Overwatch 2 – All Hero Changes And What It Means For The Meta

Overwatch 2 will be out in just a few hours and is the sequel to the wildly popular team-based FPS shooter. If you’re a long-time fan of the game you’ll know that this remake has a lot of changes coming. The first is that the game will now be free to play and include a Battle Pass system. The rest will be new maps, gameplay modes and hero changes. For the most part, Overwatch heroes have stayed about the same sans Symmetra. But with this new sequel expect some significant changes and an overall change in the metagame.

If you’re a Doomfist main you may not be in Overwatch 2 because he’s now a tank?? Brigitte mains will be said to hear that her shields don’t stun anymore. And the fact that Overwatch 2 is now 5v5 is completely changing everything that we know. So here are all the changes to the heroes coming in from the first Overwatch and how it’s going to affect the game.

 

Hero Roster

Tanks

D.Va	Doomfist	Orisa
Reinhardt	Roadhog	Sigma
Winston	Wrecking Ball	Zarya

Support

Ana	Baptiste	Brigitte
Kiriko	Lucio	Mercy
Moira	Zenyatta

Attack

Ashe	Bastion	Cassidy
Echo	Genji	Hanzo
Junkrat	Mei	Pharah
Reaper	Soldier: 76	Sombra
Symmetra	Torbjorn	Tracer
Widowmaker

 

D.Va

D.Va hasn’t been changed radically, though the adjustments she did receive have quite an impact.

• Total mech health increased from 600 to 650. Normal health increased from 300 to 350.
• Primary fire movement speed penalty was reduced from 50% to 40%.
• Fusion Cannons weapon spread reduced from 4 to 3.5.
• Boosters impact damage increased from 10 to 25.
• Micro Missiles cooldown reduced from 8 to 7 seconds.
• Call Mech Ultimate cost reduced by 12%.

These changes make D.Va slightly less tanky overall than she was before. However, since armour is better overall in Overwatch 2, her armour will be harder for enemies to get through. The buff to her movement speed and the reduction of her primary fire spread means that D.Va is now more mobile in combat and can land critical hits easier, making her more versatile and powerful.

By increasing the impact damage of her Boosters and slightly reducing the cooldown of Micro Missiles, D.Va will now be able to aggressively deal strong bursts of damage against her opponents more frequently.

Similar to the original game, the best way to use D.Va is to nullify enemy projectiles and abilities with her Defense Matrix while harassing foes with her Fusion Cannons and Micro Missiles. Her Boosters are also as useful as ever for chasing down enemies and bullying ranged heroes off high-ground positions.

 

Doomfist

Doomfist is a hero who has gotten a complete rework in Overwatch 2, having completely changed classes. He’s now a tank instead of an attack character.

• Doomfist is now a tank hero.
• Base health increased from 250 to 450.
• Rising Uppercut has been removed.
• Hand Cannon damage reduced from 6 to 5 per pellet. Ammo regen rate increased from 0.65 seconds/shot to 0.4 seconds/shot.
• Rocket Punch impact damage range reduced from 50-100 to 15-30 damage. Wall slam damage range reduced from 50-150 to 20-40 damage. The maximum charge-up time was reduced from 1.4 to 1.0 seconds. Impacting a target now causes a secondary larger cone area to grab extra targets, dealing damage and knockback to them as well.
• Gained Power Block. This ability allows Doomfist to block 80% of incoming damage but reduces his movement speed by 35%. Blocking 100 damage empowers your next Rocket Punch with 50% more damage, 50% more speed and distance, a larger secondary knockback area-of-effect, and an additional 0.5 to 1 second of stun after the target hits a wall (dependent on punch charge amount).
• Seismic Slam now launches Doomfist into the air in the direction the player is aiming and creates a wide shockwave after landing that deals 50 damage. It can also be cancelled by pressing the ability button again.
• Meteor Strike Ultimate damage range reduced from 15-200 to 15-100 (still does 300 damage to targets in the centre of the impact zone). The Ultimate’s knockback has also been removed, but all enemies hit by the ability are slowed by 50% for 2 seconds. Cast time was reduced from 1 to 0.5 seconds.

As a tank, Doomfist’s overall role in combat is now to soak up damage with Power Block and draw aggro from enemy players. However, he can still dish out plenty of consistent damage and disrupt enemy formations with his knockbacks. While Rocket Punch isn’t nearly as powerful as it once was, its ability to push back multiple targets allows Doomfist to open enemies up to follow-up damage from his allies. Seismic Slam now also works like Winston’s leap, allowing him to quickly get into the thick of the fight easily.

