Overwatch pro Dafran demonstrates useful Soldier: 76 trick on Junkertown
Atlanta Reign player and popular Overwatch streamer Daniel ‘Dafran’ Francesca discovered a useful trick with Soldier: 76 on Junkertown.
By utilizing rocket-jumping, Dafran realized that it’s possible to quickly reach a location that would usually require a significant detour for Soldier: 76, who lacks the vertical mobility that some heroes offer.
Rocket-jumping is a technique that uses the small knock-back from an explosive weapon – in Soldier: 76’s case, his Helix Rockets – to get a boost while jumping, enabling either greater height or further distance and thus allowing the player to make jumps they otherwise wouldn’t have.
By rocket-jumping off of the corner of the nearest building, it’s possible to strafe across to the opening in the upper level that overlooks the Stage 1 capture point.
The entry to the second stage of Junkertown can be tricky to break through, particularly with limited vertical mobility, as the doorway through which the payload must travel gives the defending team plenty of options for taking the high ground advantage.
Being able to contest that high ground without taking the long and predictable way around the ramp can be useful for both fighting stage one and pushing through the start of stage two.
Soldier: 76’s consistent damage output usually comes with the trade-off of lacking vertical mobility, but tricks like this one can help overcome that limitation.
This is by no means the first use of rocket-jumping in Overwatch, but it does appear to be a previously-unseen use of the technique. It’s not impossible that the most recent update, which made balance changes to a variety of heroes including adjusting Soldier: 76’s Sprint, made this jump possible where it previously wasn’t.