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A new Overwatch 2 midseason patch introduces impactful balance changes, Armor reduction, OW2 WoW collab skins and plenty more.
Overwatch 2’s latest midseason patch is here, and it seeks to reign in some strong standouts in today’s meta.
Juno’s arrival brought a wide amount of HP and damage nerfs. Since then, the 5v5 hero shooter has favored mobile dive heroes, making this the most aggressive patch since Wrecking Ball’s 2018 debut.
That said, the devs have introduced a new round of balance changes that will (hopefully) make things more fair across the board. Along with this is a major World of Warcraft crossover, new end-of-season events, and Mystery Heroes’ return.
Here’s everything you need to know about the new Overwatch 2 midseason patch!
Credit: Blizzard Entertainment
Overwatch 2 Midseason Patch Details
Blizzard introduces large balance changes at the start of every competitive season to spice up the meta. But not every change lands well with the fanbase. So a midseason patch typically follows after a week or two.
Midseason Hero Balance Changes
Subject
Buff
Nerf
Armor
Armor flat damage reduction decreased from 10 to 7 per impact.
TANKS
Tank passive
Knockback resistance reduced from 40% to 25%
D.Va
Mech base health buffed from 200 to 225.
Mech armor health reduced from 375 to 325
Orisa
Fortify Movement speed penalty reduced from 20% to 10%.
Roadhog
Take a Breather Resource regeneration rate increased from 8 to 10 per second.
Sigma
Hyperspheres Explosion damage increased from 30 to 40 and no longer deals damage to self.
Hyperspheres on-hit damage lowered from 25 to 15
DAMAGE
Bastion
Configuration: Assault spread reduced from 2.2 to 2 degrees, Ultimate cost reduced 12%
Cassidy
Flashbang Explosion damage increased from 45 to 75, Ultimate cost reduced by 10%
Flashbang hinder duration reduced from 1.2 to 0.9 seconds,
Hanzo
Normal arrows are no longer affected by global projectile size increases, maximum damage increased from 120 to 125.
Charge-up time increased from 0.72 to 0.87 seconds.
Venture
Shield health gained per ability reduced from 40 to 30.
SUPPORT
Moira
Ultimate damage per second increased from 70 to 85.
Lifeweaver
Thorn Volley maximum ammo increased from 80 to 100.
Zenyatta
Destruction Orb damage increased from 48 to 50, Discord Orb
cooldown per target lowered from 7 to 6 seconds.
These new changes were done with underutilized heroes in mind. D.Va has been taking up too much space, so hopefully more buffs on other tanks like Sigma and Orisa will see a more varied pickrate.
Hanzo and Cassidy buffs seem to suggest a slight drift towards Marksman picks for defending teams, potentially controlling the dive meta from afar. But we’ll have to see more survivability on backline hitters like Ana and Widowmaker before that happens.
It’s also worth noting that the midseason patch favors tankbusters like Reaper and Junkrat, who were able to shred Armor even before the nerfs.
New Competitive Drive Events
The new patch introduces Competitive Drives, a new event that rewards ranked players with bonus Competitive points and upgraded name card cosmetics called “Signatures” near the end of each season.
On the other hand, Role Queue Mystery Heroes is coming to Overwatch 2 Season 12. A variation of the popular game mode using Role Queue rules was officially added to the Unranked menu, adding a dash of chaos in the midseason.
Faster Clash and Flashpoint Games
Another welcome update is the change made to Clash and Flashpoint maps. From now on, Defenders on Clash respawn two seconds faster for every point the enemy team takes. But there’s more.
No game mode has been impacted by the recent dive meta quite like Flashpoint. Fast, hard-hitting picks have always thrived on its large maps. But now, everyone can get to the point more easily with the new midseason changes.
Flashpoint spawn speed buffs now last longer, with a two-second initial boost that stretches for over six seconds. It may not sound like a huge deal. But every second counts when you’re stopping the enemy team from capping the last point.
New Bug Fixes
Lastly, we have new bug fixes that targeted a pretty popular exploit, including one that involved Mei’s glacial prowess and Lifeweaver’s Petal Platform.
Here are all the bugs that were patched out in the September 2024 midseason update:
- Lifeweaver’s petal platform keeps rising when interacting with Mei’s Ice effects.
- Wall-climb infinite ledge grab.
- Players were not gaining credit when queuing for all roles in challenges and progression stats.
- Lifeweavers’s petal platform moves horizontally if placed on a moving object.
- Deadeye incorrectly indicates a killing blow on Ramattra.
- Audio remains muffled if you use a teleporter while hindered.
- D.Va’s Boosters movement speed stacks multiplicatively with speed boosting abilities.
- Damage reduction affects Sigma’s Gravitic Flux percentage health damage.
- Armor reduces more damage than intended when one hero has multiple armor health pools.
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Paul started writing game guides and match predictions for ESTNN’s editorial team in 2022. Since then, he’s covered big-ticket esports events and the latest news on tech and AI.
