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- Despite a rocky launch day (an unfortunately common thing with Blizzard games), Overwatch 2 was filled to the brim with players, and more continue to join the fight for the future. Considering that new players will end up going against longtime players, even those who have been playing since day one of old Overwatch, it's understandable that some might feel overwhelmed.
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Blizzard Entertainment, the creators of Diablo and WarCraft, have released Overwatch 2 for free to players everywhere. Not only does it have new enhanced visuals and new characters, but it will eventually have a story mode that fans have longed for. It would seem that Blizzard is giving the fans and newcomers everything they ever wanted.
With Overwatch 2 replacing the original game on all services, all characters have returned as well with new skins and even some gameplay changes. This may cause some first-time players to be a bit overwhelmed and confused as to who to start with.
Updated on September 23rd, 2022 by Melody MacReady:
Despite a rocky launch day (an unfortunately common thing with Blizzard games), Overwatch 2 was filled to the brim with players, and more continue to join the fight for the future. Considering that new players will end up going against longtime players, even those who have been playing since day one of old Overwatch, it's understandable that some might feel overwhelmed.
As of its launch, Overwatch 2 is the home of 35 characters that are spread into Damage, Tank, and Support classes. Starting out isn't easy, but beginners should be able to find at least one or two characters in each class to learn through the practice range or field training right in matches.
Soldier 76
Soldier 76 is one character some new players might prefer to stick with since they are given them for the tutorial. He's fairly straightforward: he has rapid-fire with a secondary missile, is the only character on the roster that can sprint continuously without cooldown, and can put down a healing aura.
Quick to learn, easy to master, Soldier 76 is a basic but solid starter character. His ultimate allows him to always hit his target without missing, which can lead to some amazing kill streaks. However, his biggest flaw is his lack of health. Soldier 76 also provides the closest gameplay of an arena-based first-person shooter, specifically the likes of Quake and Doom.
Cassidy
Clearly inspired by some of the most classic Western films: Cassidy McCree is deadly at all ranges due to his near-perfect accuracy. He can dodge with a roll and stun using his flashbang grenade, thus allowing for a quick escape or extra shot. McCree's health is not the greatest either, so the flashbang could be the difference between life and death.
McCree is in the same vein as Soldier 76: simple but effective. However, McCree gets an edge over Soldier 76 with his ultimate, which is infamously overpowered. It allows him to instantly kill multiple targets with one shot.
Roadhog
Roadhog, looking like a character out of the Mad Max universe, is pure damage despite being a tank. His job is to charge forward, dealing as much damage as possible while pushing the enemies back. He already has a large amount of health, but he has a self-healing ability that can keep him alive through a whole match.
On top of that, Roadhog features a powerful scattergun and a chain attack that would make Hanzo Hasashi AKA Scorpion from Mortal Kombat jealous. His ultimate ability can do a lot of damage, but its main use is to knock every enemy back, which can help Roadhog's team overtake the objective.
Junker Queen
This warrior queen is one of many new characters being introduced in Overwatch 2 and is someone that enemy players will not want to fight up close. Her shotgun is already enough to kill powerful tanks such as Roadhog and Orisa, but she also has a knife that she can throw and recall which she can follow up with a shotgun attack for massive damage.
Junker Queen also features a battle cry that increases the health of herself and her teammates as well as her speed. Her axe attack is a bit situational but when used properly, it can deal a good amount of damage as well. Finally, her Rampage ultimate not only deals damage but prevents any healing for a short time.
Moira
When it comes to healers, Moira is the best for balancing damage and healing. On one hand, she can siphon health from enemies at a distance while on the other can heal her teammates. Swapping between both can be a challenging balancing act but satisfying to pull off.
Moira can also project flying orbs that can heal multiple teammates at once or siphon health from multiple enemies. These abilities allow her to flank the enemies with ease while still keeping her team alive. Add on her ultimate, which is a beam that heals and damages at the same time, Moira is one deadly healer.
Sojourn
Similar to Soldier 76, Sojourn's rapid railgun allows her to deal a lot of damage quickly which charges up her secondary fire which is a deadly laser beam that when charged up completely can eliminate foes with one hit. Sojourn's slide ability is helpful for dodging enemy attacks as well as getting up to high places since it can be canceled into an enhanced leap.
