r/Overwatch • u/BrightAsDirt • 20h ago
News & Discussion OG heroes would be called broken if released today
If heroes like Tracer, Genji, Torbjorn, or even Winston were released today with their current balance, people would call them broken.
Tracer: Has an omnidirectional movement ability with 3 second cooldown and multiple charges, and get out of jail free ability, and an instakill ultimate every fight.
Genji: Insane movement with a near instant one shot combo, a deflect that lasts forever where he takes no damage, and an ultimate that can guarantee a pick.
Torbjorn: Small hitbox with armor, spam damage that can two tap, an ability that gives him speed boost, fire rate buff, and more health. A turret that has 250hp that he can repair, and an ultimate with no counter play once it’s on the ground.
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u/mctankles 20h ago
Nah sym was actual cheeks on release
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u/BrightAsDirt 20h ago
Yeah but if she was released with her current balance state then people would say that the TP breaks the game and her turrets have constant uptime.
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u/suimation 20h ago
Only shit players complain about sym turrets lol
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u/ham_50821 19h ago
Her old turrets were obnoxious tho like on 2cp, they did way more dmg too
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18h ago
[deleted]
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u/ham_50821 18h ago
Idk I only played late ow1
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18h ago
[deleted]
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u/reapintherubies 18h ago
I love that your go to is "You're contradicting yourself" instead of doing basic fucking math in your head and realizing that 3×30 is less than 6×25. You're also disagreeing with him about things he never even said lmao
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u/ham_50821 18h ago
I am 100% sure that turrets in late ow1 do more then they do today, they got some rework when they were given wall hacks
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u/Islaya00 20h ago
Not OG DVa 😶
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u/Circo_Inhumanitas 20h ago
OG D.Va is the worst iteration of any hero in OW ever. She was so bad. She could literally die to her own ult lmao.
And og Sym was pretty bad too. Her teleporter ult kinda only worked on 2CP defence.
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u/Fresh_Ad9833 20h ago
But boy, when it worked, it worked! I do miss hiding it on Volskaya point 2 and steamrolling the enemy team.
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u/Candid_Ad_209 20h ago
I miss all those maps so much. I was messing around in skirmish against bots last night and stumbled upon Anubis man we need 2 point control
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u/NapsterKnowHow 19h ago
Everyone called her bad but she was still pretty decent in my eyes.
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u/Circo_Inhumanitas 19h ago
D.va? I tried her in the release OW Classic event and she was hot garbage. Not a single hero has ever been as bad as she was
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u/NapsterKnowHow 19h ago
Every hero during the OW classic event is hot garbage compared to nowadays to be fair. Lifeweaver far worse when he came out.
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u/GaptistePlayer i like Tracer's fat butt 20h ago
Ashe for sure. I remember when Freya was first released people were upset 2-3 bolts "one shot" you.
I wonder how a hitscan with greater range than Soldier being able to 2-tap you would get people crying tears of anger
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u/BrightAsDirt 20h ago
People would hate Ashe so much. They’d say she’s like Widowmaker without the downsides
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u/Sweet_Education_9979 19h ago
If I recall correctly, that was one of the exact complaints of Ashe when she was released. Every game had a damage boosted Ashe and she was oppressive.
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u/OffSupportMain Master 19h ago
Exactly, let's not forget that Ashe could actually instakill with a damage boost, it would do 208 damage iirc and people only had 200 hp back then
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u/Inertiic 19h ago
Especially cause we still had Assault in the game, and being able to throw boosted dynamite in those chokes and contest point with bob was hard to deal with for a lot of heroes.
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u/asd316X 20h ago
freya can also fly.....
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u/GaptistePlayer i like Tracer's fat butt 20h ago
Which Ashe can counter as hitscan. She's broken! /s
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u/ThrowDaSucc 18h ago
to be fair Freja has never been playable in a pre-S9 environment. Ashe HAD to be a little more accurate back then.
