Overwatch Sept 18 update nerfs Ashe, buffs Roadhog & McCree: patch notes

A new Experimental Overwatch patch has just gone live on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch featuring a bunch of balance changes to multiple heroes.

As noted by Community Manager Josh Nash, these changes don’t have a theme, but the intent is to modify numbers relating to heroes to improve their performance.

“These changes are not intended to be hugely impactful to gameplay,” he wrote.

The big loser this patch is Ashe, who sees her Dynamite damage drop from 75 to 50. Given how powerful the character has become recently, it’s probably for the best that Dynamite is toned down a notch.

The rest of the heroes listed, however, were buffed nicely. Perhaps even too much so, as many players have felt the game is in a good spot as of late.

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Baptiste’s Ultimate cost has been decreased by 15%, which should help him out a bit as his healing has decreased drastically.

Elsewhere, McCree has received an amusing change where he can now use Combat Roll in the air and its distance has been increased by 20%.

This could be interesting as you could now potentially drop from the high ground and roll to reload in the process.

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Additionally, Flashbang’s stun duration has been increased very slightly from 0.7 to 0.8 seconds.

Orisa on the other hand is probably the biggest winner this patch as her base armor is increased from 200 to 250 and her projectile speed goes from 90 to 120. This could be a huge deal, especially in combination with Roadhog’s buffs.

Speaking of which, Hog now pulls enemies even closer with his Chain Hook which should in theory make his combo all the deadlier and confirm kills.

Hopefully, we don’t devolve into an Orisa-Hog meta again, but only time will tell. These changes are, after all, only in Experimental Mode, but most changes tested there do end up going live eventually.

Full patch notes:

EXPERIMENTAL MODE

The next experiment begins! This time we’re hoping to get your feedback on some balance updates. We’re using the 2-2-2 Role Queue ruleset so that you can get a feel for how these balance changes might affect the live game.

HERO UPDATES (ONLY IN EXPERIMENTAL)

Ashe

Dynamite

• Explosion damage reduced from 75 to 50

Developer Comments: Ashe is still a bit too powerful, but we’d like to keep her rifle feeling impactful so we’re taking some power out of her Dynamite ability.

Baptiste

Amplification Matrix

• Ultimate cost decreased 15%

Developer Comments: Baptiste generates a majority of his ultimate charge through area-of-effect healing. As we reduced area healing values recently, we’re also scaling down the cost of his ultimate.

McCree

Combat Roll

• Can now be activated in the air
• Distance increased 20%

Flashbang

• Stun duration increased from 0.7 to 0.8 seconds

Developer Comments: After scaling down the damage output of McCree’s primary fire, we’re looking to give back a bit of power through improvements to his abilities.

Orisa

General

• Base armor increased from 200 to 250

Fusion Driver

• Projectile speed increased from 90 to 120

Developer Comments: Increased projectile speed will help Orisa’s weapon feel more responsive, reducing the need to lead targets. We found that recent adjustments to Orisa’s abilities were more impactful than we originally anticipated and have increased her armor to compensate.

Roadhog

Chain Hook

• Now pulls targets 0.5 meters closer (3.5 meters down to 3.0 meters)

Developer Comments: After the last round of shotgun improvements, Roadhog’s Chain Hook combo still wasn’t effective against some of the smaller enemy heroes. This change pulls targets closer to melee range for swifter, more reliable combo execution.