Overwatch 2’s patch notes for tomorrow’s season eight update were dropped today featuring numerous balance changes, but none are bigger than those for the game’s newest hero, Mauga.
Mauga was playable for a weekend at the beginning of November during BlizzCon 2023, and players who got to try him out were very vocal with their feedback that he did not feel up to snuff. Blizzard heard it loud and clear, according to the patch notes.
“We got a lot of constructive feedback from players when Mauga was available to try during his free preview weekend, so we’ve adjusted his kit for his official launch to give him the ability to last longer in a fight,” Blizzard said.
These changes include a reduction to his headshot hitbox volume by 15 percent and an increase to 150 armor, which will now go with 350 health to total an HP of 500.
His abilities have also been changed, including a reduction in spread for both of his dual wield gatling guns, a 0.5 increase in damage per shot, and an increase in ammunition from 300 to 350, just to name a few. In short, he should feel a lot better than he did in the weekend playtest.
Other changes for heroes include nerfs for Sigma, Mei, and Soldier: 76, and buffs for Doomfist, Tracer, Torbjorn, Winston, and Ramattra, along with wholesale hero updates to lower the ultimate charge preserved when changing heroes from 25 percent to 15 percent.
“Swapping heroes is fundamental to the gameplay of Overwatch and this ultimate charge refund mechanic has done a great job of decreasing friction there,” Blizzard said. “It has helped matches feel less one-sided as it functions as a soft comeback mechanic. However, it also helped reinforce the perception that it’s most always an advantage to counter-swap upon dying, which ideally isn’t always true and requires some consideration due to how powerful ultimate abilities can be. We are reducing the amount of ultimate charge preserved by a significant amount in order to see if the increased cost of switching meaningfully impacts player behavior, while retaining the benefits this mechanic provides.”
Season eight’s update also consists of some changes to competitive play. MMR decay will now only occur at the start of a new season and is not applied for roles that qualify for a rank.
The full list of patch notes can be found on Blizzard’s website, and the new season goes live in the afternoon tomorrow, Dec. 5.