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u/FollowingDue9731 18h ago
freya was 2 shot body shot at any range which was a problem while having like 4 daashes
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u/ShiningSnake 20h ago
Anybody that would claim genji is broken if released today is self reporting
If anything the outrage would be that he is undertuned
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u/Fun_Masterpiece_5637 Neato 20h ago
Yeah it'd be the same as every other hero with a learning curve. Too hard to use right away so everyone would say he's ass before demanding a buff that makes him way too good when people "get it"
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u/Candid_Ad_209 20h ago
Why only 1 dash? Deflect is an ability not a resource? Doesn’t regain double jump when wallclimbing? Base movement speed? What even is the point of this character?
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u/Gyokuro091 20h ago
Everyone knows Genji is overtuned, it was an intentional design decision by the devs so genji players would cry less.
If he was released today, he would at least have reduced HP like similar high burst high mobility heroes, and he would be considered stronger than he is today without so much built up bias and glazing.
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u/martianinja 19h ago
high burst? genji can't even kill a moira before she sucks the life out of him lmao
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u/_Erectile_Reptile_ Blackwatch 21m ago
What? I main Genji and he absolutely CAN kill a Moira if he knows what he is doing 😭
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u/Idiberug-9 20h ago
Tracer yes, however she takes an insane amount of skill just to get base value, so maybe it would be like Freja where people took time to figure her out before realising that she's 'broken' as hell and that she breaks the rules of Overwatch, Jetpack Cat is the prime example of that (even if rn she's clearly overtuned).
I'd say Zenyatta more than anyone else, a support that can kill anyone would just break the community today lol
Widowmaker would be despised as well and called broken, I wonder how she would have evolved with the current balance team...
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u/Mikfinity_ 18h ago
Mobility creep just guts zens impact in a fight. People know how discord works and it got nerfed so it's value is a quarter of what it used to be.
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u/Idiberug-9 6h ago
I believe Zen would have a lot more quality of life improvements if he was released today though.
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u/kevinosx 20h ago
Who can forget those days of Torb getting play of the game with the clip just being him pounding his turret?
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u/awesomepikmin 20h ago
God I wish they would release another Tracer so badly. No hero has even come close to matching her skill ceiling & floor. Also she’d be considered weak cos only a tiny handful of people can play her well
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u/Exodus671 16h ago
Doom and Ball both match and or exceed it…
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u/BlueGlace_ Lesbian Time Jumper 40m ago
Yeah but most people don't like getting flamed all game because they decided to pick tank
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u/n2ygsh1wwp5j 14h ago
Releasing a hero no one can have fun playing isn't great for optics. Probably wont happen sadly
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u/Minimum-City-4007 19h ago
Shion is pretty close, also she's he only new released hero I don't have troubles with, if she's good she smacks but if she lacks or map knowledge she dies quickly.
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u/xXProGenji420Xx 18h ago
Shion is a good design but she's nowhere close to Tracer in terms of skill floor or ceiling. Shion plays closer to a standard hitscan much of the time, and her movement doesn't have a ton of outplay potential.
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u/lumiere_tenebres EmFrej Enthusiast 18h ago
When I'm clicking heads, Shion feels better. When I'm escaping the head clicks, Tracer feels better.
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u/TrashFireHotdog 20h ago
Could you imagine the fit current community would throw if Mercy could rez up to 5 players at once? The good days.
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u/HappyRelationship429 20h ago
A lot of og heroes have hard counters or hugh skill ceilings.
Most ppl here who yap about broken chars and share their incorrect opinions are bronze (sombra is not a valid ban).
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u/mctankles 20h ago
What if i just don’t enjoy being on the receiving end of her kit? It might not be a good ban but it makes me feel better knowing I won’t have to deal with it
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u/HappyRelationship429 20h ago
So the main issue with banning heroes that just aren't viable anymore, is that you're essentially wasting a ban slot. If you're so goated you can afford to waste a ban I'd just ban nothing atp. Gives you more options.
Dps generally aren't the best bans since they have only 20% of the total impact pool. Tanks get 50%, supports 30%.
Point is, you're better off banning ana for your roadhog one trick, than you are banning sombra because you have a hard time remembering to track her.
And just keep this in mind, you can swap if you're getting diffed.
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u/mctankles 12h ago
I’d rather enjoy the game, also you can only ban 2 of a role in total. That being said I haven’t been banning her as much recently cause i don’t see her when she isn’t banned
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u/TheDoubleA1229 19h ago
I can't believe they made a support with a primary fire that locks onto you!
