With the recent implementation of nerfs to Genji, the Overwatch community is voicing their opinion for nerfs to other characters. Most of the competitive community is looking forward to eventually changes to the Double Shield meta, as it has dominated both the ladder and pro play.
However in a “AMA” session with the Overwatch Development team, Jeff Kaplan hinted at some future changes. In a reddit response, Jeff Kaplan mentioned how the Double Shield meta is being investigated and on their radar for changes.
Until the experimental changes are announced, players can only speculate as to what the changes could possibly be. Potentially the changes are simply reducing shield health across the board. Or maybe the changes are a bit more radical. What would the tanks in Overwatch look like if they lost their shields?
Main tanks in Overwatch typically create space through these shields, by creating a safe area for their team. Now that the shields are gone, tanks need to be reengineered to create space and make plays in a new way. Damage is at an all-time high in Overwatch, making survivability another big issue for shield-less tanks. To combat this, tanks gain a new global passive to mitigate at least a little bit of burst damage.
Global Passive: Helmet
[Related: New Overwatch Patch: July 28, 2020]
Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
Orisa’s niche has strangely mutated from a defensive hero to a more brawl-centric hero over time. Her durability and point control are unmatched. Paired with Baptise and Sigma, Orisa becomes one of the most difficult heroes to remove from a fight in Overwatch. These changes aim to lean into the brawly nature of Orisa, but remove the parts of her kit that make her unbearable to play.
Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
Aside from removing the shield, the most notable changes are to Fortify and Fusion Driver. Fortify no longer provides the obnoxious defensive bonus that allows Orisa to exist forever on point. Instead, it adds as a good balance between “immovable” and “unkillable”. Fusion Driver still adds a boost in damage, but not to the oppressive amount the current iteration creates. It also now is not an instant win option in a world without shields.
The biggest addition to Orisa’s new brawl-style is her sword. The sword is realistically the new addition that attempts to add a little bit of fun into her kit. By flipping between the gun and the sword, players can make the decision to bring the fight to the opponent, or play more defensive from long range.
Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
If Reinhardt loses his shield, his identity shifts into a more berserker-type character. Reinhardt excels in low-ground battles, and his new kit should accentuate his ability to lead the charge. His new melee attack should deter enemies from lazily pushing towards Reinhardt and his team. Dealing damage individually with two hammers allows Reinhardt to build ultimate charge rather quickly.
One significant change is Reinhardt’s ultimate. Without a shield to block opposing shatters, Reinhardt can use his ultimate uncontested off cooldown. In order to tone down the strength of Rein’s ultimate, his damage is reduced for a few seconds after knocking the opponents.
Roadhog sits in an awkward spot in a world without shields. There isn’t much to stop Hog from pulling any target he wants, except of course for his aim. To account for this new found freedom, Chain Hook needs a bit of a change.
Giving main tanks a bit of weight gives them a better shot of protecting their team. Otherwise, a hook onto the opposing Reinhardt would mean an easy kill and initiation for the Roadhog team. The changes to Roadhog’s heal ability should give a bit more utility to the rest of the team as well. While Roadhog is a good flanker and anti-flak option, he doesn’t quite have the team-centric properties most off-tanks have. The smokescreen effect should incentivize Roadhogs to play a bit close to the team.
Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
Sigma without a shield plays much more like an off-tank than his fellow main tanks. He prefers to play from a distance, and his new kit should add to his different play-style. A new ability to create space from a distance seems vital to Sigma’s identity. The new Stone Rain ability would be an interesting way to disrupt the enemy team, while also creating cover for allies.
An important part of Sigma’s new kit is the ability to destroy the Accretion and Pillar in a short amount of time. Because it’s harder to block the stun from Sigma, opponents need a little more counter-play to getting hit in the head with a rock every ten seconds.
Winston is a tank that was already in a pretty good spot in regards to game play. His barrier is often his only way to survive on his way to diving the back line, and removing it means Winston’s initiation is much weaker. In order to fix that, Winston is could get a little more damage from his `abilities to hopefully increase his threat level. The Electric Personal Shield is a powerful ability if left unchecked by the opposition. Winston’s ability to draw resources away from his allies is extremely important, and this new ability should allow Winston to create the necessary space the barrier would normally provide.
While removing shields is an interesting experiment, the front line tanks need a little help sometimes from their off-tanks. Keeping the off-tanks as is will go a long way to keeping main tanks alive. This unfortunately also includes not changing Brigitte. Her shield has minimal health, and acts more of a way to protect herself than others. Shield bash is an important ability despite what the average player may think. It keeps flankers in check and can put Brigitte in a bad position if she misses.
If Overwatch removed shields, the way players think about tanks will flip upside down. No longer would be the days of hiding behind Reinhardt or teammates demanding a shield tank. It is exciting to see Jeff and the rest of the Overwatch team share they are worried about the prominence of shields. Is this the right change? Who knows, but players will only learn in time.
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Featured image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
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