Esports illustrated

Overwatch 2 Players Frustrated By Surprise Buff

A Zarya buff????

Olivia Richman

Overwatch 2 Season 12 has some buffs and nerfs that have worried the FPS community.

Season 12 has introduced Juno and also added Wave Respawn to make matches a bit smoother. But it's the changes to heroes that have the Overwatch 2 fans both concerned and excited.

The most controversial change is to Zarya. Overwatch players are shocked that she got buffed, with her Particle Cannon doing more damage after the update. The secondary fire's minimum damage increased to 55 and the maximum damage increased to 110.

Sombra was also much discussed now that she has become a glass cannon. Her health was decreased but her mobility increased. This has created some concern with Sombra mains who feel it's a bit riskier for her to aggressively chase down tanks now.

Players are pretty excited for Mercy's buff, however. Her damage buff ability has been increased, making her work similarly to how she was a while back. This should make her a more viable pick and help DPS target squishies a lot easier.

Related Article: Overwatch 2 Is Getting 6v6 Again

The buffs to fellow support, Kiriko, were met with anger. Her Kunai does a good amount more damage. The reductions were not enough to make it feel balanced to players, who now argue that Kiriko is even more "braindead" to play.

Here are the full changes:

Overwatch 2 Season 12 Hero Buffs and Nerfs

DVa
Defense Matrix:
→ Maximum duration reduced from 3.5 to 3 seconds.

Orisa
Energy Javelin:
→ Impact damage increased from 60 to 80.

Zarya
Particle Cannon:
→ Secondary fire minimum damage increased from 47 to 55.
→ Secondary fire maximum damage increased from 95 to 110.

Echo
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.

Hanzo
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.

Junkrat
Frag Launcher:
→ Projectile size is now reduced by half after the second ricochet.
→ Projectiles preserve slightly more velocity on ricochet.

Sojourn
Railgun:
→ Primary fire weapon spread reduced from 2 to 1.6 degrees.
→ Critical hits now grant 10 energy.
→ Energy degeneration rate reduced from 33 to 15 per second after 7 seconds.

Sombra
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
Virus:
→ Impact damage increased from 25 to 35.
Stealth:
→ Bonus movement speed increased from 45 to 60%.

Torbjörn
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
→ Base armor increased from 50 to 75.

Illari
Solar Rifle:
→ Maximum ammo reduced from 16 to 14.
Captive Sun:
→ Projectile environment collision size reduced from 0.15 to 0 meters.

Juno
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
Mediblaster:
→ Burst projectile volley rate of fire reduced from 34 to 28 shots per second.
Pulsar Torpedoes:
→ Damage and Healing impact increased from 75 to 85.
→ Heal-over-time reduced from 60 to 50 health.
Hyper Ring:
→ Deploy range increased by 3.5 meters.
→ Cooldown reduced from 16 to 14 seconds.
Orbital Ray:
→ Beam travel speed increased from 1.9 to 2.25 meters per second.

Kiriko
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
Kunai:
→ Critical multiplier reduced from 2.5 to 2x.
→ Damage increased from 45 to 60.
→ Recovery time increased from 0.5 to 0.55 seconds.

Lifeweaver
Healing Blossom:
→ Healing progress can now charge passively at a reduced rate.
→ No longer reduces movement speed when holding a full charge.
Petal Platform:
→ Duration only counts down while the platform is raised.
→ Platform now resets if no one is standing on it for 2 seconds.
→ Duration increased from 10 to 12 seconds.
→ Health reduced from 400 to 300.
Rejuvenating Dash:
→ Healing reduced from 60 to 45.

Mercy
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
Caduceus Staff:
→ Primary fire healing increased from 55 to 60 health per second.
→ Secondary fire damage boost increased from 25% to 30%.

Moira
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
Biotic Grasp:
→ Secondary fire damage increased from 60 to 65 damage per second.

Lúcio
Base health:
→ Reduced from 250 to 225.
Sonic Amplifier:
→ Primary fire damage increased from 18 to 22.

Published
Olivia Richman

OLIVIA RICHMAN

Olivia is a long-time esports journalist and editor who covers just about every game but has a deep love for the FGC. Her goal is to find community-driven stories that bring a new perspective to the esports scene. In the past, she has worked for Team Liquid, Rogue, Inven Global, Dot Esports, Upcomer, and more. Outside of esports, Olivia enjoys Kirby, Pokemon TCG, Fallout, and writing science fiction. She can be found trying out new foods, traveling, or hanging out with her two orange cats.  Fun fact: Olivia can do some video game and cartoon impressions! 

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