Overwatch 2 is a fun game. It has a great roster of fantastic characters.
Overwatch is an intoxicating multiplayer game that enables thrilling skirmishes between teams of heroes. It also has some problems. Between long wait times to play in role queue and constant tweaks that seemed designed for the benefit of Blizzard, the game has lost a bit of its luster.
1. Be Flexible
In a game that requires the ability to adapt quickly, flexibility is key. In order to succeed in Overwatch, players must be able to analyze a situation and decide what their best course of action is in real time. If a player remains rigid in their approach, the enemy team will be able to capitalize on their lack of flexibility and take advantage of the situation. Being flexible also means that if a player’s initial strategy is countered, they must be willing to change their plan on the fly. This is the only way to ensure success in a dynamic and fast-paced game like Overwatch.
2. Have a Plan A
There are a lot of different Heroes to choose from in Overwatch 2 so it’s important to find a hero that fits your playstyle and matches well with the rest of your team. The more you practice, the easier it will be to adapt your hero to new situations and fights. It’s also helpful to have a general knowledge of all the Hero’s skills so you can counter them in heated combat.
A good support hero can make a significant difference in the outcome of a match. They can help keep the team grouped up, protect allies from damage and even disarm enemies’ Ultimate abilities by using their own Ultimates to deplete an enemy’s energy.
Health packs are vital to a Support’s playstyle and it’s a good idea to know where they are located around the map. If a Support player is low on health you should try to find them and heal them before they disappear. The same goes for enemies; attacking them while they’re healing or shielding a teammate will only result in losing health and potentially the fight.
When playing as a Support it’s crucial to always be moving and not standing still for too long. This makes it hard for enemies to target you and will allow your teammates to quickly reposition when needed. You should also move unpredictably so that it’s harder for enemies to hit you, especially if you’re playing a ranged hero.
Having a solid plan for when to use your hero’s Ultimate Ability will help you become a more effective support hero. This can be difficult for players without voice chat (which should always be used). Thankfully, Overwatch has a new feature that displays your teammate’s current Ultimate Status on the Scoreboard. You can access this by pressing the middle mouse button or G key for PC and left D pad on console. It’s important to communicate with your teammates and inform them when you plan to use your Ultimate Ability.
Keep in mind that deploying your hero’s Ultimate Ability cancels out all of your healing and damage buffs for the duration of its cooldown. It’s a good idea to use this ability on team members that need to be healed, such as Tank heros or characters with high damage projectiles like Junkrat or Soldier: 76.
3. Be Prepared
While support heroes excel at healing they also need to do damage if they are going to carry their team. As a result they need to be prepared for every situation. Enemy heros that deal heavy damage over a large area need to be watched closely. Long ranged supports like Mercy can help with this by utilizing her Guardian Angel to reach enemies. Her Caduceus Blaster can then be used to quickly finish off low health enemies. She can also use her Blizzard ability to freeze enemies and prevent them from fleeing.
Other key abilities to remember are Baptiste’s Immortality Field and Sombra’s Hack. Baptiste’s Immortality Field needs to be protected from enemy attack while it is active. The best way to do this is to make sure teammates are close and grouped together. Enemy flankers will have a hard time getting around this field and its healing starts soon after activation. Using Shield Bash before your Barrier Shield breaks is another great way to protect yourself from enemy attacks and get back into Rocket Flail range. Sombra’s Hack allows her to see the location and current health of her teammates even through walls. This makes it important for her to stay close to the rest of her team and use her other abilities effectively. Moira’s Coalescence beam can heal enemies and allied heroes but it is most effective when used over multiple targets at a short distance. She can also improve the healing of her teammates with her Biotic Grenade and can see enemies through walls when she uses her Orbs of Harmony.
During big team fights it is important for all support heroes to keep their mates alive and healthy. They can do this by using their basic abilities or other advanced ones. Reaper’s Barrage is a powerful long ranged attack that can be used to take out many enemies at once but it is important to keep an eye out for enemies aiming at your teammates from behind or above. Long range support heros like Tracer and Pharah can use their Wraith Form to escape but be careful as enemies will often try to hit them from above or from behind.
4. Be a Team Player
Overwatch has always been a team game, but in OW2 this becomes much more obvious. The game is designed to put more emphasis on teamwork, especially securing eliminations. This will make it easier for skilled players to climb compared to the days of trying to force flank 2 picks and putting your team up 5 vs 4. Healers especially have less to juggle now, so be a team player and enable your damage heroes. Stay in their LOS, help them peel, and don’t let them die without trading it for a won fight. It’s the best thing you can do for your team in OW2 and it will be a big reason why you’ll get a ton of free wins when done correctly. Good luck!
*This article was written by an Overwatch Streamer with over 1000 games played, and a high ranked player in the game. He is an active member of the community, and has been a contributor to numerous gaming websites.
