Overwatch August 6 update nerfs barriers, buffs Hog & more: patch notes

[jwplayer 91I9RIGm]A massive new Overwatch Experimental Mode patch has hit live servers, adjusting a variety of the game’s heroes: Brigitte, Orisa, Pharah, Roadhog, Sigma, Symmetra, and Zenyatta.

Intent on impacting Overwatch’s barrier meta, Blizzard’s latest patch toys with the game’s tank and support balancing while buffing some of its seemingly underpowered DPS. Most notably, this comes through nerfs to Brigitte, Orisa, and Sigma and alongside adjustments to some of the less used characters. 

Blizzard Entertainment

Sigma’s shield has been a point of contention, as his strength easily enables the barrier meta.

As expressed by Community Manager Molly Fender on Blizzard’s forums, “we’re testing some hero adjustments aimed at shifting away from a barrier-heavy meta” and “taking this opportunity to address some under-performing heroes.”

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Blizzard Entertainment

With a big shield and a ton of armor, Orisa’s sturdiness enables bunker and barrier compositions.

The experimental changes include reducing Brigitte’s base health from 200 to 150 and Orisa’s armor from 250 to 200. Conversely, Sigma’s health is left untouched but his shield is greatly nerfed from 900 to 700 (and its regeneration rate from 120 to 80).

This maintains the former two’s barrier capacity while limiting their survivability once those barriers go down and concomitantly reduces Sigma’s ability to simply shield for them once said barriers break. Overall, this should make these three have less of an overpowered, invincible synergy when used together.

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Elsewhere, Pharah’s mobility is increased, Roadhog’s one-shot potential is heightened, and both Symmetra and Zenyatta receive buffs to their viability. Overall though, the aforementioned nerfs could be seen as a buff to the rest of the hero pool — as noted by SamitoFPS, who specified that Hanzo will now be able to one-shot Brigitte with a head shot.

Experimental Hero Updates

Brigitte

Base health

• Lowered from 200 to 150

Inspire

• Total healing decreased from 130 to 90 (healing reduced from 21 to 15 health per second)
• Self-healing no longer reduced by half

Orisa

Base armor

• Reduced from 250 to 200

Halt!

• Radius reduced from 7 to 4 meters
• Projectile speed increased from 20 to 30

Pharah

Hover Jets

• Movement speed increased by 20 percent
• Regeneration rate reduced from 50 to 35 per second

Barrage

• Duration reduced from 3 to 2.5 seconds

Roadhog

Scrap Gun

• Ammo reduced from 6 to 5
• Damage per projectile increased from 6 to 7
• Recover increased from 0.7 to 0.85 seconds

Sigma

Experimental barrier

• Health reduced from 900 to 700
• Regeneration rate reduced from 120 to 80 per second

Kinetic Grasp

• Cooldown increased from 10 to 12 seconds

Symmetra

Photon Projector

• Primary fire’s delay before losing charge increased from 2 to 4 seconds

Teleporter

• Cooldown reduced from 12 to 10 seconds

Zenyatta

Orb of Destruction

• Secondary fire’s charge rate increased 15 percent (0.6 down to 0.52 seconds per orb)
• Rate of fire increased from 8.5 to 9 shots per second