Generally, Doomfist is most effective when fighting team compositions that don’t have much mobility, as heroes like Tracer and Genji can avoid his punches with relative ease. In contrast, grounded heroes such as Reinhardt, Orisa, Sigma, Bastion, and Soldier: 76 struggle to avoid Doomfist’s abilities. Doomfist is also a very strong counter to immobile supports like Zenyatta and Baptiste, as neither of them can quickly escape from Rocket Punch stuns or Seismic Slam dives.

 

Orisa

Out of all of the reworks in Overwatch 2 so far, Orisa’s is arguably the most significant. Orisa is now an offence-oriented character who can push into enemy lines and push them back to take ground, similar to Reinhardt.

• Protective Barrier removed.
• Halt! removed.
• Supercharger Ultimate removed.
• Base armour increased from 200 to 275. Base health increased from 200 to 275.
• Gained Augmented Fusion Driver. This weapon deals 12 damage per shot, has a critical hit bonus of 100% and has a 15-25 meter damage falloff range. It also doesn’t have a magazine and is instead heat-based. When the weapon overheats, players cannot fire for 3 seconds.
• Fortify now provides 125 Overhealth when activated, and it also prevents her from taking critical damage. It also reduces heat buildup on Orisa’s Augmented Fusion Driver by 50% while active. Duration increased from 4 to 4.5 seconds.
• Gained Energy Javelin. This ability allows Orisa to throw an energy javelin that deals 60 damage, stuns enemies for 0.2 seconds, and knocks them back 6 meters. If an enemy collides with a wall when struck with the javelin, they take an additional 40 damage and are stunned for an extra 0.3 seconds. 6second cooldown.
• Gained Javelin Spin. Orisa rapidly spins an energy javelin for 1.75 seconds, destroying enemy projectiles and gaining a 50% buff to forward movement speed while active. Orisa can also use this ability to push enemies back and deal up to 90 damage. 7second cooldown.
• Gained Terra Surge Ultimate. Orisa pulls enemies in and gains the effects of Fortify, dealing an area-of-effect attack over 4 seconds of charging. Releasing the attack deals up to 500 damage depending on how long the attack was charged. While the attack is charging, Terra Surge deals minor damage over time and slows enemy movement by 30%.

With the removal of her shield and Halt! crowd control, Orisa players now need to make effective use of her Energy Javelin and Javelin Spin ability to push into enemies and take ground. Her extra health and armour allow her to soak up more damage than she could before, and her new Augmented Fusion Driver can deal tons of damage up close (though it becomes less effective at a range). 

She’s generally pretty effective against most heroes, though she struggles to deal with airborne characters and “tank buster” heroes like Junkrat and Bastion. She’s also weak against Zarya, as Zarya can damage her through her Javelin Spin with her Particle Cannon primary fire.

 

Reinhardt

Reindhardt plays about the same with minor tweaks for the meta:

• Steadfast passive removed (replace by global tank passive).
• Base armour increased from 200 to 300. Base health increased from 300 to 325.
• Barrier Field health was reduced from 1600 to 1200. Regeneration rate reduced from 200 to 144 health per second.
• Charge steering turn rate increased by 50%. Can now be manually cancelled. Charge Pin wall impact damage reduced from 300 to 225. Cooldown reduced from 10 to 8 seconds.
• Fire Strike now has two charges but deals 90 damage instead of 100.

The lethality of Reinhardt’s Charge and Fire Strike abilities have been lowered, but they’ve been made more controllable and accessible to compensate. The nerfs to his Barrier Field make it harder for him to shield his teammates for extended periods, though the buff to his health and armour pool means that Reinhardt is much more durable than before.

Reinhardt is outclassed by more mobile tanks like Winston and Doomfist on maps that are more open, but he excels in maps like King’s Row which are tighter and have less room for manoeuvring. He’s also effective at brawling against Orisa, as his Rocket Hammer and Charge can chunk her health down significantly whenever she doesn’t have Fortify available.

 

Roadhog

Roadhog has had a complete rework of his Ultimate, with the rest of his kit staying more or less the same:

• Take a Breather healing increased from 300 to 350.
• The Whole Hog Ultimate now has to be fired manually, but it cannot be cancelled with stuns. Additionally, Roadhog can use other abilities while Whole Hog is active.

Now, Roadhog can combo Chain Hook pulls into his Whole Hog, allowing him to pick off squishy heroes with deadly efficiency. You can also use Take a Breather while Whole Hog is active to heal up if necessary.

