Overwatch 2 season 9, Champions, begins Tuesday, Feb. 13, bringing with it large modifications to all heroes. Blizzard Leisure confirmed forward of Overwatch 2’s subsequent season that each hero will change in a roundabout way, corresponding to getting larger well being swimming pools, bigger projectile sizes, and new passive therapeutic talents. That’s all designed to vary the basics of Overwatch 2 and deal with gameplay ache factors.
Gamers may anticipate modifications to how Aggressive Play works and the way they’ll rank up (or down) from match to match.
On Monday, Blizzard confirmed different gameplay modifications coming in season 9 of Overwatch 2, with a lightweight rework of Pharah’s talents and map modifications to Junkertown.
Pharah’s Hover Jets passive has been modified to restrict her time within the air, Blizzard says. She’ll solely recharge her gas when touching the bottom, however Blizzard is compensating that nerf by giving her “extra pace and acceleration whereas within the air, permitting her to traverse between areas faster.”
Pharah’s additionally getting a brand new capability: Jet Sprint. “When Pharah makes use of Secondary Fireplace she’s going to sprint within the course she’s shifting,” Blizzard says. “When mixed with Concussive Blast and the improved mobility from Hover Jets, Pharah can shortly navigate herself into positions the place she’s extremely deadly.” The result’s a “extra energetic Pharah” and a more healthy recreation, the studio says.
The Junkertown map, added to Overwatch in 2017, can be getting some alterations. Blizzard explains:
The primary part of the map (the world by the primary checkpoint) is kind of open. It may be powerful for the offensive staff to push the cart via right here if the defending staff has a Widow or Pharah. So, we’ve changed the small cowl with a trusty, burned-out constructing. We’ve additionally changed the outhouse that was near the gate with a tall water tower to dam the road of sight from the openings above the choke level. Moreover, just a few extra automobiles have been added to this space, and the cliffside path has been lowered.
The small well being pack on the balcony overlooking the hairpin activate the second space has been eliminated to minimize the defender benefit from that choke. Within the third space, we added a vertical help beam on the left aspect of the hallway to dam the sightline from the higher ledge to present extra cowl for attackers to enter the world. We additionally widened and added cowl to a hallway on the outer mid-section of space 3 to open up staff fights that occur there. Lastly, the up to date map contains a new night-time lighting theme to check out.
Along with a Aggressive Play rank reset, the return of placement matches, and new reticle choices, under are the opposite modifications coming to Overwatch 2 in season 9 with Feb. 13’s patch, per Blizzard.
Overwatch 2 retail patch notes (Feb. 13)
COMPETITIVE PLAY UPDATES
Developer Feedback: Together with your suggestions, we’ve made new enhancements to Aggressive Play that goal to supply extra transparency into your progress after each match, plus we launched a brand new talent tier and new Aggressive Rewards to earn.
Ability Rank Reset
- Given the numerous modifications to our heroes and the addition of a brand new talent tier, this reset is designed to present all gamers an opportunity to climb larger than ever earlier than.
- All roles in Function Queue and Open Queue in Aggressive Play have been reset to Unranked.
Placement Matches
- Placements have been rebuilt from the bottom up. Your predicted rank can be displayed after every placement match.
- It’s essential to full 10 matches in a task to obtain your Ability Rank for that function.
- Profitable your placements could have a major influence in your remaining rank.
Aggressive Updates
- Aggressive Updates have been reworked. As a substitute of requiring 5 wins or 15 losses to get a Aggressive Replace, updates now occur after each match.
- Going ahead, the Aggressive Updates web page now hosts details about your ranks in Function Queue and Open Queue, in addition to your progress towards Aggressive Level rewards.
Ability Modifiers
- Modifiers now seem on the Aggressive Progress web page after every match.
- Ability modifiers present data on how a lot a rank will acquire or lose progress after a match, together with win or loss streaks, rank instability, and match favorability.
New Ability Tier – Champion
- A brand new rank has been added above Grandmaster, known as Champion, that’s extra unique than some other rank in Overwatch. Solely an exceedingly small proportion of gamers will ever occupy this echelon of Aggressive Play.
Versus Display screen
- The vary of ranks for gamers in a match of Aggressive Play is now displayed on the identical display screen the place each groups are proven with their title playing cards, participant icons, and titles.
New Grouping Necessities
- Bronze via Diamond Gamers could group with different gamers inside 2 Ability Tiers of their very own Ability Rank.
- Grasp gamers could group with different gamers inside 1 Ability Tier of their very own Ability Rank.
- Grandmaster gamers could group with different gamers inside 3 Ability Divisions of their very own Ability Rank.