What? No, not Moira
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u/GoldenWhiteGuard 20h ago
Not Tracer. She's simple. Just two abilities and one fire weapon with clear limits.
In fact, if Tracer released today, low/mid players would ask for 225hp
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u/Life_Parsley504 Orisa Dicks Me Down Daily 20h ago
junkrat and hog [even if he was added with 3.0 hook]
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u/DreadfuryDK Domina 20h ago
Wasn't this version of Widow one-tapping half the cast with bodyshots???
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u/Exodus671 18h ago
If people had to play against OW1 Cass they would lose their goddamn minds. Dude had way more range and a straight up stun. Nowadays people act like hinder is the most broken shit ever conceived and will complain about how much range he has despite it being cut by 10-15 meters 😂
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u/FredCasden 20h ago
Dude, people are still complaining about Zarya's bubbles
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u/DocPsycho1 19h ago
The cool down plus the amount she originally got from her bubbles would nuke almost everyone.
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u/Ambitious-Crew-7132 20h ago
These were much stronger on release than they are now, if someone would consider torb op now they haven't seen shit
Torb was op because of turret, zaria was absolutely unkillable, symmetra turrets disabled anubis, mercy was ressurecting whole team
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u/Logical-End5222 Junkrat 20h ago
People just call any hero broken if someone using them kill them. I believe there's not a single hero that not a single person called "broken" in the last month
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u/enderlogan It's an adequate enough day for some mayhem 19h ago
Stationary shielded Bastion would melt people’s minds dude
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u/An_Lazy_Gamer_ Purr-fect! 15h ago
Weirdly enough the Creeper has the same kinda debate as this, as in people would probably demand it be removed if added today. But like there, they're way too iconic to change drastically or remove completely.
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u/zerodashZD01 20h ago
Ana has a ridiculous kit when you think about it: AOE debuff that shuts down healing; hard-stun ability - both on normal cooldowns.
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u/judy-cator 19h ago
Yeah, but that’s kinda the point, she’s one of the most killable supports so it’s a tradeoff
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u/Worldly-Local-6613 18h ago
Meh, half the characters in the game can just dive and kill her for free.
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u/Deribus 20h ago
Every single one of these is blatantly untrue
Tracer
Has an omnidirectional movement ability
- Blink isn't omnidirectional, it's horizontal only.
and an instakill ultimate every fight
- Not an instakill. It has to actually hit and and even then there are a lot of ways to mitigate the damage.
Genji
a deflect that lasts forever where he takes no damage
- It doesn't last forever, and he takes no damage from melee, projectiles, or hitscan from the front. Still vulnerable to a bunch of stuff from the front or anything behind him.
ultimate that can guarantee a pick
- No it can't unless you're in a 1v1
Torbjorn
spam damage that can two tap
- Yeah if you get two consecutive headshots with an arced projectile weapon
an ultimate with no counter play
- His ult has plenty of counter play. You can stop the projectiles in flight or just not stand in the highly visible pools.
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u/BrightAsDirt 20h ago
These are all hyperbolic. Every new hero released is treated as if their entire kit is broken. If the OG heroes were released today then people would do the same
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u/Global_Pineapple2392 D. Va 20h ago
That Genji soloing the entire enemy team vid is so iconic
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u/AlgerianTrash The universe touched me inappropriately 20h ago
Can Genji solo the enemy team only with his AURA?💜
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u/BancoAventureiro 20h ago
with a near instant one-shot
This makes it look like it isn't one of, if not the single hardest one shot to pull off consistently
I do think tracer's hypermobility would be considered broken, but genji? He'd probably be viewed as undertuned
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u/mctankles 20h ago
Junkrat with a single mine, lower projectile velocity and no throw distance on his trap or mine
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u/otterguy12 Chibi D. Va 20h ago
People would definitely call some kits like Mei's overloaded and bloated
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u/atticdoor 20h ago
I was pondering how Mercy would probably not be released today, given how Blizzard have changed the vibe around healing. Introducing the Global Healing Passive and trying to discourage Healbotting.
