Overwatch Reverting Ana Biotic Grenade Nerf, Tweaking Zenyatta

Published: March 10, 2017 9:30 AM /

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Overwatch Zenyatta Ana Highlight

Some changes are coming to the Public Test Realm on Overwatch including a reversion of the Biotic Grenade nerf for Ana and the removal of Orb of Destruction spread from Zenyatta according to an update to the patch notes posted on the game's official forums. The upcoming changes on the Overwatch PTR are a further refinement on the update released just a few days ago.

The update to the PTR is split into two parts. Sombra and Zenyatta have gotten one change apiece, and Zenyatta and Ana will be getting one change each tomorrow.

Ana is having her Biotic Grenade nerf reverted back to its original damage values.  Both the damage and healing rates of the grenade are being restored. However, the reduction in damage from her Biotic Rifle from 80 to 60 currently remains and will after the forthcoming PTR patch. The reasoning for the reversion was explained by Principal Designer Geoff Goodman in a thread complaining about the changes.

Ana had the biggest changes in this patch, and upon testing, feedback, and talking about it a ton internally, we decided to pull back on the nerfs a bit for this patch. The damage reduction on her weapon is significant, but if this ends up not being enough we can re-visit some further tuning. We don't want to swing her balance too wildly within a single patch.
As for Zenyatta, his Orb of Destruction spread has been completely removed. This applies to both the primary and alternate fires. The forthcoming update will also remove the ability for his Orb of Discord to pass through energy shields such as those used by Reinhardt, Orisa, and Winston.

Finally, Sombra has gotten a minor tactical buff. She and her teammates are now able to see her hacked health packs through walls on the PTR. Reception of the change on Reddit's /r/Overwatch subreddit has generally been positive. It may have resulted from a thread on the official Overwatch forums where Geoff Goodman responded to a request for the feature by stating that they would be bringing it into the game in a future PTR patch (which is now live on the PTR).

While we do know about the four things that have changed and will change in minor patches to the PTR version of Overwatch,  Geoff Goodman has stated that the upcoming build will "include these changes" which implies that other buffs or nerfs may be coming as well.

What do you think of the Biotic Grenade nerf being reversed for Ana? Do you think the removal of the Orb of Destruction spread for Zenyatta is a good buff to the character? How useful do you think Sombra's ability to see hacked health packs through walls will be? Let us know in the comments below!

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One of my earliest memories is playing Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo Entertainment System. I've had a controller in my hand since I was 4 and I… More about Robert N

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Platforms
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC
Release Date
May 24, 2016 (Calendar)
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