Overwatch 2 Reveals Patch Notes for Season 12

Highlights

Overwatch 2 Season 12 introduces Juno, a new Martian hero, and the Clash game mode with two new maps.
A competitive reset and hero balance changes, including health adjustments and buffs for some, bring fresh dynamics to the game.
System updates like Avoid feature enhancements and Flashpoint spawn boost ensure a more curated and faster-paced gaming experience.

As someone who’s spent countless hours blasting my way through virtual battlefields and healing allies when they need it most, I can’t help but be thrilled with this latest update! The developers have really outdone themselves, especially when it comes to the Mediblaster and Pulsar Torpedoes.

The commencement of Season 12 in Overwatch 2 has been confirmed, unveiling the complete update patch notes. This fresh season introduces a Martian hero, a new game mode, a competitive reset, and numerous other features that enthusiasts will find intriguing.

As a passionate gamer, I’m excited to share that starting from August 20th, Overwatch 2 kicked off its twelfth season since its sequel release. This update packed a punch with a fresh Battle Pass and the introduction of Juno, a swift-moving support character who brings a breath of Martian air to our game world. Yes, you read that right – Juno is the first natural-born Martian in the thrilling universe of Overwatch 2!

As a dedicated gamer, I’m stoked about the transparency in Overwatch 2! They’ve spilled the beans on all the cool stuff coming with Season 12, including a fresh hero and an exciting new core game mode called Clash. In this mode, players take turns attacking and defending objectives as they push deeper into enemy territory. To kick things off, Clash has two maps: Hanaoka and Throne of Anubis, which draw inspiration from classic Overwatch maps. Can’t wait to jump in!

Absolutely, an update to Overwatch 2‘s main patch brings about changes in character balance. Characters with high mobility have seen their health reduced from 250 to 225, making them more vulnerable to sudden damage. In contrast, characters like Mercy, Moira, and Lucio were given buffs in other areas to counterbalance this adjustment. Unfortunately, heroes such as Hanzo and Echo didn’t receive any compensation for these changes. Characters including Orisa, Zarya, Sojourn, Sombra, Torbjorn, and Lifeweaver saw some positive modifications during Overwatch 2‘s Season 12, but D.Va, Junkrat, and Illari experienced nerfs instead. Juno has undergone fine-tuning since her initial testing phase, and the damage calculation for Kiriko’s Kunai has been adjusted to ensure consistency.

In the recent updates for Overwatch 2, a few changes were made. The “Avoid” feature has been enhanced with extra slots and refined functions to aid players in organizing and customizing their gaming experience more effectively. Furthermore, the new Wave Respawn system – an upgraded version of Group Respawns introduced in Season 7 – has been incorporated into all modes of Overwatch 2. Lastly, a speed boost for spawn points called Flashpoint, initially tested in Quick Play earlier this year, has now been officially implemented in Overwatch 2.

In competitive play for Overwatch, ranks are being reset periodically, approximately every six months with significant updates such as new game modes or significant system overhauls. To rejoin the ladder, players will be required to complete ten placement matches for each role. The enhanced Predicted Rank system is designed to help fans quickly find their next competitive match.

Overwatch 2 Season 12 Patch Notes – August 20, 2024

Get ready for a thrilling space voyage to explore uncharted territories, featuring Juno, a delightful and extraordinary Support character from Mars, joining us this season! Engage in fierce combat on two new maps using the Clash game mode, where you’ll experience an exhilarating tug of war to secure victory! Immerse yourself in the mystique of ancient Egypt with the introduction of the Mythic Anubis Reaper Hero Skin and wield the divine sword of the sun God Ra with the upcoming Mythic Midnight Sun Ana Weapon Skin. Level up with the premium battle pass to collect Legendary Bast Doomfist, Oni Ana, and many more remarkable additions!

