Date played: November 15th
Platform: PS4
Sombra is here!
After months of teasing, ARG madness and anticipation, Sombra, Overwatch's latest hero, is finally here and available for play. Her release also coincides with a huge patch that makes major changes to the game, so I figured I should make a special post about it.
The biggest, most noticeable change is that Quick Play is now limited to one of each hero. This may sound like a simple change, but it's very, very welcome. The days of 6 Torbjorn players on defense are over... The days of having 4 Genjis are over. This is a huge improvement... It also forces people to learn new heroes when their favorite was already picked.
There are new modes too, though I didn't try them yet. There's a 1v1 and 3v3 team deathmatch mode on a new map that is specifically made for this mode. There's a "No Limits" mode, where hero stacking is allowed. Mystery heroes is now a permanent mode, with brawls now cordoned off into their own section.
Many heroes received major balance changes. All Ultimate costs have been increased by 25%. Torbjorn's hammer is faster, but weaker. He also generates scrap to build armor packs in addition to regular scrap pickups. Pharah hits a bit harder and can fly a bit higher. Mercy's health regeneration activates faster. Ana's Nano Boost no longer increases movement speed. Soldier's damage has increased slightly. Mei's Ultimate costs even more than the 25% increase. Zarya's particle and projected barriers charges her gun a bit less than before. Overall, this seems like a really good patch.
However, the biggest change to a hero, by far, is for D.Va. She now has an incredible 600 health, up from 500. This makes a huge difference in her survivability, which was much needed. I think she is now good enough to tank on her own instead of as a secondary tank. Her movement speed while firing has increased also, making her a better "pusher" than before.
Now, the main event, Sombra. I managed to play her a few times last night and I'm very impressed with her! Her gun is fast, easy to shoot and it has lots of ammo. It's not as strong as other offensive weapons, like Tracer's or McCree's, but it's definitely competent. It does best at close range, but it's also pretty reliable at mid range.
Her teleport ability is super cool. Sombra throws a small beacon on the ground that remains active for up to 15 seconds. She can then teleport instantly to it... It's insane really. She can even teleport while the beacon is in mid-air! It acts as a wonderful escape tool, but also as a great way to push forward or reach remote areas of the map.
Then there's her invisibility skill. She can become invisible and run at a faster speed for a short period. It's active a lot longer than I expected and it can be combined with her other skills very easily. As an escape tool, it's not that great because it takes a bit too long to activate. It is deactivated when she is shot too, so a smart player will just keep shooting in your general direction.
Sombra can also hack people, devices and health packs. Hacking people deactivates all their skills and abilities (except their main weapon) for a short period. Hacking devices like Torbjorn's turret has a similar effect. Hacking health packs is a whole other story though. Sombra can hack a health pack to make it impossible for the enemy team to use it, while regenerating it twice as fast for your team. It's active for a long time and can be placed on multiple health packs at once!
This is extremely powerful and honestly, it might just be Sombra's most impactful skill. Not only does it cripple the enemy team, it also creates a "safe space" for your team. I still have a lot to learn, but I already know that hacking health packs is a crucial skill in Sombra's kit.
Finally, there's her Ultimate, an EMP. This does the same as the hack, but in a large radius around Sombra. It can cripple an entire team and leaves them defenseless for a few seconds. It's an awesome ability to use during a big push or when overwhelmed by attackers.
Of the matches I played with her, I did best when attacking on King's Row. I think Sombra is easier to use on attack than on defense, at least so far. That's because her abilities seem to favor flanking, which is easier when attacking. I did relatively well with her, considering she's a brand new hero. It's weird, in a lot of ways, she feels like an offensive Symmetra, which is super cool.
I think Sombra fits my style pretty well, but we'll see how she develops as people learn her.
Platform: PS4
Sombra is here!
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| Sombra |
The biggest, most noticeable change is that Quick Play is now limited to one of each hero. This may sound like a simple change, but it's very, very welcome. The days of 6 Torbjorn players on defense are over... The days of having 4 Genjis are over. This is a huge improvement... It also forces people to learn new heroes when their favorite was already picked.
There are new modes too, though I didn't try them yet. There's a 1v1 and 3v3 team deathmatch mode on a new map that is specifically made for this mode. There's a "No Limits" mode, where hero stacking is allowed. Mystery heroes is now a permanent mode, with brawls now cordoned off into their own section.
Many heroes received major balance changes. All Ultimate costs have been increased by 25%. Torbjorn's hammer is faster, but weaker. He also generates scrap to build armor packs in addition to regular scrap pickups. Pharah hits a bit harder and can fly a bit higher. Mercy's health regeneration activates faster. Ana's Nano Boost no longer increases movement speed. Soldier's damage has increased slightly. Mei's Ultimate costs even more than the 25% increase. Zarya's particle and projected barriers charges her gun a bit less than before. Overall, this seems like a really good patch.
However, the biggest change to a hero, by far, is for D.Va. She now has an incredible 600 health, up from 500. This makes a huge difference in her survivability, which was much needed. I think she is now good enough to tank on her own instead of as a secondary tank. Her movement speed while firing has increased also, making her a better "pusher" than before.
Now, the main event, Sombra. I managed to play her a few times last night and I'm very impressed with her! Her gun is fast, easy to shoot and it has lots of ammo. It's not as strong as other offensive weapons, like Tracer's or McCree's, but it's definitely competent. It does best at close range, but it's also pretty reliable at mid range.
Her teleport ability is super cool. Sombra throws a small beacon on the ground that remains active for up to 15 seconds. She can then teleport instantly to it... It's insane really. She can even teleport while the beacon is in mid-air! It acts as a wonderful escape tool, but also as a great way to push forward or reach remote areas of the map.
Then there's her invisibility skill. She can become invisible and run at a faster speed for a short period. It's active a lot longer than I expected and it can be combined with her other skills very easily. As an escape tool, it's not that great because it takes a bit too long to activate. It is deactivated when she is shot too, so a smart player will just keep shooting in your general direction.
Sombra can also hack people, devices and health packs. Hacking people deactivates all their skills and abilities (except their main weapon) for a short period. Hacking devices like Torbjorn's turret has a similar effect. Hacking health packs is a whole other story though. Sombra can hack a health pack to make it impossible for the enemy team to use it, while regenerating it twice as fast for your team. It's active for a long time and can be placed on multiple health packs at once!
This is extremely powerful and honestly, it might just be Sombra's most impactful skill. Not only does it cripple the enemy team, it also creates a "safe space" for your team. I still have a lot to learn, but I already know that hacking health packs is a crucial skill in Sombra's kit.
Finally, there's her Ultimate, an EMP. This does the same as the hack, but in a large radius around Sombra. It can cripple an entire team and leaves them defenseless for a few seconds. It's an awesome ability to use during a big push or when overwhelmed by attackers.
Of the matches I played with her, I did best when attacking on King's Row. I think Sombra is easier to use on attack than on defense, at least so far. That's because her abilities seem to favor flanking, which is easier when attacking. I did relatively well with her, considering she's a brand new hero. It's weird, in a lot of ways, she feels like an offensive Symmetra, which is super cool.
I think Sombra fits my style pretty well, but we'll see how she develops as people learn her.
