Overwatch 2 could change Zarya more than expected with big rework

byMalik •October 17, 2021

Overwatch 2 could change Zarya more than expected with big rework
Zarya overwatch 2 rework

Zarya could be in store for another big rework, as Blizzard devs go through the feedback from the Overwatch 2 pro playtest.

We already knew Zarya would be getting a substantial update in Overwatch 2, but now devs are considering even more changes after pro players tested out the game.

Shortly after the playtest, Blizzard devs held an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit where they revealed pros agreed that Zarya was weaker than they initially thought.

Zarya is throwing Blizzard for a loop

Zarya’s double barriers in Overwatch 2 could make her very OP, according to pros.

As Reddit user Drewbawb pointed out, many pros said Zarya felt too weak following the preview match, with the changes to her bubbles feeling more like a nerf than a buff.

According to Overwatch hero designer Josh Noh Zarya is one hero that devs thought would play much different before the test at the OWL Grand Finals.

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“Internally the resounding feedback has been that Zarya is far in the other direction,” Noh revealed. “Many think she is too strong and constantly high energy with being able to bubble herself twice.”

Comment from discussion Blizz_JNoh’s comment from discussion "We’re the Overwatch 2 Hero Design and Balance team, and 1 hour from this post, we’ll be here to answer your questions about the OWL playtest videos we recently released on YouTube!".

He added that because of this feedback, devs were keeping a close eye on the hero, and could possibly be making even more changes to her abilities as we get closer to release.

“The current internal cooldown is 9 seconds and it’s easy to tune that lower if she isn’t performing well,” Noh added. “but at some point it breaks down and too many of those barriers quickly gets annoying to try play against.”