm Arrows
    • Replaces his existing Scatter Arrow ability
    • Hanzo can now rapidly fire up to 6 arrows that deal reduced damage but are always fired at full power

Developer Comments: The goal of these Hanzo changes is to allow him to have new options and maintain his high damage output, while removing the frustration of fighting against the old Scatter Arrow. Hanzo is now much more mobile with his new Lunge ability, and with the combination of the bow projectile speed increase and the new Storm Arrows ability he can now deal his high damage more consistently than ever before.

Junkrat

• Frag Launcher
  • Projectile size decreased from 0.3 to 0.2
• RIP-Tire
  • Tire movement speed decreased from 13 to 12

Developer Comments: These changes are aimed at lowering some of the most frustrating parts about playing against Junkrat. Decreasing the Frag Launcher’s projectile size means he will have to aim a bit more carefully to land powerful direct hits and slowing the RIP-Tire’s movement speed gives his opponents slightly more time to destroy it before it detonates.

Lúcio

• Wall Ride
  • Wall riding is less likely to be interrupted along a single surface
  • Can now go around corners (both outside corners, and inside corners) without having to leave the wall
  • Can now land back on the same wall after leaping away, provided his leap takes him far enough away from the original jumping off point
  • Added a minimum time that the jump key must be held before Lúcio can ride around corners
• Soundwave
  • No longer consumes ammo
  • Can now be used while reloading

Developer Comments: Wall Ride has been significantly overhauled to allow it to function more smoothly across more areas of every map. Lúcio players should instantly notice a huge improvement in where and how Wall Ride can be used. In addition, Sonic Amplifier’s Soundwave ability was unnecessarily controlled by both a cooldown and an ammo cost, so we’re removing the ammo cost.

Tracer

• Pulse Bomb
  • Max damage decreased from 400 to 300

Developer Comments: Pulse Bomb was too good at killing tanks, who can be easy to stick due to their size. This damage reduction makes it less powerful as a tank-destroyer, while keeping it lethal against most other heroes.

Alongside the hero alterations, players shall witness an all-new escort map: Rialto. However, the map won’t be playable in Competetive Play. Speaking of which, Season 10 has begun, which means there are opportunities to earn new ranks. Check back for more Overwatch updates as they come, and let us know your thoughts on these new changes by commenting down below.

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