- Champion gamers could group with just one different participant inside 3 Ability Divisions of their very own Ability Rank.
Artwork & UI Updates
- Ability Tier and Ability Division artwork for rank icons have been redesigned for improved readability.
- The Aggressive Ability Tier legend has been redesigned to incorporate up to date and new related data.
Aggressive Factors
- Every win now grants 10 Aggressive Factors.
- Every draw now grants 5 Aggressive Factors.
- Every loss nonetheless grants 0 Aggressive Factors.
Aggressive Development
- Aggressive Challenges that award extra Aggressive Factors on the finish of the season have been changed with a brand new Aggressive Development system.
- Each match grants progress towards your Aggressive Development meter, and after incomes 30 you’ll obtain an extra 100 Aggressive Factors.
- Wins award 3 progress towards your Aggressive Development meter. Attracts and Losses award 1 progress.
Aggressive Rewards
- Jade Weapon Variants have been launched.
- Every Jade Weapon Variant prices 3000 Aggressive Factors to buy.
- All gamers will begin this season with a stability of 0 Aggressive Factors.
- All current Aggressive Factors have been transformed into a brand new forex, Legacy Aggressive Factors.
- Every Golden Weapon Variant now prices 3000 Aggressive Factors to buy.
- On the finish of a Aggressive Yr, any remaining stability of Aggressive Factors converts to Legacy Aggressive Factors.
Matchmaking Score
- In the beginning of this season solely, the interior Matchmaking Rankings for all gamers have been adjusted to push gamers nearer to the normalized common (roughly at Gold 3).
- Matchmaking Rankings have been decayed. The upper the rank, the extra it has been decayed.
- Most gamers will begin at a decrease talent rank and division than their most up-to-date rank.
Aggressive Challenges
- Aggressive challenges eliminated. Rewards and progress for Aggressive Play at the moment are displayed on the Aggressive Progress web page and titles are rewarded on the finish of the season.
GENERAL UPDATES
PLAYER PROGRESSION
- Added a brand new set of visible upgrades. Hero/Recreation Mode badge upgrades begin at Stage 500. Development Stage badge upgrades begin at Stage 2500.
- Wrecking Ball title rewards are renamed from “Champion” to “Champ” to align with Junker Queen’s utilization of the title (and to keep away from confusion with the brand new Champion rank).
- Adjusted quantity wanted to degree up sure sub-badges for Mauga and Illari.
FRIEND ENDORSEMENTS
- The endorsement is barely eligible in the event you’re within the match for a set length.
- Endorsements are topic to the configured cooldown interval of 12 hours.
- Endorsements are topic to cooldown even in the event you unfriend the recipient.
SETTINGS
- Added a function for controller/keyboard customers that remembers what you had focus when backing out of screens.
CROSSHAIR UPDATE
New Reticle Sorts have been added.
- Sq.
- Field
- Line
- Triwing
- Falloff
New Reticle Dots have been added.
- Ring
- Sq.
- Triangle
- Cross
- Coronary heart
New Reticle colour choices have been added.
- Brown
- Darkish Crimson
- Gentle Crimson
- Gentle Purple
- Grey
- Teal
HERO UPDATES
GENERAL
Developer Feedback: Season 9 options modifications to the basics of Overwatch 2 gameplay that have an effect on each hero. We’ve heard the group suggestions round some gameplay ache factors, and these modifications are in response to a lot of these.
Most damage-dealing projectile sizes have been elevated by a brand new international modifier added to their base measurement.
- +0.05 meters for hitscan projectiles with a excessive fee of fireplace or unfold (e.g., Tracer’s Pulse Pistols or Reaper’s Hellfire Shotguns).
- +0.08 meters for hitscan projectiles which can be extra exact (e.g., Cassidy’s Peacekeeper or Soldier:76’s Heavy Pulse Rifle).
- +0.05 meters for journey time projectiles which can be shotguns or have a really excessive fee of fireplace (e.g., Roadhog’s Scrap Gun or Ramattra’s Void Accelerator).
- +0.10 meters for journey time projectile with a pace better than 50 meters per second (e.g., Zenyatta’s Destruction Orb).
- +0.15 meters for journey time projectile with a pace lower than or equal to 50 meters per second (e.g., Pharah’s Rocket Launcher).
- Very massive projectiles with a base measurement better than 0.5 meters have been excluded from these will increase (e.g., Orisa’s Vitality Javelin or Reinhardt’s Fireplace Strike).
Hero mixed HP (base well being/armor/shields) elevated by 15-25%.
- 150-175 HP heroes elevated by 25 HP.
- 200-300 HP heroes elevated by 50 HP.
- 300+ HP (Tanks) elevated by 75-100 HP.
