So how are your games going lately? [megathread]

[ThatsOurEric]

Support-wise, none of them are OP. Especially not with the grenade nerf. Ana is fine.

I have noticed that now Bastion & Pharah is more even vs. one another. Recon-mode can deal with her just
fine, and since he has an extra 100 health, some of which is armor, he can better survive Pharah's assault
than Soldier can.

[Pendulous]

Every single game had unbalanced teams. Every single game had Bastion Play of the Games. Every single game had Bastion OP bullshit.

[Kelimbror]

I really disagree with this.

Well that's great for you, but she is the highest picked hero by a long shot...not to mention compared to the next highest support, Lucio. Various sites and numbers are different, but MO has 13.5% Ana for competitive and 8.9% for Lucio. Clearly the rest of players don't share your expected disagreement with anything people say in this thread.

It's also a joke to think you need any form of coordination or catch the enemy unexpected to use her ult. If you are a good Ana, you just use it reactively based on what your team is doing without any talking even necessary. Genji flies up in the are swinging a dragon around, boost and win. Rein quakes and you see their team go down, boost and win. It's pretty easy if you are Ana.

I don't expect this to change once placement games are over, but we will see. I wasn't doing well trying to play other heroes, but once I started playing Mercy and then mostly Ana, my win rate went on a large climb. Almost made Diamond last season and I'm a fairly average player who couldn't even hit plat before.

[Endus]

It's also a joke to think you need any form of coordination or catch the enemy unexpected to use her ult. If you are a good Ana, you just use it reactively based on what your team is doing without any talking even necessary. Genji flies up in the are swinging a dragon around, boost and win. Rein quakes and you see their team go down, boost and win. It's pretty easy if you are Ana.

Things that can ruin Ana's ult pretty completely;
1> Zenyatta's ultimate. The healing generally outpaces whatever damage is going out, and it's AoE healing, so you can't even switch targets.
2> Tackling their ulted guy away from the team, with Reinhardt. They're stuck while traveling, and then they end up out of position, losing even more time on the ult. Often results in Rein's death, but a trade of one guy for the team is okay.
3> A well-timed Roadhog hook can have the same effect, to a lesser extent.
4> Your own Ana has a sleep dart.
5> Freeze them with Mei. Either primary fire or ult, dealer's choice.
6> Junkrat traps, if you can bait them, work great on an ulting Genji or Reinhardt.
7> Just killing the guy, especially if it's a fragile hero like Genji. The damage reduction helps, but it isn't invincibility. Non-tanks still die way faster than non-ulted tanks do.
8> Mercy hiding and letting you kill her team, just to dive in with the 5-man rez as Ana's ult ends.

There's probably more, but I'm getting bored of this.

[NoiseTank13]

Things that can ruin Ana's ult pretty completely;
1> Zenyatta's ultimate. The healing generally outpaces whatever damage is going out, and it's AoE healing, so you can't even switch targets.

Hi Biotic Grenade, the most loaded ability in the game.

[Anzaman]

Jeff talking about Bastion, https://us.battle.net/forums/en/over...page=2#post-36.

Thanks for the thoughtful feedback here, everyone. We know Bastion is a big focus for everyone right now. I've been playing online games since they existed and now working on them for almost 15 years. One of the things I've learned about online communities is that change -- any change -- can cause a lot of anxiety. Back when I was working on World of Warcraft, I used to say that if we mailed 500 gold to every player, the community would find some way to be upset about it... because change is bad.

With that said, we'll make some changes to Bastion and put them up on the PTR this morning. We'd love to hear your feedback about those changes when they go up. I don't have details right now because we're still making the changes!

I think it is interesting to reflect upon the idea of what the meta is, what the meta is perceived to be and what the meta should be. When I read some feedback about what the meta should be, I get the sense that for some people that means every hero in Overwatch is picked at the exact same rate (so everyone has a 4-5% pick rate). I'm not sure this is entirely realistic, nor do I think the game is necessarily better if this is the case. It might be and I would love to be wrong about that. One of the reasons that we try to keep all 4 of our game modes viable (I know the community thinks of it as 3 game modes or maybe 3.5) is because different maps and different game modes allow the meta to be more fluid. The more the community pushes us to eliminate maps or modes, the more the hero meta will stagnate. I totally agree that when the meta is too defined (i.e. people only play XYZ heroes) the game is less fun. So we need to watch for trends and adjust as needed.

One interesting thing is the actual meta vs. the perceived meta. The perceived meta is largely driven off of the professional scene and what gets played in tournaments. After those tournaments, really cool reports are written analyzing the pro scene. Those reports go out of their way to say that they are solely reflective of the pro scene and not necessarily representative of the playerbase at large. Yet people cite the pro pick choices as gospel. One thing that I found interesting was that there was a perception based on those reports and in the community that Mercy is never played. Yet according to our stats back during the "3 tank meta" when "Lucio and Ana were the only viable healers", Mercy was the 5th most played hero OVERALL -- and yes, I am talking about in Competitive Play, not Quick Play.