New Hero – Juno

The latest Support character in Overwatch 2 has made her debut from Mars! Juno brings along a multi-purpose Mediblaster and Pulsar Torpedoes, capable of dispensing healing as well as damage at the same time. Additionally, Juno’s Hyper Ring grants an extra boost to the team, accelerating their movement for quicker battles, while her agility enables her to navigate the battlefield deftly, offering vital support or swiftly dodging potential dangers.

Born on Mars as part of Project Red Promise, a covert mission by Lucheng Interstellar aimed at transforming the planet into an habitable environment, Juno Teo Minh was forced to leave Mars when violent dust storms disrupted communication with Lucheng, threatening the project’s continuation. To ensure her safety, she was sent to Earth. As an adult, Juno is resolved to find a solution to rescue her home and loved ones before it’s too late.

New Core Game Mode – Clash

Prepare yourself for an exciting new game mode in Overwatch 2 called Clash! In this mode, there are five capture objectives arranged sequentially along a symmetrical map, with only one active objective at any given time. The game begins with Objective C, the central one. Score points by capturing an objective without interference; when you successfully hold the position until the capture progress is complete, your team will receive 1 point.

After the recent Clash trial, the ultimate capture points for both teams (A and E) now provide greater rewards, each being worth three points that are divided based on the progress made during a capture attempt. A team secures victory by accumulating a total of five points from capturing diverse objectives spread across the map, or if they successfully push into their opponent’s territory and completely seize the final objective.

Conflict is now available for gameplay in Quick Match, Competitive Matches, and even the Arcade, with the inclusion of the latest Hanaoka and Throne of Anubis maps. Additionally, there will be an increased occurrence of these matches to provide you with multiple opportunities for engagement. For a limited period, Clash can also be played in the Arcade mode.

New Clash Map – Throne Of Anubis

At the heart of what were once grand temple precincts rests Anubis’ Throne, a program confined by Helix International. The tranquil neighborhood and historical landmarks near the Throne are tinged with unease, as there is apprehension that the force which sparked the Omnic Crisis could stir once more.

Hero Mastery Updates

Get ready to power up your particle cannon and fuel your rockets! This season, I’m diving into the Hero Mastery single-player courses for both Pharah and Zarya. It’s time to strategize my shots and shield my bot allies as we tackle new challenges in a special event running from August 20 to September 3. And the best part? I can earn fantastic new rewards, along with up to 22,500 Battle Pass XP!

Hero Mastery Courses for Pharah and Zarya have been added.

General Updates

Avoid As Teammate

The Avoid List has been updated with the following new features:

Players now have 15 avoid slots divided into 3 Pinned slots and 12 Recent slots.
Pinned Avoid slots guarantee that these players will never be in your matches and unlike our old Avoid slots, they never time out.
The new Recent Avoid slots do time out after 7 days like the old Avoid slots, and they only prioritize constructing teams without these players on them.
The player with the lowest time remaining in the Recent list is removed from the list if a new player is avoided when the list is full.
Time Remaining for an avoided player in the Recent list can be refreshed by using the Reset Avoid Expiration feature.
The Avoid List is now its own tab in the Social menu (which still only appears when at least 1 player is avoided).
Any players that were avoided when Season 11 ended will be removed from the avoided list due to the aforementioned updates to the system.

Developer’s Note: So far, dodging other players has been effective in shaping your gameplay. However, with these updates, we’re interested in finding solutions that help players efficiently manage their ignore lists.

Spawn System Changes

Group Respawn is replaced by Wave Respawn for all non-Competitive modes.
Wave Respawn is added to Competitive Play.
Default respawn time increased from 10 to 12 seconds.
Overtime respawn time increased from 13 to 14 seconds.
Wave Respawn is disabled in Overtime.
Overtime respawn time is not increased in Flashpoint.
Wave Respawn is disabled when the Payload is near the end of the track in Escort and Hybrid game modes (the same time the existing Anti-Stall system activates).
When the first hero on a team dies, they start a new Wave for their team.
Any hero that dies within 6 seconds of a Wave starting automatically joins that Wave.
A hero joining a Wave will respawn at the exact same time as the hero that started the Wave. This means that the respawn time of heroes joining the wave can be as long as 12 seconds if they died at the same time as the first hero or as short as 6 seconds if they catch the end of the Wave.
If a hero starts a Wave and no other hero joins the Wave they will respawn 2 seconds faster. This hero will respawn in 10 seconds (the default respawn time before Season 12).