Even with the rework to Whole Hog, Roadhog is generally considered to be the worst tank in Overwatch 2 right now. While the deadly Chain Hook and Scrap Gun combo is as effective as ever for punishing disorganized teams, coordinated players can exploit Roadhog’s lack of additional combat options very easily. On top of that, Roadhog doesn’t have any form of damage mitigation for his teammates to take advantage of, meaning that he doesn’t offer any protection.

 

Sigma

Sigma has gotten some notable buffs and a slight nerf in Overwatch 2:

• Base shields increased from 100 to 200.
• Accretion damage increased from 70 to 100.
• Experimental Barrier regeneration rate was reduced from 120 to 100.

Aside from Reinhardt, Sigma is now the only other tank in Overwatch 2 that can protect his teammates with a traditional barrier. The buff to his shield health makes him more durable than he was before, while the increased damage of Accretion makes the ability more powerful and rewarding to land. The slight nerf to his barrier’s regeneration means that Sigma players won’t be able to keep it up as often, but Sigma’s high damage output with Hyperspheres still forces enemies to respect his position.

Ultimately, Sigma is a strong pick in maps that have lots of hallways and corners to bounce Hyperspheres around but will struggle against agile characters since they can dodge his abilities easily. His lack of long-range moves also makes him weak to snipers like Hanzo or Widowmaker.

 

Winston

Winston received some changes in Overwatch 2, including a new secondary fire ability:

• Base armour increased from 150 to 200.
• New Tesla Cannon secondary fire can be used to charge and release a 30-meter range jolt of electricity. It deals up to 50 damage and costs up to 12 ammo.
• Barrier Projector health increased from 650 to 700. Duration reduced from 9 to 8 seconds. Cooldown reduced from 13 to 12 seconds.
• Primal Rage Ultimate cost increased by 20%.

Winston’s new Tesla Cannon secondary fire allows him to poke at enemy players whenever he’s not diving in with his leap to harass squishy heroes.

Winston has always been a top-tier pick in Overwatch, and he’s even better in Overwatch 2 since Winston is very mobile and has the ability to split up enemy formations with his Barrier Projector bubble. He has the firepower to take down damage and support heroes fairly quickly, and though he isn’t able to fight with the opposing team’s tank very well, he can use his leap to stay away from them. Winston is also one of the few tanks that’s capable of effectively dealing with Widowmaker and other long-range heroes since he can leap to them from afar, forcing them to retreat or reposition. 

Winston’s main counters are characters that can dish out high volumes of damage very quickly, such as Bastion or Reaper.

 

Wrecking Ball

Wrecking Ball has been buffed with extra durability that will help him stay alive longer as a solo tank:

• Base armour increased from 100 to 150. Base health increased from 500 to 550.
• Adaptive Shield radius increased from 8 to 10 meters. Health gained per target increased from 75 to 100 health.
• Roll knockback increased by 36%.

Between the buffs to his armour and health and the improvements to his Adaptive Shield, Wrecking Ball is more resilient than he’s ever been before. This will help him survive as he knocks the enemy team around and softens the heroes up with his machine guns. Additionally, Wrecking Ball’s knockback against enemies has been buffed, allowing him to roll through enemy compositions and split them apart more easily.

Despite these buffs, though, Wrecking Ball is considered a niche pick in Overwatch 2. In most cases, other tank heroes are more effective, though Wrecking Ball is useful for quickly getting to and contesting a point by rapidly rolling around it. His Minefield Ultimate is also one of the best area denial abilities in the game, and if you manage to get it during Overtime, it can often be game-winning.

 

Zarya

Zarya has some changes that give her more shield uptime in Overwatch 2:

• Base health increased from 200 to 250. Base shields increased from 200 to 225.
• Particle Barrier (self-shield) now has a 10-second cooldown on a shared 2-charge system with Projected Barrier (shielding allies). Cooldown now begins immediately on ability use instead of when the barrier has expired. Barrier’s duration increased from 2 to 2.5 seconds.
• Allies shielded with Projected Barrier cannot be targeted again by the ability for 2 seconds.
• Energy degeneration increased from 1.8 to 2.2 per second.

With the ability to shield herself twice or protect two allies in quick succession, a reduced energy degeneration rate, and extra health and shields, Zarya’s ability to protect her team and dish out powerful damage has been significantly increased. She’s arguably one of the strongest tanks in Overwatch 2 right now, as her bubble shields can soak up lots of damage and there aren’t many shields in the game that can stop her Particle Cannon. Graviton Surge is also one of the few Ultimates that can force agile heroes into a clump for easy follow-up damage. 

Like other grounded and brawly tanks, she struggles against tank busters like Bastion and Junkrat.

