Overwatch 2 support changes lead with Mercy damage boost nerf

pcgamesn.com:

Overwatch 2 support changes are at the forefront of Overwatch 2 Season 6, and they’ll see one of the game’s original and most popular heroes hit with a key nerf to her signature ability. Blizzard’s Overwatch 2 game director Aaron Keller shares details of what balance changes to expect in the next set of Overwatch 2 patch notes and, ahead of the new support hero coming to the FPS game, the tweaks include a key Mercy damage boost nerf.

“Nearly half of our heroes are getting balance changes [in Season 6],” Keller remarks in his latest Director’s Take blog, with some of the most significant addressed here. With the arrival of a new Overwatch 2 support hero in the Invasion update, several other characters in the role are getting some adjustments.

Probably the most notable of these, especially given her long-standing popularity among players, is a Mercy nerf targeting her signature damage boost. “It won’t be a lot,” Keller says, “we’ll be reducing it from 30% to 25%. At this value we feel that it will still feel effective while giving us room to rein in certain damage spikes.” As an eternally contentious ability, such a change will undoubtedly split opinion, but Keller says the team is “doing our best to be receptive to the various community options.”

More Lifeweaver buffs are also on the cards, giving the healing from his Tree of Life ultimate up to 100 Overhealth to make it feel more impactful, while his Rejuvenating Dash will now restore more of his own health, and some of his base health is being converted into shields to give him more long-term sustainability.

Kiriko’s Protection Suzu will be changed – it’ll now heal less by default, but with an additional burst if it cleanses a negative effect, encouraging players to