So often, the perception of what the meta is does not match what the actual meta is.

Balance changes can be very difficult to make when emotions run so high in the community. There is outrage if a hero does not get played a lot (like with Bastion or Symmetra). We make changes to make those heroes more viable which means they will get played more. The result is, people need to adjust to playing against Symmetra and Bastion more... and they are more powerful. We cannot just magically make Bastion get picked more so the stats look pretty and not make changes to make him more viable at the same time.

I want to share my personal opinion on Bastion (which is dangerous because I know I am a spokesperson for the game). I play every night. I'm playing both Quick Play and Competitive (I played 2 games of CTF to get my loot box). Over the past few nights I've played with, as and against Bastion. My perception is that he is a little too powerful right now. In particular, in one match I was playing Bastion and the enemy Tracer was trying to hunt me down. The Tracer player was clearly a better player than I am -- a very skilled individual. I relied heavily on my self-heal and the Tracer could not finish me off. But I was able to kill Tracer in recon mode almost through attrition. This part felt wrong to me. But a lot of the feedback I read feels wildly blown out of proportion. Bastion isn't the "I Win button" and he can be focused and countered. When a team is coordinated, he is far scarier than when a team is just playing a pick-up/deathmatch style of play -- and I've witnessed both over the past few nights. I think complaints and praise of Bastion are both valid. I don't think he's perfect yet. But I do think there is a high amount of hyperbole around this particular situation.

In any event, will put some changes up and we're eager to hear your thoughts.

[Seifa]

Well, i know the PTR is for stability tests more than feedback on changes... but many saw the new Bastion was overtuned and was shipped live because i think devs are too stubborn to admit their vision for those changes are wrong and Blizzard will never revert a buff, but start tweaking different numbers.

I'm not surprised to see Bastion back on the tweaking board after these changes.

[Eapoe]

Have no idea how I get Bastions on my team that get stomped all the time while the opposing team always has one that knows what they are doing.

[Endus]

Well, i know the PTR is for stability tests more than feedback on changes... but many saw the new Bastion was overtuned and was shipped live because i think devs are too stubborn to admit their vision for those changes are wrong and Blizzard will never revert a buff, but start tweaking different numbers.

I'm not surprised to see Bastion back on the tweaking board after these changes.

He's not THAT far off from being balanced. It's just that was was borderline awful before, and now he isn't. Plus, Recon isn't a joke any more, it's a legitimate alternative loadout, and flexing between loadouts is intended to be Bastion's gameplay, not running from Sentry position to Sentry position exclusively.

My recommendations in an earlier post that I'll pull back out were as such;

1> Have his heal be interrupted by damage again. In Recon, it doesn't matter much, since you're usually trying to hide and use it, but it'll help Sentry feel less unassailable by single opponents.

2> Slow down the recharge of the heal, since I never felt I had to use it sparingly; I could basically use it whenever and it was always full. D.va's defense screen, by way of comparison, feels a bit restricted, as it should be.

I don't think the 35% damage reduction in Sentry is a big deal, given how badly his Sentry offense has been hosed to compensate.

[Kelimbror]

There's probably more, but I'm getting bored of this.

IE, there are counters to lots of things, but certain things are pretty strong and I don't want to spend time debating them honestly.

Hi Biotic Grenade, the most loaded ability in the game.

No, no...he's bored now. Don't come in here with common sense.

[Eapoe]

Seeing a lot less Pharmercy in teams favoring Bastercy/Mercion, which is somehow more cancerous. At least in the air you could shoot down a careless Mercy, now she can hide behind corners or shields and keep Bastion up with his self heal.
Was funny watching a full charge Zarya chase him around because he had 5 bars of health left and couldn't finish him. She could have tried for me on Mercy, but Bastion would have turreted up and finished Zarya off.

[Pendulous]

Game of the night: Forced to go tank because no one else will. Keep asking for a healer, no one does. Guy switches to multiple people, that aren't healers, then eventually to Reinhardt, and then proceeds to bitch about the team.

Also have had three cases of activating my ice block as Mei, and Roadhog pulling me out of it and killing me, or killing me afterwards because it gets put on cooldown. First time was a couple days ago, other two was tonight. One I activated it before I even threw his hook, in order to bait him into it. It still hit me and pulled me. The other, the kill cam CLEARLY showed me entering my ice block, and the hook still dragging me out of it. It's not a lag issue. This shit is actually game-breaking, and I refuse to play anymore (seriously) until this shit gets fixed.

[Very Tired]

Ever get in one of those constant losing streaks but keep on playing for the heck of it?

Not for fun, of course, just curious to see how long it takes until the game gives me a break.

[Deleted]

Ever get in one of those constant losing streaks but keep on playing for the heck of it?

Not for fun, of course, just curious to see how long it takes until the game gives me a break.

Yes luckily during my placement matches.. Was 4-1, went 5-1 then lost 4 in a row to litterally the worst bunch of players possible..

