Season 7 Balance Changes

Overwatch is a game that thrives on change, one could argue that the Double Shield meta lasting 2 years wasn't the best thing for the game.

Now with Overwatch 2, there has been a lot of discussion about one-shots, power creep, overtuned abilities, etc. So let's try and change the game, shall we?
(Note: I am mostly just having fun creating this mode and roleplaying as the developers. Please don't take this too seriously.)

Custom gamemode made by Skirrel.

HERO UPDATES

TANK

D.VA

This change should help D.VA better peel for her backline as the support line-up is seeing some significant changes.

Defense Matrix

• Maximum duration increased from 3 to 3.5 seconds.

DOOMFIST

The goal with these changes is to make tank heroes not as easily killable. Doomfist's defensive capabilities are limited as he needs to deal consistent damage with his abilities. Power Block and Meteor Strike now give him more survivability options but he is now less active with his damage.

Hand Cannon

• Ammo regeneration rate reduced from once every 0.4 seconds to 0.5 seconds.

Power Block

• Now grants 50 shields that persist for 1 second after the ability, before depleting over 1 second.

Meteor Strike

• Duration increased from 4 to 5 seconds.
• Now heals Doomfist for up to 200 health over the duration.

JUNKER QUEEN

Junker Queen should now prevail over teamfights the more she applies wounds to her foes. In other terms, she will already negate a large amount of healing, meaning her ultimate does not need to be available as often.

Commanding Shout

• Temporary health increased from 150 to 200.

Rampage

• Ultimate charge cost increased by 8%.

ORISA

Orisa has lost some interest in games of higher skill-rating, but still manages to dominate lower-ranked matches. These changes reduce her overall oppressiveness and should also reward better decision making.

Augmented Fusion Driver

• Damage decreased from 13 to 12.

Energy Javelin

• Cooldown increased from 6 to 8 seconds.

Javelin Spin

• Cooldown reduced from 7 to 6 seconds.

RAMATTRA

There doesn't seem to be a clear enough distinction between Omnic and Nemesis forms, except for the abilities. Ramattra should be focusing on protecting his team and playing from afar in Omnic Form whereas Nemesis Form should be used in close combat or to utilize the larger health pool.

General

• Base health reduced from 450 to 400.

Omnic Form

• Character size reduced by 7%.

Nemesis Form

• Armor bonus increased from 225 to 275.

Void Barrier (Omnic Form)

• Health reduced from 1000 to 800.
• Cooldown decreased from 13 to 10 seconds.

REINHARDT

Reinhardt surprisingly can get easily overwhelmed by damage. This revision of his Steadfast passive should help him stay alive through high bursts of damage. His Barrier Field is however getting its health reduced so that Reinhardt himself doesn't feel unkillable.

Steadfast (Passive)

• Passive reintroduced with different properties.
• Now reduces damage taken by 15% as long as Reinhardt has armor.

Barrier Field

• Health reduced from 1400 to 1200.

Charge

• Now applies Steadfast damage reduction whether Reinhardt has armor or not.

ROADHOG

Roadhog is irrefutably not in a good spot compared to other tank heroes at the moment. Chain Hook doesn't allow for a certain kill anymore and this change should help in occasions where Roadhog would not be able to execute his target. Take a Breather is also getting some changes for it to have multiple uses, as it can now be used to engage for example.

Chain Hook

• Now restores 1 ammo upon hitting an enemy hero.

Take a Breather

• 50% of Take a Breather’s overhealing is now converted into overhealth for 3.5 seconds – up to 150 maximum overhealth.

SIGMA

Overall, Sigma has been performing well lately, but like other tanks, he can get taken out quite fast. Some of his power is being redistributed to reinforce the defensive aspects of the hero.

General

• Base shields increased from 200 to 225.

Hyperspheres

• The second hypersphere now fires at a reduced speed of 35 meters per second.