 

Ana

Ana plays largely the same in Overwatch 2:

• Ana’s Biotic Rifle ammo has been increased from 12 to 15 rounds.
• Ana’s Sleep Dart cooldown has been increased from 12 to 15 seconds.
• Ana’s Biotic Grenade duration has been reduced from 4 to 3 seconds.

Since Overwatch 2 has significantly reduced the presence of stun and boop abilities in the game, Ana’s Sleep Dart is one of the last few forms of hard crowd control.

Overall, Ana is one of the strongest support heroes in Overwatch 2 despite slight nerfs to her abilities. She still plays the same way with her Sleep Dart being able to stop Ultimates. And her Biotic Grenade’s anti-heal if timed right can decimate an entire team.

 

Baptise

Baptise has gotten a few buffs in Overwatch 2 making him a better healer:

• Biotic Launcher primary fire damage increased from 24 to 25.
• Damage falloff range increased from 20 to 25 meters.
• Regenerative Burst healing to allies increased from 75 to 100 HP.
• Biotic Launcher Alternate Fire healing ammo increased from 10 to 13 rounds.

Baptiste’s Regenerative Burst healing and Biotic Launcher healing uptime have been buffed in Overwatch 2 to make him more active in team fights. You can heal groups of teammates much more with Regenerative Burst now, and the extra healing ammo in the Biotic Launcher makes it easier to effectively heal as Baptiste whenever your team isn’t grouped up.

Like in the original Overwatch, Baptiste is strongest when you take a defensive position on high ground with his Exo Boots jumps. Baptiste is a good pick if you have ranged damage characters like Soldier: 76, Sojourn, Ashe, or Cassidy, they’ll pair well with his Ultimate: Amplification Matrix.

 

Brigitte

Brigitte has had the removal of her stun, but other than that remains largely the same:

• Shield Bash no longer stuns enemies. Cooldown reduced from 7 to 5 seconds. Distance travelled increased from 7 to 12 meters. Movement is no longer stopped when impacting barriers. Damage increased from 1 to 50. Knockback doubled.
• Inspire now also triggers off Shield Bash damage.
• Inspire duration reduced from 6 to 5 seconds.

The removal of her Shield Bash’s stun is a huge change to Brigitte, but other than that she largely will play the same as in the original game. Shield Bash is now more of a damage and utility tool, and it can quickly be used to escape from a bad position or deal a quick chunk of 50 damage for initiation or cleanup.

While the lack of stun on Shield Bash makes her less effective at fighting close-range damage heroes overall, the reduced cooldown on the ability allows Brigitte to use it more frequently.

Overall, Brigitte is best played alongside brawly close-range characters like Reinhardt, Doomfist, Roadhog, Reaper, and Mei. Her Inspire healing is incredibly easy to continuously proc since her Shield Bash can trigger it.

 

Lucio

Lucio is another hero who hasn’t changed much in Overwatch 2, though some notable balance tweaks were made.

• Crossfade self-healing penalty increased from 30% to 60%.
• Sound Barrier Ultimate cost was reduced by 12%.

In Overwatch 2, Lucio gets his Sound Barrier Ultimate noticeably faster, although his ability to heal himself with his Crossfade ability has been nerfed to balance the fact he can now self-heal an additional 15 HP/second thanks to the new support hero passive. This means that Lucio will be less efficient at healing himself if you’re not good at using wall riding to avoid being damaged.

Lucio is arguably the strongest support hero in Overwatch 2 right now since his ability to speed up his allies is extremely powerful in the 5v5 era, and the fact that he can duel many damage heroes effectively makes him very versatile. He’s very effective in any composition and can be quite difficult to counter.

 

Mercy

Mercy has a few buffs in Overwatch 2 to keep her alive longer:

• Regeneration now increases the support role healing passive by 50% (Mercy heals 22.5 HP/second instead of 15).
• Angelic Descent will now additionally slow ascent speed if held, not just decent speed.
• Angelic Descent can now be activated by holding Crouch while airborne.
• The Guardian Angel ability now has a meter that charges up while active.
• Cancelling Guardian Angel by jumping now launches Mercy in the direction she is facing during Guardian Angel.
  • The more charge Mercy has on her meter, the more launch speed she’ll have when cancelling Guardian Angel with a jump.
• Holding the backward directional input and cancelling Guardian Angel launches Mercy in the opposite direction.
• Pressing Crouch during Guardian Angel now launches you straight up.

Mercy is the best support in the game in terms of overall consistency. Her improved version of the support auto-heal passive also allows her to heal quickly after not taking damage for a few seconds. Plus Valkyrie Ultimate’s ability makes it an excellent tool for pushing or holding objectives.

