"Overwatch" 1.12 is only a few days old, but Blizzard's already working on more stuff. These changes - mainly concerning Mercy - already made it to the Public Test Realm. We could easily deduce how likely they are to soon become official. Today's news was first reported by a Reddit user by the name of chomz147.
Mercy gets a nerf on the PTRhttps://t.co/vQVg4cNOrN
— overmeme (@theovermeme) June 28, 2017
According to the player, Mercy is now unable to use her ultimate ability while sitting on the spawn point. The guys behind "Overwatch" likely decided to go with that change in an effort to balance the experience for everyone.
Sadly, though, this could mean a lot for those playing the Swiss angel as their main character.
Mercy's life is one of the harshest in the game
Playing a healer is a challenge. The entirety of Mercy's personality, from her poses to her voice lines, were built to convey that specific message. When entering the queue without your friends, you never know what'll have to do to keep the team alive. Flame and complaints are the norm. Add the fact that you rarely get to the highlights and you'll find plenty of fertile ground for frustration.
As a way to even the odds, many attempted to bend the rules of the game. Resurrecting from the safety of one's base allowed for a moment to catch your breath; a lifesaver in the heat of a competitive match.
By removing this, Blizzard is indirectly going to reduce the amount of available healers across the servers.
Improvise, adapt, overcome
Luckily, Mercy is also one of the more dynamic heroes on the roster. Her skills and agility let experienced players literally fly around the map, balancing between healing and increasing their companions' damage.
The nerf sounds appalling at first, but something good may actually come out of it. With this specific character becoming harder to play, inexperienced contestants will opt for more feasible picks. Those who like her, instead, won't have a problem finding another way to be productive. If finding a workaround is what it takes to ensure the effectiveness of each member of a team, then so be it!
We won't know the real effects of Blizzard's decision until "Overwatch" 1.13 is out for all the loyal gamers to check out and try. With no official release date, we are left in a bit of a pickle! Speculations can help us understand the situation, but we'll keep an eye on the Public Test Realm and let you guys know as soon as something new comes up! Hopefully, my main characters don't receive more nerfs.