Kinetic Grasp

• Cooldown reduced from 12 to 11 seconds.

WINSTON

Adjusting a hero's health is a simple yet practical way of increasing their viablity. Winston's burst potential and isolating tools alone will manage to bring his overall power back up, especially considering the support changes.

General

• Base armor increased from 200 to 225.

WRECKING BALL

We're allowing Wrecking Ball to have more presence on the map in general while taking away some of the displacing aspect. One aspect of Wrecking Ball as a tank hero is his lack of interaction with his teammates, whether by not protecting them directly or not providing hard crowd control. This new passive will reward coordinated play with the team and should definitely tie well with Wrecking Ball's aggressive nature in engagements.

Grappling Claw

• Knockback distance reduced from 10 to 8 meters.
• Cooldown reduced from 5 to 4 seconds.
• No longer spawns on cooldown.

NEW! Ignite (Passive)

• Knocking enemies back with fireball ignites them.
• Ignited enemies take 15 damage per second for 2 seconds.

ZARYA

This should help Zarya stay effective at longer ranges or to finish off targets.

Particle Cannon (Secondary Fire)

• Ammo consumption reduced from 25 to 20.

DAMAGE

ASHE

These changes allow Ashe to have more mobility around the map and additional defensive options. Having said that, her Dynamite might prove to be effortlessly punitive, and Ashe now needs to be more cautious when using it.

Coach Gun

• Cooldown reduced from 10 to 8 seconds.

Dynamite

• Cast time increased from 0.16 to 0.25 seconds.
• Cooldown increased from 12 to 14 seconds.

B.O.B.

• Duration increased from 10 to 12 seconds.

BASTION

Bastion is already strong at the moment and could perform surprisingly well with the support changes. As a result, some of his power is being toned down.

General

• Base armor reduced from 100 to 75.

Reconfigure

• Cooldown increased from 10 to 12 seconds.

Configuration: Artillery

• Cast can now be interrupted by Hack.

CASSIDY

Cassidy has been underperforming lately and his identity has kept on fluctuating between mid-range hitscan and close-range frontline, which both have heroes that can fit the role better. This change should make Cassidy more of a hybrid that can still be valuable as a hero pick.

Peacekeeper

• Damage increased from 70 to 75.

Deadeye

• Movement penalty reduced from 70% to 50%.

ECHO

Echo has strong burst potential, her Sticky Bombs are getting their cooldown increased by a small amount to match Focusing Beam. Echo is also now going to be harder to catch in the air but should also have an easier time getting around the map.

Workshop Note: Echo's Duplicate will not apply most of this patch's changes to the duplicated hero because of workshop complications. This would result in bugs in hero select preventing the player from switching heroes or limiting the heroes available for them to play. Unfortunately, I was not able to find the source of the problem and chose staying with the entire cast of heroes over having Echo's Duplicate work as intended. Thank you for understanding.

Sticky Bombs

• Cooldown increased from 6 to 7 seconds.

Glide (Passive)

• Movement speed bonus increased from 50% to 65%.

GENJI

Genji players tend to play confidently aggressive, and fairly so, as the hero can easily get out of sticky situations. We are shifting around some of the power from Genji's abilities to discourage players from overextending, this should separate decent Genji players from the excellent ones.

Deflect

• Cooldown increased from 8 to 10 seconds.
• Now refunds 3 Shurikens per second active.

Dragonblade

• Duration decreased from 6 to 4.5 seconds.
• Movement speed bonus increased from 30% to 40%.

HANZO

Not landing every headshot shouldn't discourage Hanzo players from still playing the hero, hitting bodyshots with the Storm Bow can now still be lethal enough to dissuade opponents from challenging him. He should now also be more punishable with less health to work with and by forcing him to use Lunge with its longer cooldown, though it covers more distance to compensate.

General

• Base health reduced from 200 to 175.

Storm Bow

• Damage increased from 120 to 130.
• Critical multiplier remains 2x but is now capped at 240 damage.

