Blizzard Entertainment recently released Overwatch’s 27th hero. This has brought about mixed feelings among players. Brigitte, Overwatch’s newest character, is a support hero who is essentially a weaker version of Reinhardt that can also heal allies. Brigitte’s unique but strong kit leaves a far greater impact than what people initially thought. Since her release, numerous Overwatch players have agreed that Brigitte may have broken the Overwatch meta.
Gone with the Old and In with the New
Previously, Overwatch teams would run dive – an easy to play and extremely punishing team composition to use against poorly coordinated teams. dive is effective because teams can single out and eliminate an enemy. This allows teams that run dive to attain a numbers advantage. With the introduction of Brigitte, everything changed.
Brigitte’s whole kit offers a variety of ways to counter dive. First, Brigitte’s passive ability, Inspire, heals nearby allies when she deals damage. This is great tool in general when fighting as a team. Similarly, another one of Brigitte’s abilities, Repair Pack, allows her to target heal a single ally. Repair Pack heals for 150 health and over-heals by adding additional armor for any extra healing past a hero’s maximum health pool. This ability crosses the line of fairness and steps in absurdity, as it allows teammates to become significantly more durable.
Shield Bash is another tool that Brigitte can use to stop a dive. Brigitte’s Shield Bash is like McCree’s Flashbang, in that it stuns opponents for a short period of time, even when enemies have their shield deployed. Shield Bash is great for stopping enemy heroes that may be diving or flanking. Brigitte’s last normal ability, Whip Shot, knocks back any person that her flail meets. This is yet another tool that she can use to stop a dive.
Finally, Brigitte’s Ultimate, Rally, speeds up teammates around her and provides them with armor. Rally affords 15 armor every second for ten seconds, and, at maximum, can grant 150 armor to a teammate. Moreover, this armor also stacks with other heroes who provide armor or additional shields. Brigitte, when used with a Symmetra Shield Generator or Torbjorn armor packs, is axiomatically difficult to kill unless you can strip off enemy armor with Sombra’s EMP. As strong as she is, Brigitte has too many tools to deal with divers.
To see learn more about Brigitte’s abilities, check out the video below.
Triple Tank and/or Triple Support?
Brigitte has changed competitive Overwatch quite drastically. Players in competitive solo queue run triple support or triple tank compositions because dive is virtually impossible to play. Brigitte can counter any person who dives in or flanks. Additionally, Brigitte gives so much healing and armor that it can make winning a fight seem like a futile endeavor. She has shifted the meta completely.
Looking Ahead
Brigitte is good for Overwatch. However, as of writing, she is undeniably overpowered. The fact that she alone can counter an entire team composition has caused many players to express understandable concern. Changes to Overwatch, or any competitive game, should not be so drastic that they significantly change how most players approach their playstyle. It is not healthy for the game’s longevity nor its competitive edge. Players have walked away from the game because she is frustrating to play against.
This is just one of the few problems that haunts Overwatch and its players. Currently, Blizzard is refusing to address this. If Blizzard can create a healthy balance between heroes’ strengths and weaknesses, Overwatch could be even more appealing.
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Featured Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment/Overwatch
Videos Clips: Overwatch