Overwatch 2beta testing is in full swing. The next generation of Blizzard’s highly successful hero shooter is going to look very different from the originalOverwatchthanks to hero reworks big and small, as well as changes toOverwatchobjectives, but overall it looks like it’ll offer an upgraded version of the familiar gameplay experience. CurrentOverwatch 2hero reworks look interesting enough, while the new Damage hero Sojourn offers a glimpse at what could lie inOverwatch 2’s future. Blizzard hasn’t revealed other new heroes yet, but it undoubtedly has plans for various new Tanks and Supports alongside Damage heroes like Sojourn.
It’ll be particularly interesting to seewhere Supports go inOverwatch 2.As a utility-driven class, Supports have a knack for highly unique abilities that no other hero can replicate, like Ana’s healing prevention or Lucio’s movement speed boosts. However,Overwatchdoes have a pattern of prioritizing healing over other forms of utility when designing Supports.Overwatch 2should act as Blizzard’s new opportunity to experiment with non-healing Supports like it once did with Symmetra. The reinvention ofOverwatchought to lead to a reinvention of what it means to be a Support hero and an exploration of utility that can make up for a lack of healing.
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The State of Overwatch Supports
Supports may come with a lot of unique utility, but they’re still homogenized inOverwatchin a way that other classes generally aren’t. Tanks soak up damage in a huge variety of ways, ranging from Reinhardt’s shield to Roadhog’s vast pool of health, while Damage heroes wield a wide range of weapons and crowd control effects that make them a very diverse class.OverwatchSupports all distribute healingin their own ways, but at the end of the day, their kits are all built around healing in a big way. Healing is crucial in a damage-heavy game likeOverwatch,so it stands to reason, but the title of Support feels less flexible when every hero under that banner can be boiled down to a healer.
There was once a time whenOverwatchSupports weren’t quite so limited in scope. Blizzard originally imagined Symmetra as a Support who would provide allies with bonus shields, as well as mobility advantages through teleporters and turrets. Multiple reworks later,Symmetra is now a damage hero, if a highly utilitarian one. Blizzard ought to diversify the Support space and give fans a wider variety of team-building options by revisiting Symmetra’s concept. IfOverwatch’s many Tanks can block and absorb damage without all relying on one shared mechanic, then at least one or twoOverwatchSupports can empower and protect their team without relying on healing.
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Overwatch 2’s Potential Support Experiments
Designing anOverwatch 2Support who lacks healing but makes up for it in other ways definitely isn’t easy, but Blizzard still has a lot of options. A non-healer Support could focus on damage mitigation, for instance, preventing incoming damage against certain targets altogether so that they don’t need as much healing for a little while.A new shield-basedOverwatchSupportcould fill the void left by Symmetra’s changes too. Aside from these healing substitutes, Blizzard might consider experimenting with bold new frontiers of buffs and debuffs, like a Support that increases their allies' ammo capacity or manually moves them out of harm’s way.
TheOverwatchsupport roster is definitely full of unique characters, ranging from the melee off-tank Brigitte to the healer-sniper Ana, but their collective reliance on healing makes the Support space less diverse and interesting than it otherwise could be.Overwatch 2’s changes to healingmay mean that Blizzard is open to exploring alternative Support models, since healing itself isn’t quite as impactful as it once was. Hopefully this new age ofOverwatchincludes some Support designs that truly break the mold.
Overwatch 2is in development for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