Storm Arrows

• Damage increased from 65 to 70.
• Cooldown increased from 10 to 11 seconds.
• Cooldown begins when the ability is activated instead of when it ends.

Lunge

• Cooldown increased from 4 to 5 seconds.
• Distance traveled increased from 7.85 to 9 meters.

JUNKRAT

Steel Trap should be used to block out pathways and routes for the enemy to take and not directly in a fight, which can sometimes feel confusing or even random.

Steel Trap

• Cooldown increased from 10 to 12 seconds.

MEI

Amongst other things, Mei's significant health pool is a frustrating aspect of playing against her. In order to alleviate that feeling, we are shifting away some of her survivability from her pure health into her Cryo-Freeze ability. Mei's oppressive power as well as teamwide protection is also being toned down to better fit a "damage" title and encourage players to use Icicle as a main source of damage.

General

• Base health reduced from 250 to 175.
• Base shields increased from 0 to 50.

Endothermic Blaster

• Damage per second reduced from 100 to 80.

Cryo-Freeze

• Cooldown reduced from 12 to 10 seconds.
• Replenishes 50 shields instantly.
• Now creates an ice field around Mei that deals 50 damage per second, slows enemies for 40% and interrupts movement actions.

Ice Wall

• Health per pillar reduced from 250 to 175.

PHARAH

These changes should help Pharah be less reliant on supports peeling for her, without making her too strong with said peels. It should also feel more interactive and there should be more of an incentive to play as and against Pharah without a specific team composition.

Hover Jets

• Maximum fuel increased by 25%.
• Fuel recharge rate increased by 10%.
• Vertical boost decreased by 20%.

NEW! Rocket Jump (Passive)

• Rocket Launcher self-damage is now converted into overhealth for 2 seconds.
• Healing removes any overhealth provided.

Jump Jet

• Vertical boost decreased by 30%.
• Now also propels Pharah toward her traveling direction at a rate of 15 m/s.

Concussive Blast

• Now heals Pharah for any overhealth provided by Rocket Jump.

Barrage

• Pharah is no longer immobilized.

REAPER

Death Blossom should not be Reaper's death sentence. This change allows him to escape if need be.

Death Blossom

• Can now be canceled by using Wraith Form.

SOJOURN

Railgun is a powerful weapon when it comes to taking out targets rapidly and should instead not feel as frustrating to go against but should still feel lethal enough to be impactful in the right hands. To better help Sojourn catch unaware enemies or disengage as needed, her Power Slide is also going to be at her disposal more often.

Railgun

• Ammo reduced from 45 to 40.
• Energy granted per hit reduced from 5 to 4.

Power Slide

• Cooldown reduced from 7 to 6 seconds.

SOLDIER: 76

Soldier: 76 has very consistent damage, however, reducing it could take away a lot of his power. Instead, these changes are aimed to limit availability from other parts of his kit.

Helix Rockets

• Cooldown increased from 6 to 7 seconds.

Tactical Visor

• Ultimate charge cost increased by 8%.

SOMBRA

Sombra is in a decent spot after her rework, however EMP does feel underwhelming at the moment especially after the changes made to the charge rate. Its lethality is being uplifted without making the combo with Virus too deadly. Additionally, we still want Sombra connoisseurs to feel familiar with the hero they know and we plan on adjusting more abilities if needed.

Stealth (Passive)

• Can now be canceled after throwing Translocator.

Virus

• Cooldown increased from 6 to 7 seconds.

EMP

• Ultimate charge cost reduced by 5%.
• Health percent damage increased from 30% to 35%.
• EMP now automatically reloads.

SYMMETRA

Sustainability is being lowered across the board, and Symmetra can not only sustain herself but also negate a large portion or her target's sustain. Her Photon Projector is now more focused on the secondary fire as the beam can easily get value, though a more frequent Teleporter can allow her to get charge and still have a way out. Symmetra's Sentry turrets can now be easier to position in a fight, or in more of a responsive manner, rather than having to place them preemptively.