Developer Comments: These changes are designed to reduce the number of one-sided matches. For an in-depth analysis of our thought process behind the changes to respawning, read the latest Director’s Take on PlayOverwatch.com.

Shop Updates

You can now try out all skins in the practice range from the Hero Gallery or the Premium Shop.

Competitive Play Updates

Mid-Year Rank Reset

Competitive skill ranks for all players have been reset for Season 12.
Players will need to complete ten placement matches for each role to be ranked and start climbing on the leaderboard.

Plan of Action: We intend to refresh rankings every six months, coinciding with major updates that revitalize the metagame. These updates will involve substantial adjustments to hero balancing, introduction of new characters such as Juno, launch of innovative game modes like Clash, and modifications to fundamental systems, like changes in respawning mechanisms, as previously discussed.

Predicted Rank

The Predicted Rank that was displayed to players in Placements at the end of each match is now displayed in all locations that rank is displayed for individual players.
Predicted Rank is only displayed to players viewing their own Rank (other players can’t see this information).
Predicted Rank is now used to determine whether a group is Wide or Narrow, meaning that Placements are no longer automatically considered Wide.
This will allow players to get much faster queues in many scenarios after their Rank has been reset.

Hero Updates

Developer Comments: Our recent 2.11.1 patch (which adjusted all the Tank heroes), saw a significant gain in interest for the role and had a positive lasting effect in queue times for Damage and Support as well. There are a few additional tuning changes in this update for Tanks but this patch is largely focused on adjusting many of the more mobile heroes in the Damage and Support roles. Mobility is very powerful and we would like for there to be more of a tradeoff for the flexibility that it brings, especially as we add speed boosting abilities by welcoming Juno to the game. We’re moving a handful of heroes to a 225 HP maximum and in some cases increasing potency elsewhere in their kit.

TANK

D.Va

Feedback from Developers: Boosting Defense Matrix accessibility for D.Va didn’t significantly enhance her overall gameplay as much as it increased annoyance among enemy team members. Consequently, we’ll be returning it to its original duration.

Defense Matrix
- Maximum duration reduced from 3.5 to 3 seconds.

Orisa

Feedback from Developer: We’re enhancing the destructive power of Orisa’s Energy Javelin to encourage more precise usage and provide a greater payoff for accuracy.

Energy Javelin
- Impact damage increased from 60 to 80.

Zarya

Developer Note: In Season 9, Zarya’s secondary fire saw minimal improvement due to the adjustments made to projectile size as it primarily targets the ground. To ensure it remains impactful compared to her primary beam, we’re boosting its damage.

Particle Cannon
- Secondary fire minimum damage increased from 47 to 55.
- Secondary fire maximum damage increased from 95 to 110.

DAMAGE

Echo

Note for Developers: We won’t make any extra changes to accommodate the smaller health pool since Echo, similar to Pharah, has been a high-performing hero in terms of damage in recent times.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.

Hanzo

Comment from Developer: Hanzo may not be as mobile as our other characters, so we’re increasing his health to 225. However, he shares Widowmaker’s ability for long-range lethality, capable of defeating heroes with 225 HP in a single shot. This adjustment also enhances the fairness between Hanzo and himself in matchups.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.

Junkrat

Comment from Developer: We’ve made adjustments to Junkrat’s grenades, resembling their behavior in early Overwatch. This change allows for more precise control over the angle at which they bounce, making it easier to hit tricky shots and manage various spaces. However, after a few bounces, the size of the projectile is decreased, reducing the likelihood of accidental direct hits towards the end of its lifespan.