Notably, the recent adjustments to Mercy’s Guardian Angel cancel-into-jump will allow players to boost themselves in any direction by looking towards it before jumping. Players can also choose how weak or strong they want their boost to be by cancelling Guardian Angel when their “boost meter” is small or large, respectively. Additionally, the ability to fling yourself backwards by jumping and holding your backwards directional input allows Mercy players to use a teammate to “springboard” themselves backwards into cover, which has the potential to save your life.

Mercy is weak to hitscan characters like Soldier: 76 and Ashe who can shoot her out of the air easily, but is very effective with other airborne characters such as Pharah or Echo.

 

Moira

No changes to Moira.

 

Zenyatta

Zenyatta has some extra survivability in Overwatch 2:

• Base shields decreased from 175 to 150.
• Orb of Discord time to fall off target when not in the line of sight reduced from 3 to 2 seconds.
• Gained Snap Kick passive. Zenyatta’s melee attacks deal 50% more damage (45 instead of 30) and knock enemies back significantly.

While Zenyatta’s health new Snap Kick passive help him against agile flankers somewhat, he’s still vulnerable to being dove by characters like Genji, Tracer, and Sombra, especially since a recent nerf removed the extra 25 shield HP he gained in the beta previously. Because of this, he’s tough to play in the mobility-focused meta of Overwatch 2, although he can be very powerful if you’re confident enough to duel damage heroes looking to take you out.

Notably, Zenyatta is one of the few characters in the game that can enable quick kills against tanks, as the Orb of Discord debuff makes them significantly easier to take down. Since the Overwatch 2 metagame has significantly fewer shields compared to the original Overwatch, it’s much harder to mitigate the 30% damage amplification effects of Orb of Discord. Because of this, the hero has quickly become a popular choice at higher skill levels despite his lack of mobility. 

 

Ashe

Just one small change has been made to Ashe in Overwatch 2:

• B.O.B. has had his health reduced from 1,200 to 1,000 HP.

Ashe has had virtually no changes made to her for Overwatch 2. She together with Soldier: 76 and Widowmaker are great mid-to-long-range heroes.

Ashe is strong if you’re going up against tanks like Reinhardt or Orisa. Her Dynamite area-of-effect ability is powerful against grouped-up enemies, and despite the nerf to B.O.B.’s health, he’s still great for contesting objectives like capture points or payloads.

 

Bastion

Bastion is one of the heroes that has gotten a complete rework in Overwatch 2.

• Configuration: Sentry and Configuration: Tank removed.
• Self-Repair removed.
• Configuration: Recon damage increased from 20 to 25. Weapon spread reduced from 1.2 to 0. Fire rate reduced from 8 to 5. Ammo reduced from 35 to 25.
• Gained Configuration: Assault. Allows Bastion to transform into a tank and fire his minigun while moving. Reduces movement speed by 35%, lasts 6 seconds, and has a 12-second cooldown. Bastion has infinite ammo while this ability is active.
• Gained A-36 Tactical Grenade. Can bounce off walls and stick to enemies, and does 130 damage. Also has moderate knockback. 8 second cooldown.
• Gained Artillery Ultimate. This Ultimate allows Bastion to fire three artillery shells anywhere on the map. Each shell deals over 200 damage.
• Ironclad passive is enabled again, providing 20% damage resistance while in Assault or Artillery form.

Bastion’s rework in Overwatch 2 allows him to be more mobile than ever before while leveraging his minigun’s vicious power. His new A-36 Tactical Grenade ability is also very useful as both a burst damage weapon and as a tool for grenade jumps, allowing Bastion to get in unorthodox positions easily. The removal of Self-Repair makes him less self-sustainable, though his Ironclad passive that provides 20% damage reduction while in Assault or Artillery form makes him more durable than most damage characters. 

The Artillery Ultimate can be very powerful if used well, though players may escape the radius of your artillery rounds unless you pair it with an immobilizing Ultimate like Graviton Surge. It also leaves you unable to defend yourself while you’re aiming your shots, so just like Junkrat make sure you use the Ultimate from a safe location.

Bastion was best used as a tank buster in the original Overwatch, and that’s still largely the case in Overwatch 2 as well. He’s very powerful when played against Reinhardt and Sigma, though he struggles more against mobile heroes like Genji, Tracer, Reaper, and D.Va.