Photon Projector

• Ammo reduced from 100 to 50.
• Secondary fire ammo consumption reduced from 10 to 5.

Sentry Turret

• Travel speed increased from 20 to 30.

Teleporter

• Cooldown reduced from 12 to 10 seconds.

TORBJÖRN

With the addition of more deployables, Torbjörn's turret can feel like an added layer of targets to get rid of, so its health is being reduced.

Deploy Turret

• Health reduced from 225 to 175.
• Cooldown reduced from 12 to 10 seconds.

TRACER

This change should help Tracer with engaging in fights even after being forced to use Recall early.

Recall

• Now restores any Blink used in the past 3 seconds.

WIDOWMAKER

Aiming down sights to get a quick shot at a target will not consume as much ammunition now, encouraging players to play for more aggressive angles without the fear of being defenseless. Widowmaker's awareness is key for her to get the most value, so her abilities are seeing some changes. Her utlimate should now be available more frequently, hence the reduction.

Widow's Kiss

• Ammo reduced from 35 to 30.
• Ammo consumption now scales with charge for 1 ammo per 20%.

Venom Mine

• Cooldown reduced from 15 to 12 seconds.

Infra-Sight

• Duration reduced from 15 to 12 seconds.

SUPPORT

Role Passive:

• Duration until support passive activates increased from 2 to 3 seconds.
• Healing from support heroes is now reduced by 20% while taking damage.

ANA

The goal with these changes is to encourage Ana to use Biotic Grenade as a way to heal herself or endangered teammates even through the healing reduction (as it also provides healing amplification). Furthermore, its frequency is being reduced for it not to feel oppressive.

Biotic Rifle

• Ammo reduced from 15 to 14.

Biotic Grenade

• Explosion healing increased from 60 to 70.
• Cooldown increased from 10 to 12 seconds.

BAPTISTE

Baptiste is getting some adjustments to better suit the overall support healing changes. He excels at alternating between dealing damage and healing and this should remain his strongsuit. In compensation, his other abilities now prove to be easier to overcome.

Biotic Launcher

• Primary fire ammo reduced from 45 to 36.
• Secondary fire ammo reduced from 13 to 10.

Regenerative Burst

• Healing received by Baptiste himself is also affected by healing reduction.
• Cooldown reduced from 15 to 14 seconds.

Immortality Field

• Health reduced from 150 to 100.
• Cooldown increased from 23 to 25 seconds.

BRIGITTE

As one of the experts of combat healing, Brigitte is probably the most affected by the support change. These changes aim to compensate for the lower healing provided but should also encourage Brigitte to play defensively.

Barrier Shield

• Cooldown increased from 5 to 6 seconds.

Repair Pack

• Instant healing increased from 25 to 30.
• Cooldown decreased from 6 to 5 seconds.

ILLARI

Illari is having her healing redistributed to be less effective but to last longer, essentially achieving the same amount of healing. This should help her better manage her resources while making it less frustrating to play against. She should now also pay more attention to her Healing Pylon to keep it active as much as possible. On top of that, Illari's damage is being tweaked to prevent getting kills against specific heroes, and shouldn't disrupt overall performance.

Solar Rifle (Primary Fire)

• Damage decreased from 75 to 70.

Solar Rifle (Secondary Fire)

• Healing per second decreased from 105 to 90.
• Maximum duration increased from 3 to 3.5 seconds.

Healing Pylon

• Cooldown increased from 12 to 14 seconds when destroyed.

KIRIKO

Kiriko's survivability can be a bit tough to overcome at times, she has good mobility and utility, not only to support her allies but also herself. Now she can be easier to catch if she doesn't react in time and needs to be more cautious. Protective Suzu is also getting changes to be more in line with other abilities of the same type.