Frag Launcher
- Projectile size is now reduced by half after the second ricochet.
- Projectiles preserve slightly more velocity on ricochet.

Sojourn

Note for Developers: Following our adjustment to limit the maximum damage of Railgun’s secondary blast, we’re now examining the impact on Sojourn’s primary shot. Our aim is to enhance its precision and boost the energy rewards for hitting critical areas (headshots).

Railgun
- Primary fire weapon spread reduced from 2 to 1.6 degrees.
- Critical hits now grant 10 energy.
- Energy degeneration rate reduced from 33 to 15 per second after 7 seconds.

Sombra

Developer Note: Boosting Sombra’s speed when she’s hidden allows her to reach favorable spots quicker, or gives her a slight edge in avoiding danger due to her reduced health.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.

Virus
- Impact damage increased from 25 to 35.
Stealth
- Bonus movement speed increased from 45 to 60%.

Torbjörn

As a gamer, I wanted to let you know that I’ve made an adjustment to Torbjorn’s armor health. This change is aimed at boosting his survivability against characters who deal significant damage based on armor reduction, like Tracer.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Base armor increased from 50 to 75.

SUPPORT

Illari

As a devoted fan, I’m excited about Illari’s potential for dealing massive damage throughout the game. However, I’ve noticed that she tends to have an excessive amount of ammunition, considering her projectiles are larger and easier to hit. To balance this out, we’re adjusting the amount of ammo she has or perhaps increasing the rarity of certain ammo types. Additionally, we’re making a change to prevent her Captive Sun projectile from detonating prematurely when it collides with walls or similar obstacles. Similarly, we’re fixing an issue where her secondary fire beam would unintentionally hit walls instead of nearby allies.

Solar Rifle
- Maximum ammo reduced from 16 to 14.
Captive Sun
- Projectile environment collision size reduced from 0.15 to 0 meters.

Juno

Feedback from the Juno trial within the community was divided between considering her too weak and too powerful. In terms of statistics, she demonstrated impressive performance across various categories, but notably excelled in healing output during a match. To enhance her usefulness while moderating her healing output slightly, these adjustments have been made. We aim to launch her with a robust state as players familiarize themselves with her playstyle. Additionally, there are several quality-of-life improvements detailed elsewhere in the release notes.

Juno has been added to the lineup.
Juno is now eligible for Competitive Play.
Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Mediblaster
- Burst projectile volley rate of fire reduced from 34 to 28 shots per second.
Pulsar Torpedoes
- Damage and Healing impact increased from 75 to 85.
- Heal-over-time reduced from 60 to 50 health.
Hyper Ring
- Deploy range increased by 3.5 meters.
- Cooldown reduced from 16 to 14 seconds.
Orbital Ray
- Beam travel speed increased from 1.9 to 2.25 meters per second.

Kiriko

Comment from Developer: Although Kiriko appears formidable when facing off against opponents, she often struggles to contribute significantly to victory. However, her evasive nature justifies her placement in the 225 health tier. To offset this reduction in health, we’re improving her damage output by boosting the base damage of her Kunai and eliminating the enhanced critical multiplier for a more consistent damage output.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Kunai
- Critical multiplier reduced from 2.5 to 2x.
- Damage increased from 45 to 60.
- Recovery time increased from 0.5 to 0.55 seconds.

Lifeweaver

Note from Developer: To prevent accidental destruction of the Petal Platform, it will now reset to the ground if no one is on it. Additionally, we’ve lowered its durability, making it more challenging but fair to destroy. The Healing Blossom will charge at a slower pace, allowing players to switch weapons without worrying about falling behind due to insufficient healing when switching back.

Healing Blossom
- Healing progress can now charge passively at a reduced rate.
  - No longer reduces movement speed when holding a full charge.
Petal Platform
- Duration only counts down while the platform is raised.
  - Platform now resets if no one is standing on it for 2 seconds.
    - Duration increased from 10 to 12 seconds.
      - Health reduced from 400 to 300.
Rejuvenating Dash
- Healing reduced from 60 to 45.