 

Cassidy

Cassidy mostly plays as he did in the original Overwatch, but with one large change:

• Flashbang has been removed.
• Gained Magnetic Grenade. This ability sticks to enemies and explodes, dealing 131 damage.
• Peacekeeper “Fan the Hammer” fire rate increased by 7.5%.
• Combat Roll grants 50% damage reduction when used.
• Deadeye Ultimate grants 40% damage reduction and the maximum duration is increased from 6 to 7 seconds. Deadeye also builds at 130 damage/second for 2 seconds and then ramps up to 260 damage/second. Deadeye Ultimate cost has also been increased by 10%.

By far, the most significant change in Cassidy’s kit is the removal of his Flashbang. The Magnetic Grenade that replaces it is a powerful burst damage ability. But the lack of a stun means that Cassidy is now more vulnerable to close-range heroes such as Reaper, Tracer, and Doomfist.

With that said, the Deadeye Ultimate is considerably more viable now than in the original Overwatch since it reduces incoming damage significantly and can be channelled for longer. The 10% cost increase is mostly compensation for the new Magnetic Grenade’s damage, so Cassidy players won’t notice it much.

Cassidy is one of Overwatch 2‘s best mid-range duelists now that he has a burst damage ability to compliment the power of his Peacekeeper revolver, and also because his Combat Roll now gives him significant damage resistance. However, he’s not very effective against long-range heroes like Widowmaker. Additionally, since you no longer have a stun that can keep enemies in place, you shouldn’t use Fan the Hammer often unless you’re shooting into tank barriers.

 

Echo

Echo plays the same though her Ultimate has been nerfed significantly.

• Focusing Beam maximum DPS reduced from 200 to 175.
• Duplicate max health reduced from enemy hero HP total to a maximum of 300. For example, even though D.Va has 650 health, duplicating her will only give Echo 300 health.

Aside from a slight nerf to Echo’s Focusing Beam, the only difference between her kit in Overwatch 2 compared to the original is a 300 HP cap on her Duplicate Ultimate. This change was made because many Echo players felt like duplicating tanks was always the best option in fights due to their high health pools. Also, because tanks have been buffed significantly overall in Overwatch 2, being able to have two of them on the field without any limitations would likely have made Duplicate feel too strong.

Echo isn’t the strongest damage hero in Overwatch 2, but she’s still viable in the right hands. Her Flight and Glide abilities give her consistent and valuable mobility, while her Tri-Shot weapon and Sticky Bombs are capable of good burst damage.

Play her together with a good healer that can keep up with her such as Mercy or Zenyatta. And watch out for characters with hitscan weapons such as Soldier: 76, Cassidy, and Ashe.

 

Genji

No changes to Genji.

 

Hanzo

Hanzo has only gotten one change in Overwatch 2:

• Storm Arrow damage reduced from 70 to 65 per shot.

Assuming you don’t hit any headshots, this means that you’ll need four Storm Arrows to kill a 200 HP hero instead of three, which is likely a change that the developers made with Overwatch 2‘s lower amount of shielding in mind. Aside from that, Hanzo plays just like he did in the original Overwatch, effectively fulfilling the role of mid-to-long-range sniper.

Generally, Hanzo is best against projectile characters like Pharah and Junkrat as well as Torbjörn and his turret, though he can also duel heroes like Cassidy and Ashe effectively, too. However, Hanzo struggles when facing shield-focused compositions lead by Reinhardt or Sigma, as their barriers make it difficult for him to deal effective damage.

Use him as an alternative to Widowmaker in maps with fewer long-range sightlines such as King’s Row and on Push maps.

 

Junkrat

Junkrat is a tiny bit more of a powerhouse in Overwatch 2:

• Frag Launcher projectile size increased from 0.2 to 0.25.
• Steel Trap damage has been increased from 80 to 100, and its projectile speed has been increased from 10 to 15.

Junkrat’s Frag Launcher projectiles now have a larger hitbox, which will make it easier for players to directly hit opponents with grenades and achieve maximum damage. Steel Trap is also more effective as it does more damage and can be placed faster. 

He’s effective at blowing through Reinhardt and Sigma barriers, and he’s even a solid pick against Doomfist since the Steel Trap halts him in his tracks and prevents him from using the abilities he needs to stay alive.

 

Mei

Mei has received a plethora of changes in Overwatch 2 that alter how she plays.

• Endothermic Blaster freeze stun removed. Immediately slows targets by a constant 50% instead of building up over time. Slow duration reduced from 1.0 to 0.5 seconds. Damage per second increased from 55 to 100. Ammo increased from 120 to 150.
• Cryo-Freeze no longer removes Sigma Gravitic Flux effect.
• Ice Wall pillar health reduced from 400 to 250. Range reduced from 35 to 20 meters.
• Blizzard Ultimate cost increased by 15%.