General

• Base health reduced from 200 to 175.

Swift Step

• Cooldown reduced from 7 to 6 seconds.

Protection Suzu

• Healing increased from 40 to 50, and 70 to 85 when cleansing negative effects.
• Cooldown increased from 14 to 20 seconds.

LIFEWEAVER

With the support changes, Lifeweaver's raw healing output is getting wrenched. In order to compensate, his potential for team mobility has been improved. These changes are aimed for players to avoid using Petal Platform as a "safe haven" but to use it in more various situations calling for it.

Rejuvenating Dash

• Healing decreased from 50 to 35.
• Cooldown reduced from 5 to 4 seconds.

Life Grip

• Cooldown reduced from 16 to 15 seconds.

Petal Platform

• Health reduced from 400 to 200.
• Cooldown reduced from 12 to 9 seconds.

LÚCIO

Lúcio is one of the support heroes that primarily provides utility, which would be stronger if healing becomes less prominent. As a result, he should be in a better spot, his disruptive capabilities are also getting some upgrades.

Soundwave

• Knockback increased from 15 to 18 m/s.

MERCY

Attempting to resurrect a fallen teammate should come at a cost, and enemies will now be more likely to try and interrupt Mercy. Additionnaly, positioning around cover and important locations is crucial to Mercy's survival and these changes should prompt players to play around them more often.

Guardian Angel

• Reaching the ground while Guardian Angel is still active will begin the cooldown early.

Resurrect

• Cooldown increased from 30 to 50 seconds.
• Cooldown is now reduced by half when the target is successfully resurrected.

Sympathetic Recovery (Passive)

• Removed.

NEW! Medical Attention (Passive)

• Store healing from health packs, granting a burst of healing to the next ally healed by Caduceus Staff.

MOIRA

Since all of her healing is done over time, Moira will undoubtedly be less effective at this specific duty. Biotic Orb can now be used in tandem with Biotic Grasp to provide more healing without depleting Moira's resources. Also, additional changes are being made to better reward precise use of certain abilities.

Fade

• Duration reduced from 0.8 to 0.65 seconds.
• Duration remains 0.8 seconds during Coalescence.
• Recovery time reduced to 0 seconds.

Biotic Orb

• Healing with Biotic Orb now restores a small amount of Biotic Energy.
• Cooldown increased from 8 to 9 seconds.

Coalescence

• Duration increased from 8 to 9 seconds.

ZENYATTA

Zenyatta has unfortunetaly been overshadowed by other supports in terms of damage provided. The support and tank changes should allow him to provide good damage without being too oppressive. He is also getting some changes himself to align with the rest of the roster.

Snap Kick (Passive)

• Melee knockback reduced by 20%.

Orb of Harmony

• Healing per second increased from 30 to 35.

Transcendence

• Unaffected by healing reduction.

WRECKING BALL

• Ignite can be removed by phasing effects, cleansing effects or healing from a health pack.

MEI

• Cryo-Freeze's slowing field only interrupts movement actions upon entering the field.
• Abilties that can be interrupted are the following: Boosters, Seismic Slam, Rocket Punch, Rampage, Charge, Jump Pack (though momentum is kept), Grappling Claw, Piledriver, Swift Strike, Lunge, Jump Jet, Shadow Step, Power Slide, Sprint, Grappling Hook, Exo-Boots, Outburst, Swift Step, Rejuvenating Dash and Guardian Angel.
• The slowing effect can be removed by phasing effects, cleansing effects and Orisa's Fortify.

MERCY

• Medical Attention healing equates to 30% of the healing received from the health pack.
• Mercy cannot stack healing from health packs. Medical Attention needs to be used in order to receive another charge.
• Medical Attention is indicated by a halo above Mercy's head.

Don't forget to check the update log to see the most recent changes!

If you have any questions, see if this can answer them:

Source

The 'patch notes' HTML source code can be found here.