Blizzard may have only just released the major Overwatch Halloween event update, but this week, the game received another, small but important patch. This latest update to the hit multiplayer shooter buffed two of the game's support heroes.
The new Overwatch update arrived on PC, PS4, and Xbox One yesterday and included changes for three of the game's healers. Mercy was recently reworked and now, the aerial healer's abilities have been tweaked further to make her more effective. Guardian Angel now allows players to "glide past a targeted ally using the jump key" and its cooldown no longer resets when Resurrect is activated.
Additionally, Mercy's ultimate ability, Valkyrie "no longer reset or reduces Resurrection's cooldown". Blizzard explains that instead, Valkyrie will provide Resurrect with an extra 'charge' that allows players to revive an ally even if the ability is still on cooldown. However, "If the bonus charge hasn’t been spent when Valkyrie ends, it will be removed." This means that Mercy players don't have to use Ressurect, then activate Valkyrie, and then use Resurrect a second time as was the case before. It's not a traditional buff but it should make it less complicated for Overwatch players.
Lucio will now get a 65% speed boost after completing a wall ride. This has been done to 'compensate' for a recent bug fix that slowed the Overwatch character when he was mid-wall ride. Meanwhile, Zenyatta's changes aren't a buff or a nerf at all, as Blizzard states that the Cultist Zenyatta Halloween skin has some "additional voicelines" now.
Overwatch now has over 35 million players on PC and consoles and so its imperative that Blizzard ensures that all of those players are on a level playing field, regardless of which hero or role they choose to play. Having some characters feel incredibly overpowered is a surefire way to upset people and get them to ditch the game.
It's also worth noting that Blizzard is planning major Overwatch announcements for BlizzCon 2017, too. While it's unclear exactly what those reveals might be, fans are expecting something significant, such as a brand new map or possibly even a new character. As such, it probably makes a lot of sense to get as many buffs, nerfs and bug fixes out of the way before then. Blizzard will soon have its hands full testing and monitoring whatever that new content is, making fixes for existing issues a priority.
Overwatch is out now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Source: Blizzard