While Mei losing the ability to hard stun a player by freezing them seems like a nerf, the fact that her Endothermic Blaster’s damage per second has been doubled means her damage output is more consistent. On top of that, the weapon can fully slow down players instantly now, making that aspect of her kit more useful overall. While the Blizzard Ultimate does have a higher cost, Mei’s increased damage output means that in reality, you’ll get it just as fast as you did in the original game.

Mei is best played both with and against grounded and brawly heroes such as Reinhardt, Sigma, Orisa, Junkrat, and Bastion. She’s a good choice in tighter maps like Dorado or King’s Row. But gets hard countered by long-range heroes like Pharah and Widowmaker, though.

 

Pharah

Pharah has received a few small buffs in Overwatch 2:

• Rocket Launcher reload starts 0.25 seconds faster when out of ammo.
• Concussive Blast now deals 30 damage and deals additional knockback on direct hits.

Overall, Pharah continues to struggle in Overwatch 2 since the hitscan heroes that naturally counter her are very strong. She’s capable of huge damage from above if you can catch foes off-guard. But unless the map you’re on has tall structures you can use to take cover or hide your approach while flying, you’ll be easy pickings for an accurate Soldier: 76, Ashe, or Widowmaker.

If you do decide to play Pharah, make sure you have a Mercy that can fly with you, heal you, and damage boost your rockets.

 

Reaper

Reaper has gotten some minor nerfs to his shotguns in Overwatch 2:

• Hellfire Shotguns damage per pellet reduced from 6 to 5.4. Spread increased from 6 to 7.

These changes to Reaper’s shotguns make them slightly less potent in combat, but since the battlefields of Overwatch 2 are more open and aren’t as clogged up with tanking abilities, Reaper is significantly more viable overall than he was in the original game. 

He’s best against slower characters who don’t have much mobility and can be easily flanked with his Shadow Step teleport, especially since there aren’t many stuns in the game that can interrupt his Death Blossom Ultimate anymore. However, he has a hard time-fighting characters who can frequently reposition or take to the skies, such as Pharah, Mercy, Echo, Genji, and Tracer.

 

Soldier: 76

Soldier: 76 has received some new nerfs in Overwatch 2:

• Heavy Pulse Rifle damage reduced from 20 to 18.
• The Tactical Visor Ultimate no longer removes damage falloff from the Heavy Pulse Rifle, though players can now score headshots while the Ultimate is active by aiming at an enemy’s head.

The reductions to Soldier’s damage make it tougher for him to overpower his opponents with raw firepower, though he’s still a very powerful pick since there aren’t many shields in the game anymore. Though he doesn’t have the burst impact of characters like Widowmaker or Ashe, Soldier: 76 is a very reliable, consistent, and well-rounded hero. His Helix Rockets are also effective at confirming kills on injured targets, and Biotic Field makes him one of the most self-sufficient damage heroes in the game.

Generally, Soldier: 76 will be the most powerful on maps where you can perch on high ground overlooking capture point or payload objectives. He’s also an effective counter to heroes like Pharah, Mercy, and Echo. However, he has a shorter effective range than Ashe or Widowmaker and lacks the vertical mobility offered by Sojourn’s Power Slide.

 

Sombra

Sombra has been changed significantly in Overwatch 2, and is now more of an assassin-style character rather than a team support:

• Machine Pistol damage reduced from 8 to 7. Spread reduced by 10%.
• Hack cooldown reduced from 8 to 4 seconds, but the cooldown is no longer reduced when hacking health packs. Cast time increased from 0.65 to 0.85 seconds. Health pack hack duration reduced from 60 to 30 seconds. Ability lock duration reduced from 5 seconds to 1.75 seconds. Reveals hacked enemies through walls to Sombra’s team for 8 seconds. Interrupting Hack during the channel time now incurs the full cooldown. Stun duration on Bob reduced from 5 seconds to 2 seconds. Hack now destroys Baptiste’s Immortality Field.
• Stealth fade-in time reduced by 50%. The enemy detection radius increased from 2 to 4 meters.
• Sombra can now use Hack during Stealth without ending the Stealth ability but is revealed to enemies while hacking and for 0.75 seconds after hacking.
• Gains Opportunist passive. Damage dealt to hacked targets is now increased by 40%.

Mobility is generally the meta in Overwatch 2, and these changes to Sombra make her one of the game’s most effective mobile damage heroes. While her Hack now only prevents enemies from using abilities for just 1.75 seconds, it also makes the victim take 40% more damage from Sombra and her allies and allows her team to see their position for eight seconds. 