- Every hero’s exact well being will increase are listed of their patch notes under.
Final Cost
- All Final capability prices elevated by 10%.
Regenerative Passive for All Heroes
- All heroes now regenerate 20 well being per second after 5 seconds of not taking injury.
Help Function Passive
- Now reduces the delay earlier than regeneration begins by half (2.5 seconds).
Harm Function Passive
- Reload pace bonus on elimination has been eliminated.
- New function passive: Dealing injury reduces enemy therapeutic acquired by 20% for two seconds.
Fast Melee
- Harm elevated from 30 to 40.
TANK
D.Va
- Pilot well being elevated from 150 to 175.
- Mech armor elevated from 300 to 375.
Self Destruct
- Explosion most injury elevated from 900 to 1000.
- Inside explosion radius (vary for optimum injury earlier than falloff begins) elevated from 4 to six meters.
Doomfist
- Well being elevated from 300 to 375.
Rocket Punch
- Max influence injury elevated from 50 to 75.
- Max wall slam injury elevated from 30 to 40.
Junker Queen
- Well being elevated from 300 to 375.
Rampage
- Wound injury over time elevated from 60 to 90.
Mauga
- Well being elevated from 300 to 400.
Orisa
- Armor elevated from 275 to 350.
Ramattra
- Well being elevated from 200 to 275.
Reinhardt
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
- Armor elevated from 250 to 275.
Rocket Hammer
- Harm elevated from 85 to 100.
Cost
- Wall influence injury elevated from 225 to 275.
Roadhog
- Well being elevated from 550 to 650.
Sigma
- Shields elevated from 200 to 275.
Winston
- Well being elevated from 200 to 225.
- Armor elevated from 200 to 250.
Tesla Cannon
- Harm elevated from 60 to 75 injury per second.
Primal Rage
- Punch injury elevated from 40 to 50.
Wrecking Ball
- Armor elevated from 100 to 175.
Zarya
- Well being elevated from 100 to 175.
Particle Cannon
- Main hearth beam width elevated from 0.15 to 0.2 meters.
DAMAGE
Ashe
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
B.O.B.
- B.O.B.’s weapon injury elevated from 14 to 17.
Bastion
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Cassidy
- Well being elevated from 225 to 275.
Deadeye
- Preliminary injury fee elevated from 130 to 150.
- Harm fee elevated from 260 to 300.
Echo
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Focusing Beam
- Width elevated from 0.2 to 0.25 meters.
Duplicate
- Most mixed well being worth elevated from 300 to 350.
Genji
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Dragonblade
- Swing restoration decreased from 0.9 to 0.7 seconds.
Hanzo
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Storm Arrows
- Harm elevated from 65 to 75.
- Cooldown lowered from 10 to eight seconds.
Junkrat
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Frag Launcher
- Base projectile measurement lowered from 0.25 to 0.2 meters.
Mei
- Well being elevated from 250 to 300.
Pharah
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Rocket Launcher
- Restoration lowered from 0.85 to 0.80 seconds.
- Projectile pace elevated from 35 to 40 meters per second.
- Explosion self-damage lowered from 50% to 25%.
Jet Sprint
- New Secondary Fireplace Potential.
- Supplies a fast horizontal enhance within the course Pharah is shifting.
- 8-second cooldown.
- Added a setting to activate Jet Sprint on Double Bounce as a substitute.
Bounce Jet
- Now restores 50% of Hover Jets gas and might briefly overfill the utmost gas quantity.
- Vertical enhance peak lowered by 20%.
- Cooldown elevated from 10 to 14 seconds.
Concussive Blast
- Cooldown decreased from 9 to 7 seconds.
- Explosion now offers 30 injury to enemy targets.
- Explosion radius lowered from 8 to six meters.
- Knockback lowered by 10%.
Barrage
- Now immediately refills Hover Jets gas.
Hover Jets
- Velocity enhance elevated from 20% to 40%.
- Now requires touchdown to recharge gas.
- Can now be activated with out gas to gradual your descent.
Developer Feedback: Pharah has a major replace that empowers extra particular person performs and shifting her motion capabilities from excessive up within the air to extra horizontal motion that may cowl distance shortly.
Reaper
- Well being elevated from 250 to 300.
Sojourn
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Railgun
- Secondary Fireplace base projectile measurement lowered from 0.1 to 0.07 meters.
Soldier: 76
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Sombra
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Symmetra
- Shields elevated from 100 to 150.
Photon Projector
- Main hearth beam width elevated from 0.2 to 0.25 meters.
Torbjörn
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Tracer
- Well being elevated from 150 to 175.
Widowmaker
- Well being elevated from 175 to 200.