Mercy

Comment from Developer: Mercy’s Guardian Angel skill makes her very elusive and hard for multiple heroes to approach, which is a fun aspect of her abilities. We want to preserve this strength, so we plan to boost her HP to 225 and enhance the power of her Caduceus Staff beams.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Caduceus Staff
- Primary fire healing increased from 55 to 60 health per second.
- Secondary fire damage boost increased from 25% to 30%.

Moira

Developer Comment: Moira can be difficult to take down between the low cooldown on her Fade ability and self-healing with the Biotic Orb, so now she has 225 HP and slightly higher damage output to keep an edge to her offensive potential.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Biotic Grasp
- Secondary fire damage increased from 60 to 65 damage per second.

Lúcio

Developer Comment: Lucio is one of the most mobile heroes and makes his allies faster as well, so we’re moving him into the 225 HP hero category. His playstyle tends to get into closer ranges more often than other heroes in this category, so we’re turning up his Primary fire damage output to increase his effectiveness at range before diving in.

Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Sonic Amplifier
- Primary fire damage increased from 18 to 22.

Hero Quality of Life Updates

In this update, we’ve made adjustments to strengthen and make Juno a reliable pick in the Support Role, while also incorporating suggestions from the community to enhance the overall experience when interacting with or facing off against Juno. A big thank you for your valuable feedback during Juno’s Hero Trial!

SUPPORT

Juno

Mediblaster
- The weapon model visuals and firing sounds were updated to indicate when the weapon is at low ammo.
- The heal sounds that play locally to the Juno player were updated to be more noticeable when healing allies closer to full health.
Pulsar Torpedoes
- The cooldown when the ability is canceled after no successful lock-ons has been reduced from 5 seconds to 2 seconds.
- Line of Sight checks were improved to better find targets with hitboxes in view.
- Added range forgiveness of an extra 5 meters on current targets that might move beyond the max 40 meters range.
- The local cancel sound was increased in volume to be more noticeable for the Juno player.
- The ally and enemy impact sounds were updated to be more noticeable for the Juno player.
- Healing torpedoes have new impact visuals when hitting enemy barriers and when clipping near walls.
Glide Boost
- Now adjusts Juno better when she hits level architecture such as doorways.
Hyper Ring
- Juno players will now hear the initial Hyper Ring apply sound when entering their own ring for the first time.
- The sound when re-entering the Hyper Ring was updated to be more noticeable.
Orbital Ray
- The Ultimate enemy voice line was updated in tone to better contrast the ally version.
- The enemy version of the ray’s start sound was updated to be more noticeable.

Map Updates

Flashpoint

Passing through the spawn door barrier of your own spawn will apply a temporary speed boost to get to the capture point faster.
The speed boost is removed when taking or dealing damage.
The speed boost is applied by both the default and forward spawns.
The speed boost counts toward the existing movement speed bonus cap of 75%.

Push

The Push bot collision has been updated so players cannot contest from certain high ground positions.

General map & Mode updates

Updates to our map recency system to increase the frequency of new maps and modes at the start of each season.
Capture point outlines can now be seen through walls on Clash and Flashpoint when the capture point is unlocked.
Lighting scenarios are now randomized in Quick Play and Competitive Game Mode.

Bug Fixes

General

Fixed a bug where the Gotcha achievement was not awarding properly.
Fixed a bug where weapon skins were not showing in the weapon variant menu.
Fixed a bug where first-time users could not skirmish which waiting for a game.

Heroes

Ashe

Fixed a bug where some of the effects would not trigger with the Ashe mythic skin equipped on Steam.

Illari

Fixed a bug with Illari’s Solar Rifle secondary fire healing beam impacting the environment instead of players when aiming near edges of collision.

Juno

Cleaned up some of the effects of Juno’s Pulsars torpedoes when they landed as D.Va was re-entering her mech.

2024-08-22 01:34