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Overwatch Season 2 Midseason Patch Celebrates 10th Anniversary With Ana Mythic Skin, Hero Balance Changes, and More
The Overwatch Season 2 midseason patch is now live, celebrating the game's 10th anniversary. Since its PC release in May 2016, the game has grown immensely, adding numerous new heroes, maps, cosmetics, and even gameplay styles along the way. This midseason patch honors the game's longevity and success by offering players exclusive rewards, along with access to limited‑time events and activities.
The update also introduces a new Mythic skin: Ra Ana. This marks the Egyptian support hero's second Mythic, following the A-7000 Wargod skin released in August 2023. Like other Mythic skins, it can be unlocked for 80 Prisms.
And as usual, the Season 2 midseason patch also delivers several game updates, including hero balance changes, bug fixes, and adjustments to the Stadium mode. Below is a complete breakdown of the midseason patch notes.
Overwatch Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary
Between May 12 and June 1, players worldwide can complete challenges to earn unique Anniversary Loot Boxes filled with both new and nostalgic cosmetics. This lineup includes original roster-inspired skins, fresh colors, plus 22 exclusive cosmetics from the developers and 11 from community creators.
Additionally, each completed challenge contributes to a Global Community Progress Bar. Players must work together to advance the bar past the checkpoint on a weekly basis. Doing so will upgrade that week's reward from a single Loot Box to Epic and Legendary versions.
The anniversary event will also feature a Prestige Event Track, which players can progress through to earn even more rewards. The game will also include a special Arcade card each week, allowing players to experience a previous era of Overwatch. These cards include:
- Week 1: Overwatch Classic 2016
- Week 2: Mystery Showdown
- Week 3: Overwatch Classic 2020
Hero Updates
Initiator Subrole
- No longer triggers while airborne.
- Now triggers when using a specified movement ability:
- Winston – Jump Pack
- D.Va – Boosters
- Hazard – Violent Lunge
- Wrecking Ball – Grappling Claw
- Doomfist – Rocket Punch
- Heal amount reduced from 60 to 50.
Tank
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D.Va - Micro Missiles' Impact damage has been reduced from 3 to 2. This reduces the ability's effectiveness at eliminating targets with lower maximum health.
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Doomfist - Seismic Slam's shockwave is now more tightly synchronized with its visual impact, preventing cases where the effect could appear misaligned. To achieve this, the ability's camera lock and shockwave effects now trigger later, aligning more closely with the animation. Additionally, new visual and sound effects have been added to Empowered Punch to play whenever the ability is about to time out.
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Junker Queen - With limited defensive mitigation, Junker Queen struggles to sustain herself during extended engagements. As a result, the self‑healing multiplier from Adrenaline Rush's Wound damage has been increased from 2.25x to 2.5x in 5v5 modes. This change rewards players for successfully applying Wounds and reinforces her aggressive playstyle.
Damage
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Emre - Emre's ability to sustain while applying consistent close‑range pressure exceeded intended levels. Hence, his Siphon Blaster's healing conversion has been reduced from 80% to 60% to lower his survivability. Furthermore, his Cyber Frag’s radius of maximum explosion damage has been reduced from 2 to 1.5 meters, demanding greater precision from players to obtain maximum value.
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Freja - The Rising Winds Major Perk no longer reduces the height gained from Updraft, and Updraft’s cooldown has been reduced from 12 to 10 seconds. These changes improve Freja’s mobility and positioning. Furthermore, the Bounty Hunting passive's bonus ultimate charge has been increased from 25% to 33%, rewarding players for securing final blows with more frequent access to Bola Shot.
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Sierra - Helix Rifle’s weapon fire volume has been reduced. This is the only change Sierra has received in this patch.
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Pharah - Pharah’s recent damage‑focused perks have improved her kill potential, but their combined consistency has pushed her burst damage too high. To balance this, her Concussive Force Minor Perk has had its damage reduced from 50 to 30, and her Rocket Salvo Major Perk has seen its damage per rocket reduced from 40 to 30.
Support
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Baptiste - Baptiste's Regenerative Burst receives a set of changes. Its instant healing has been increased from 40 to 50, its healing over time has also been increased from 40 to 50, and its cooldown has been reduced from 14 to 12 seconds. These changes allow Baptiste to support himself and his team more reliably during engagements.
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Illari - Solar Rifle's base projectile size was too large relative to its damage output. As a result, it has been reduced from 0.05 to 0. However, the Hitscan Global Projectile Size Bonus of 0.07 still applies. Removing the additional base projectile size better aligns the weapon's accuracy with that of other hitscan heroes.
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Kiriko - Protection Suzu's additional 30 HP healing after cleansing negative status effects has been removed, reducing its burst healing potential.
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Lucio - Sound Barrier remains one of the most impactful defensive ultimates when timed well. To balance this slightly, its overhealth has been reduced from 750 to 625, and its duration has been decreased from 6 to 5 seconds. This shortens the mitigation window and places greater emphasis on timing.
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Mercy - Mercy's Season 2 mobility reduction had an outsized impact on her core gameplay flow. To address this, the Divine Momentum Minor Perk has been replaced by a new perk, Winged Reach, which increases Guardian Angel's range by 30%. This change also addresses the extreme mobility cases that originally motivated the initial nerf. Additionally, Guardian Angel's launch speed has been increased by 10%, reverting it to its previous value.
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Mizuki - Kekkai Sanctuary now absorbs enemy projectiles exiting the Sanctuary, in addition to those entering it. This change improves clarity and creates meaningful interactions when enemies push inside the barrier. Additionally, its healing over time has been reduced from 50/s to 40/s, and duration has been lowered from 7 to 6 seconds to offset the added defensive value.
The Overwatch Season 2 midseason patch also includes several hero balance changes for the Stadium mode. For more details, you can read the official patch notes here.
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Featured Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment
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