SUPPORT
Ana
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Baptiste
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Brigitte
- Well being elevated from 150 to 200.
Rocket Flail
- Harm elevated from 35 to 45.
Illari
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Kiriko
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Kunai
- Base projectile measurement lowered from 0.18 to 0.15 meters.
Lifeweaver
- Well being elevated from 175 to 225.
Lúcio
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Soundwave
- Harm elevated from 25 to 35.
- Knockback elevated 12%.
- Motion lockout length elevated from 0.3 to 0.45 seconds.
Mercy
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Guardian Angel
- Lively length on soar/crouch cancel lowered from 1.5 to 1 second.
Sympathetic Restoration passive
- Well being recovered elevated from 25% to 40% of therapeutic dealt.
Moira
- Well being elevated from 200 to 250.
Biotic Grasp
- Secondary hearth injury elevated from 50 to 65 injury per second.
- Secondary hearth goal acquisition radius elevated from 0.6 to 0.7 meters.
Zenyatta
- Well being elevated from 75 to 100.
- Shields elevated from 150 to 175.
MAP UPDATES
Junkertown Replace
New nighttime lighting theme.
- New constructing close to the primary level to supply extra cowl & block lengthy sightlines.
- Added a water tower close to the primary level to dam sightlines from higher choke positions.
- Added extra automobiles close to the cliff to supply extra cowl & block lengthy sightlines.
- Decreased the cliffside path to tighten the house and cut back the general footprint of the world.
- Eliminated a small well being pack on the second space balcony that was simple for defenders to overuse.
- Added vertical beam at second choke level to advertise motion out of the higher ground & make the choke simpler to defend.
- Widened and added cowl in a hallway within the third space to make shut quarter fights simpler to maneuver.
Developer Feedback: We’ve added extra cowl—together with new buildings—to assist counter a number of the lengthy sightlines across the first checkpoint. Further modifications within the third space enable attackers to push via sure chokes extra simply.
BUG FIXES
GENERAL
- Mounted a difficulty with some shadows that would seem jagged when on any setting under Extremely.
- Mounted a bug that prevented your pores and skin from altering when utilizing the Change Pores and skin possibility in Hero Choose in the event you had a Loadout chosen.
- Mounted a bug with Golden Weapons being marked as unspecified and never being purchasable.
- Mounted a bug with some callouts for pushing the payload taking part in at incorrect moments.
- Mounted a difficulty with Wall Climb failing in some conditions.
- Further bug fixes for common stability and efficiency.
MAPS
Antarctic Peninsula
- Mounted lighting in some areas of the map.
King’s Row
- Mounted areas of the map that have been lacking collision.
Midtown
- Mounted some areas that would trigger some heroes to turn into caught
Shambali Monastery
- Mounted a location of the map that displayed incorrect textures.
HEROES
Doomfist
- Mounted a bug with Meteor Strike that would end in Doomfist getting contained in the setting.
- Mounted a bug that generally prevented Seismic Slam’s injury from going via turrets.
- Mounted a bug that would forestall Doomfist from buying Overhealth in some instances.
- Mounted a bug the place Rocket Punch left a small window of time open to make use of talents.
Echo
- Mounted an interplay when Duplicating Bastion that prevented the Duplicated Configuration: Artillery’s pictures from touchdown if Duplicate ended earlier than they landed.
Lifeweaver
- Mounted a bug that prevented Tree of Life from therapeutic Reaper when in Wraith kind.
Lúcio
- Amp it Up now goes on cooldown if interrupted by stun throughout its forged time or when dying whereas it’s energetic.
Mauga
- Mounted a bug with the burning utilized by Mauga not being eliminated when selecting up a well being pack.
Orisa
- Terra Surge now appropriately pulls in and damages enemies which can be on uneven slopes/collision, so long as Orisa has a direct line of sight, they’ll get pulled/broken.
Roadhog
- Mounted a bug with Roadhog’s mannequin changing into distorted with some skins in the course of the Heroic Spotlight intro.
- Mounted a bug with Pig Pen displaying a Junkrat icon when pinged.
Sombra
- Mounted an interplay that prevented Hack from being interrupted by Rocket Punch or Defend Bash.
- Mounted a bug the place Sombra would enter Stealth whereas escorting the robotic in some conditions.
Torbjörn
- Mounted a bug with disabling the Work together Cancel Deploy Turret setting inflicting you to solely destroy a deployed turret and never toss out a brand new one when the power is used.
Winston
- Mounted a bug with Primal Rage that interrupted the power to assault if the Final was initiated whereas Leaping and utilizing Melee on the similar time.
Zenyatta
- Golden weapon tint ought to now correctly be mirrored on all skins.