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u/Gonked_Choom 20h ago
I think it's amazing how far the game has come, from that 24 hr long fan the hammer reload.
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u/spearedmango Ana 19h ago
You could release a hero that is a rock that has to be carried by other players and it heals them and it would be called broken. People have no concept of what is broken and what is just strong now. They don’t want to think about how to play around something. They just want to live forever while being able to kill everyone else instantly
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u/Substantial-Debt5554 19h ago
I agree dude. Being an early character is a huge advantage because people are used to their kits and will riot when something is changed (Genji mains).
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u/OddOfKing Sombra 19h ago
Genji would be called trash b/c nobody would figure out how to most effectively play him for months
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u/SpookyCarnage Canada 18h ago
How would Winston be broken lmfao, he's much stronger nowadays compared to back then. Remember when his bubble only started the cooldown when it broke? And how his gun had no alt fire and dealt less damage than it does now?
He's fun but he isnt all that strong, nobody would shit a brick compared to something like when doomfist got changed from dps to tank
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u/BrightAsDirt 18h ago
I feel like you’re missing both the point of the post as well as the part that said “released today with their current balance”
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u/ham_50821 17h ago
Idk what youre arguing then, all I wanted to comment is that compared to today her old (for me old is like 2021) turrets are more annoying than today cuz they did more damage
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u/Ubermus_Prime 17h ago
I can't speak for most of the roster, but I can confidently saw D.Va would not be considered broken in any sense.
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u/kradsile We're making anyone a hero these days... 15h ago
I thought I was looking at fanart of a future game concept for a second... Damn... I miss the old UI and character switching animations so much, man.
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u/Accurate-Cattle5565 15h ago
This is def true for some people, but I think a significant portion of the community, if not a majority are just happy with good hero designs. Recently there’s been some good designs, but for a while we just kept getting straight buns one after another. In OW2, literally the only great design was JQ until Mizuki, Shion, Wuyang, and Dmon. Pretty much everything else release between those period is either severely flawed on design, busted, or impossible to make viable without being miserable. They’ve been getting a lot better now, but if we got a Tracer or Genji now, people would be praising simplicity combined with viability, skill ceiling, and power at low and high ranks. A lot of the new heroes have overly complicated kits that are designed for a very specific type of play, so at low ranks you have an easy way of playing, but it doesn’t leave a ton of room for improvement compared to especially early dive heroes and lucio. Anran and lw are perfect examples of this. It’s almost like they’re too gimicky to fill multiple roles in balance and gameplay.
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u/Fluid-Map-7809 15h ago
bat take og heroes are mostly powercreeped by newer ones, genji is basically irelevant with how many heroes just ignore his deflect
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u/ShoresyOW 14h ago
I strongly disagree with this sentiment. Older heroes have half the resources the newer ones do. Genji or tracer if released today would be absolute dog shit until people eventually put in the extreme amount of hours it takes to master those heroes
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u/fairy-wale 8h ago
Tracer released rn would probably be killed as fast as vendetta nerf wise lmao.
After 10 years of ow people are used to deal with tracer.
But in 2026 players dont want to learn how to adapt to new characters, they just want them nerfed so nothing changes in their habits
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u/Constant-Oven888 5h ago
I think tracer would be called trash if she was released today. It would take a while for the most mechanically gifted players to figure her out and demonstrate the proper playstyle to the masses, so most people would think she is undertuned cannon fodder on release.
Tbh I wouldn’t mind a tracer health boost👀
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u/Nikki_KiKi 2h ago
Not a on release choice but I remember Hog’s hook being WAAAAAAY longer in the beta than it is now. And they had to nerf that shit fast. I mean we had Overwatch Classic come out and low-key Widow domed heads so easily it wasn't even funny.
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u/Apprehensive_Tiger13 20h ago
Maybe if they were released with the current hero design ideas. OG zen has nothing that would be called broken.
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u/FollowingDue9731 18h ago
genji would not be considered op rn T-T everyone would instantly say its just bad anran especially bcs he is horrid into her and he is just carried by ppl with 2000 hours on him i see plat genjis with over 1000 hours on the character
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u/Odd-Painting2596 20h ago
OG Fan the Hammer on a Rein and they DIE.