These changes, alongside the buffs to Sombra’s Machine Pistol and the ability for Sombra to Hack while in Stealth, make her extremely effective at picking off enemies she’s able to catch off guard. Sombra has no strong counters at the moment, making her one of the best heroes in the game.

Symmetra

Many of Symmetra’s abilities have been adjusted for Overwatch 2, though the fundamental way she plays has remained the same.

• Photon Projector maximum ammo increased from 70 to 100. Primary fire no longer generates ammo when damaging barriers. Secondary fire projectile speed increased from 25 to 50. Secondary fire max damage reduced from 120 to 90 (45 impact, 45 explosion). Secondary fire max charge projectile size increased from 0.4 to 0.5. Secondary fire ammo cost increased from 7 to 10. Secondary fire charge time reduced from 1.2 seconds to 1 second.
• Teleporter build time reduced from 2 to 1 second. Teleporter now has a maximum lifetime of 10 seconds. Cooldown increased from 10 to 12 seconds (starts when teleporter is placed). Health reduced from 300 to 200 (50 health, 150 shields). Range reduced from 30 to 22.
• Sentry Turret travel speed increased from 15 to 20. Movement speed reduction on targets reduced from 20% per turret to 15% per turret.

While the buff to Symmetra’s Photon Projector maximum ammo gives her more uptime overall, the various nerfs to its secondary fire make it more difficult for Symmetra to effectively “poke” at enemies outside of her short primary fire range. Additionally, the improvements to Teleporter build speed and Sentry Turret deployment speed are offset by a health reduction for the former ability and effectiveness nerf for the latter.

Ultimately, Symmetra is probably the weakest hero in Overwatch 2 since she doesn’t have enough range to be effective in most damage hero duels and struggles to keep up in the fast-paced metagame of the sequel. Some teleporter strategies can work if your opponent doesn’t adapt to them, but overall, you’re better off choosing a different character. She was a solid pick when Overwatch had more shields and tanks and defending chokepoints was a larger part of the game’s combat flow, but that era has passed.

 

Torbjörn

With Overwatch 2 increasing the pace of encounters, Blizzard has improved Torbjörn’s overall combat uptime:

• Rivet Gun primary fire recovery reduced from 0.6 to 0.55 seconds. Rivet Gun secondary fire reduced from 0.8 to 0.7 seconds.

With the reductions to the fire recovery of the Rivet Gun, Torbjörn is now more able to keep up with the fast-paced nature of Overwatch 2. While he’s far from being a meta pick, Torbjörn is still an effective choice against flankers since his turret can easily keep up with their movement abilities. He’s also a solid pick when coming up against slower compositions, as his Rivet Gun can do a surprising amount of damage to enemy shields and his turret can whittle down slow and tanky characters from afar.

 

Tracer

Tracer’s Pulse Pistols are nerfed slightly in Overwatch 2:

• Pulse Pistols damage reduced from 6 to 5.

In Overwatch, Tracer’s bullets only did 1 damage to armored targets, but in Overwatch 2, they do 3.5. Tracer has always been one of Overwatch‘s most mobile heroes thanks to the power of her Blink and Recall abilities. She’s a fantastic hero who performs well when harassing supports like Mercy and Zenyatta, and she’s also better against tanks now thanks to the way armor damage mitigation has been reworked.

She can also duel most damage heroes in the game effectively, but will have a harder time killing airborne targets like Pharah or faraway enemies like Widowmaker. She’s also a weaker choice against Torbjörn, as his turret can keep up with her mobility and she can be killed in one headshot up close by the alternate fire of his Rivet Gun.

 

Widowmaker

Widowmaker has received a health buff in Overwatch 2 that makes her more durable in combat:

• Base health increased from 175 to 200.

Widowmaker so far remains mostly unchanged in Overwatch 2, though the extra 25 health helps her stay alive longer in the scrappier and fast-paced fights of the sequel. While she won’t get any value fighting other heroes up close, she’s deadly at long ranges as long as you can hit your shots. 

She’s one of the strongest damage heroes in the game right now due to the lack of strong counters; your biggest threat will likely be another Widowmaker or perhaps a Hanzo, though Genji is also a threat with his high mobility and Deflect ability.

 

OVERWATCH 2

Overwatch 2 is a free-to-play, team-based action game set in the optimistic future, where every match is the ultimate 5v5 battlefield brawl. Play as a time-jumping freedom fighter, a beat-dropping battlefield DJ, or one of over 30 other unique heroes as you battle it out around the globe.  

Overwatch 2 is available on the PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and PC – Battle.Net.

If you’d like to learn how to play better in Overwatch 2, check out our other guide article here on play styles and picks.