Match A - Player picks widow, on a Capture map, we ask to change.. Changes to Roadhog and we stomp them.. Next round player picks widow.. Refuses to swap, we get stomped.. Go on to lose 3-1 with said widow killing litterally nothing.

Match B - Player picks Bastion, player utterly terrible at bastion (lower than 10 minutes total played total), player refuses to swap. We get stomped on defence as he is dead through terrible positioning and never healing.. Player picks it on attack, is even worse.. Get stomped.

Match C - Premade boosting a previously ranked Silver who plays Ana.. Whom I beat with healing as soldier, at one point I'm litterally running around Ana spamming heal me whilst on 10hp, stand still to give her a chance.. Get killed.. Request said player to play Lucio so at least we get some healing from aoe, Silvers little friends decide to troll and pick widow and hanzo.

Match D - Insta lock Hanzo, widow, tracer, genji on defence.. No-one changes, me and my friend run Reind/Ana and actually hold out, but once we die our team easily picked off. Can't even get into point A with said 4 Insta-lock dps players..

2300 rating.. GG.

[Explicit Teemo Nudes]

Does anyone else have this bug? Is it a known issue?
When I press "c" and choose an option - doesn't matter if it's an emote, "hello", "need healing" or whatever - my character just says their voice line or I get to choose one of the voice lines I have selected for that character.

It's really annoying :s

[Jessicka]

Ever get in one of those constant losing streaks but keep on playing for the heck of it?

Not for fun, of course, just curious to see how long it takes until the game gives me a break.

It never really works out. Eventually it might give you a break and you'll win, but it'll be a really shit match regardless.

[Orby]

think I'l play some Overwatch toda....



WTF?!!?!

[Tart]

Just met my first dickhead today with his "I'm not your mate attitude".

[Jessicka]

D.Va response Posted by Geoff Goodman

I have talked about D.Va changes in the past, but unfortunately it just isn't what people want to hear. I understand people are frustrated that she lost a bit of her 'bully' nature before, and really want to play her that way again. The reality is she was too good at too many things and something had to give.

I know that, given the choice, many people would sacrifice power from her tools like Defense Matrix if it allowed her to be played in a more super aggressive role like she did for a time. Overall the concept of a giant mech wreaking havok and dealing a ton of damage as an offense or defense hero is a cool one, but D.Va just isn't built for that. That said, clearly there is a strong desire for that kind of hero and it certainly would be sweet to make another mech-type hero in that space, so that's something for us to consider looking forward.

I cant stand blizzard sometimes. It's the same bullshit they always try to pull. Not to mention we seem to have the two devs on completely different pages when it comes to her role.

Honestly, as a D.Va player, the complaints are getting embarrassing. Most of them can't pin down what it is they're even whinging about. It's never Reaper, or Sombra, or Tracer, or any of the buckshot/spray weapon heroes so it's not even anything replacing the armour would fix. And clearly getting the armour back would nerf these heroes that really don't need nerfing. It won't save her from Rein, it won't save her from Helix Rockets, it won't save her from Pharah.

For me it seems to be Roadhog, if he's not on the Red Team, then there just is no problem. And the problem with him is D.Va's central mass being her crit spot and where it's placed after he Hooks her; anyone else he has to adjust his aim to get the headshot so they tend to get away with taking less damage or a moment to pop a defensive. It's just an inconsistent mechanic with that one hero.

[Jessicka]

Hog does need to be nerfed, there is no doubt about that. I'm sorry, but a 600 HP walking one shot mechanic is a joke. Then people say he has no mobility, when is pure bullshit, since hook brings everyone to him. So lets say you have a soldier on high ground. D.Va or Winston should be the character that you need to get up there. However, both might lose that fight atm. Meanwhile, Hog can just close his eyes and toss a hook up from across the map and one shot said soldier. It's a joke.

My problem with the D.Va thing is we have two top devs, saying she is two different things. If she is a Dive tank or a DM bot? They need to figure out what they want her to be, then maybe they can balance her around that. This half ass DM bot/dive tank thing is not working.

She can dive, but in the same way you don't fucking dive on your own with Winston, you don't dive alone with D.Va. She can do any tanking role you put in front of her. She can't do it for the full fight, she'll need to pull back and get heals occasionally, but whether you need her to dive, anchor, bully, initiate, flank, she can do it.

Literally, if they adjusted the angle Roadhog's hook placed her after grabbing her so it wasn't an auto-100% crit; she'd be fine even against him. You can try to game it by looking up or down when the hook comes in; and you'll take nearly half the damage. But, it's not consistent.

Other than that, all the heroes that armour would protect her from; they're none-issues to her anyway. I've just come of the official forums and people are talking about Zarya, Mei, Symmetra, like they're new threats, when 3 months ago you'd go on the forums and ask 'who counters D.Va because my ults keep getting eaten'; those would be the answers you got. It's bullshit and it's embarrassing. Yet, they whine for armour, but where's the complaints about Reaper? Sombra? Tracer? They don't exist. I saw one guy complaining about Hanzo, like armour would do anything against him. It's insane.