Sojourn even has means of taking on entire crowds with her Disruptor Shot ability that pulls in enemies and deals damage over time. Where Sojourn can get scary for her enemies is her ultimate which instantly charges her railgun and gives her several beam attacks.
D. Va
D. Va is a celebrity as well as an eSports gamer, who became an elite mech pilot. Unlimited ammo, a shield, and the ability to boost in and out of any situation? For the most part: yes, but she does have less health than other tanks. This lack of health is because D. Va technically has two lives: when her mech dies, she jumps out with her pistol and can still fight.
Unfortunately, her second life has the least amount of health in the whole game, forcing her to run and play smart until she can respawn her mech. D. Va does feature one of the most notorious ultimates in which she ejects from her mech before it explodes, potentially wiping out a whole team.
Echo
One of the later additions to old Overwatch, Echo is a strange but welcome damage character. Her triple shot blasts are powerful, she can ambush with sticky bombs, and she sports an energy beam for emergencies. On top of that, she can fly for a few seconds which also provides a speed boost.
While learning to master all these abilities can be a little confusing at first, Echo makes for one deadly android that could make some of the most dangerous cinematic robots blush. That's not even accounting for her ultimate, which can turn her into a clone of an enemy with their abilities and stats.
Reinhardt
For those that want to protect their teammates from damage, Reinhardt is the perfect tank for that, and he has one of the rarest skins in Overwatch history. His barrier shield is very powerful, allowing him to cover teammates while they take the objective. Of course, Reinhardt wields a hammer that can deal a lot of damage up close.
Reinhardt can also deter enemies using his fire strike ability. One of Reinhardt's deadliest moves in his charge can pin an enemy against a surface thus either killing them or dealing heavy damage. With an ultimate that can knock down and stun any enemy in front of him, he is the perfect shot-caller.
Ashe
This villainous gunslinger is lacking in terms of health but she more than makes up for it with her attacks. Her semi-auto rifle is deadly up close and from far away; she can act as a sniper which is slower than her up-close combat but still effective, especially with headshots.
For crowds of enemy players, Ashe has dynamite that she can throw out and deal fiery damage that continues to burn away at the enemy for a few seconds as well as keep them distracted. Finally, her ultimate is a powerful one but one that can easily be used poorly since her robot named Bob could easily miss and fall right off the map with his charge.
Baptiste
Baptiste might be the most overpowered healer in the game. Not only does he have an aura ability to heal anyone around him, but the secondary fire of his blaster allows him to lob healing grenades. So he can heal teammates from a distance and up close at the same time.
Baptiste's main burst gun is also great, allowing him to deal enough damage from a distance while protecting teammates. Baptiste can also leap into the air to throw off the enemy and reach high ground. His ultimate is a bit situational, but it does grant enhanced damage and healing, so it can be used effectively if used correctly.
Orisa
Where Reinhardt is mainly a defender, Orisa is a hybrid of damage and tank, especially with her new spear abilities in Overwatch 2. She can set up her shield rather quickly while also increasing the damage to her Gatling guns. This allows her to push forward to the objective and keep the enemies distracted. Her graviton orb is her least useful ability, but it hardly hurts to use it.
Orisa's ultimate is one that can be a little frustrating for the enemies. Orisa puts down a generator that enhances the damage for all attacks and abilities for teammates, this even includes ultimates. As a result, her generator can quickly end the other team.
Lucio
Those just starting out will likely want to pick Lucio as their first healer. Not only does he have a healing aura that can heal any teammate quickly, but he can swap to a speed aura, allowing him to help himself and others escape a gnarly situation.
His main attack is not great but if Lucio can get behind an enemy, his damage can help out. He can enhance his auras and unleash a massive wave thus giving his teammate shields. Plus Lucio is always emitting some great music to listen to while battling enemies.
Brigitte
Typically, hybrid characters are a bit harder to grasp, but Brigitte is an exception. Brigitte is perfect for tight spaces since she not only has a shield akin to Reinhardt's that she can charge forward with, she wields a powerful chained mace that she can sweep and easily hit multiple enemies at once.
On top of that, she can throw powerful health potions that can heal her teammates in seconds. Being such an effective mix of support and tank classes often make Brigitte into an arguably overpowered character, but one that is nothing but fun to control.