With season 8 on the horizon, Blizzard has shared early balance tuning coming to several Overwatch 2 heroes. In this article, we will be looking at all the Overwatch 2 Season 8 hero balance previews that were recently covered in the director's overview. Read on for the likely PvP meta shifts based on the latest tweaks.
Overwatch 2 Season 8 Hero Balance Overview
Reduced Ultimate Charge Retention
When swapping heroes, players currently retain 25% of their ultimate charge. This will be lowered to only a 15% charge in season 8 to better punish hero stacking strategies and improve flexibility counters.
Doomfist Gains Sustain But Higher Costs
Doomfist's Meteor Strike will provide health regeneration during the ability for more sustainability. However, the overall ultimate cost rises to compensate for his lethal combo potential.
Ramattra and Winston Reworks
Two tanks receive significant adjustments - Ramattra and Winston. Ramattra's projectiles grow in power while Winston bypasses armor for higher damage. But the changes also open more counters as Ramattra's health redistributes and Winston needs to be closer than before.
Advertisement
Sombra Crowd Control Extends But Dials Back Damage
While Sombra's EMP ability duration increases by 1.5 seconds to inflict longer crowd control, its damage reduces from 30% to 25% enemy health. This caters to her disruption role rather than raw kills.
Other Notable Tuning Changes
Besides the tanks and Sombra, other heroes receive tweaks like Soldier: 76's longer Biotic Field cooldown or Tracer's small damage buff. Lower power heroes see changes too - Brigitte deals less Whip Shot damage but Baptiste has a reduced magazine size.
With specializations amplified and new counterplay openings, Season 8 promises to shake up the Overwatch 2-tier list. The meta can shift drastically or retain familiar faces through the refined hero balancing act.
Advertisement
Summary: Overwatch 2 Season 8 Hero Balance Preview
Ultimate Cost & Retention
- Ultimate charge retained reduced from 25% to 15% when swapping heroes
Doomfist
- Meteor Strike will regenerate 75 health per second
- Meteor Strike ultimate cost increased
Ramattra
- Void Accelerator projectile size and damage increased
- Omnic Form health reduced to 200 (plus 100 armor)
Winston
- Tesla Cannon will now ignore armor damage reduction
Sombra
- EMP ability lockout duration increased from 1.5 to 3 seconds
- EMP damage reduced from 30% to 25% of max health
Advertisement
Soldier: 76
- Biotic Field cooldown increased from 15 to 18 seconds
Tracer
- Pulse Pistol damage increased from 5.5 to 6
Brigitte
- Whip Shot damage reduced from 80 to 70
Baptiste
- Biotic Launcher primary fire ammo reduced from 45 to 36
These planned tuning adjustments signal potential meta shifts for season 8. The changes can enable or weaken heroes through new specializations and counterplay opportunities.
Advertisement
Source: https://overwatch.blizzard.com/en-gb/news/24034079/director-s-take-balance-preview-for-season-8/
Advertisement
