Overwatch 2 streamers prove that Blizzard actually “stealth-nerfed” voice line spam

Overwatch 2 streamers FlatsOW, A_Seagull, Skiesti, and emongg proved that Blizzard has “stealth-nerfed” spamming voice lines by testing it in-game.

Overwatch 2’s balance has always had controversy surrounding it. With higher-tier players being blasted by Sojourn and the whole community agreeing that Roadhog is unethical, Blizzard has struggled to keep the game in a balanced state since release.

Several changes have been made to many heroes since the launch of Overwatch 2, with some needing multiple patches to find the right spot for the hero. Heroes such as Zarya, Doomfist, Sojourn, and Kiriko have been struggle points for Blizzard, in particular, as they try to find a niche where the characters are balanced.

Alongside these changes in recent months also came a much sneakier adjustment, one not highlighted in any patch notes. It turns out, Blizzard secretly removed the ability to spam voice lines in-game and would mute the player’s voice lines after the first four.

Sojourn this, Mercy that, why don't we talk about the REAL issue plaguing overwatch 2

Voiceline spam got stealth nerfed so that voicelines can only be used/heard 3-4 times per game, after that its client side only.

How will I know if the shrine is a refuge? or what dey say?

— Flats (@Flats_OW) January 14, 2023

FlatsOW discovered that once a player had spammed a voice line too many times in Overwatch 2, it would mute the voice lines server side. However, it would still continue to trigger on the player’s client, meaning that no players were the wiser that their goofy voice lines weren’t being communicated to their teammates.

FlatsOW went on to prove this nerf by comparing his perspective of the game with A_Seagull’s.

In the video, FlatsOW, A_Seagull, Skiesti, and emongg are all in-game with one another. Before the match starts Seagull spams Kiriko’s “The Shrine is a refuge to anyone who finds it” voice line.

On Flats’ side, he only hears the voice line four times before Kiriko suddenly stops toting about the Shrine being a refuge. He then swaps over to Seagull’s side, in which Seagull can constantly hear talks about the refuge that is the Shrine.

Flats explained that voice lines have been nerfed since the launch of Overwatch 2, which he found rather interesting, and questioned Blizzard’s decision to do so.

“It’s actually kind of annoying ’cause granted voice line spam is kind of annoying sometimes, but squelch chat exists to get rid of that… I think the really crazy part is that you kind of have to pay real money for voice lines now… If I spend actual money on these voice lines, I feel like I should be able to use them in the game more than four times.”

Blizzard is yet to address this silent nerf despite the recent discovery, but we’ll keep you updated here if that changes.