Activision Blizzard released new patch notes for Overwatch’s experimental mode, with plenty of big changes to heroes like Doomfist, Roadhog and Wrecking Ball. The team is fundamentally changing some heroes while slightly changing others. All of these changes are being tested but, if these changes go to the live game, Overwatch will play much differently.
The buffs and slight changes
To start, the Doomfist changes could heavily change the game’s competitive play.
While it may be a small change, this buff speeds up the cooldowns of all Doomfist’s abilities when he uses his ultimate. Previously, Doomfist’s ultimate was almost always used either as an escape or to catch enemies in rotation. Now, this patch note change means Doomfist players can use their ultimate more aggressively in Overwatch. With this change, players can use their faster cooled-down abilities to escape or engage harder, instead of using the ultimate itself.
The next general buff is for Moira, increasing how much she heals from her right-click ability. From 20 to 24, this increase only makes Moira harder to kill in solo battles, while also building her healing and making her ultimate faster.
Lastly, Roadhog is receiving a significant buff. He now gives a quarter less ultimate charge to his enemies, due to his size and tendency to get focused.
Other changes in the patch include some heroes receiving both buffs and nerfs at the same time. One key example of this is Genji, who received both a buff to his shurikens but also a nerf to his Dragonblade ultimate. This gives him the opportunity to kill enemies in regular combat faster, but also slower with his ultimate. Another example is Soldier 76, who receives less healing from his biotic field but also does more damage with his rifle.
A significant Wrecking Ball nerf
There is one big nerf easily spotted in these patch notes, and that is Wrecking Ball losing some mobility. This hero is known for being quick to get back into fights after dying due to his grappling hook ability. However, the Activision Blizzard team is deciding to test out whether he is still viable without it.
Along with that grappling hook change, Activision Blizzard also adjusted Wrecking Ball’s ultimate so that the mines no longer stick to walls. This means that hitting minefields correctly matters more, and enemy heroes can avoid them easier. The only positive change is the buff to his adaptive shields, which are now instant and last longer. However, with the mobility changes, Wrecking Ball will be harder to move around and get value with.
