My Mixed Feelings on Overwatch 2's Season 19 Midseason Update

I've been grinding Overwatch 2 since its launch, and the Season 19 midseason update had me hyped. Blizzard finally delivered that long-promised story timeline expansion, and honestly? It's fantastic. As someone who loves diving into Overwatch lore between matches, seeing fresh narrative content each season feels like Christmas morning. But when I jumped into competitive play, the balance changes left me scratching my head. Some tweaks genuinely improve gameplay—like Wrecking Ball's HP nerf making him less oppressive to face, Brigitte's Repair Packs healing faster, and Lifeweaver's model adjustment helping him survive dive attacks. These show the devs understand certain pain points. Yet why did they buff Ashe while ignoring Tracer and Mercy? That decision still baffles me days later.

Let's talk Ashe first. Her falloff range increase from 30-50m to 40-60m sounds technical, but in practice? It’s brutal. As a console player (yeah, I’m one of those), Ashe was already terrifyingly strong. Now she snipes from absurd distances where most heroes can’t touch her. Combine that with a Mercy pocket boosting her damage? You’ve got matches where Ashe deletes squishies before they even see her. On PC, she’s manageable—B-tier at best—but console balance feels abandoned. Remember when Torbjorn turrets dominated console lobbies? This feels like déjà vu. Why buff a hero who’s already thriving on one platform while leaving others struggling?

Meanwhile, Tracer’s running rampant untouched. Her 6-damage-per-shot weapons let her melt tanks and flankers alike. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen Echo or Genji players just sigh when facing her. The community’s been begging for adjustments—maybe revert the damage buff or tweak her blink cooldowns—but nothing. It’s especially frustrating when projectile sizes got normalized globally, except for her. Is she the golden child Blizzard won’t touch?

Then there’s Mercy. Oh, Mercy. Mains like me have been pleading for changes since OW2 launched. We’ve suggested everything: reworking Resurrect, adding Flash Heal to her base kit, even giving her new abilities. Instead? Crickets. She’s stuck being a glorified damage-boost bot with one playmaking trick—that infuriating Resurrect. Pulling it off feels like threading a needle blindfolded, and when it works, enemies rage. When it fails? You’re a sitting duck. Other supports like Reinhardt or Kiriko get flashy play potential. Why does Mercy remain in this awkward limbo?

I get that massive reworks take time—maybe Season 20 will finally address Mercy—but small tweaks could’ve happened now. Flash Heal integration would’ve been huge! Instead, we’re stuck with:

• 😤 Ashe dominating long lanes

• ⚡ Tracer shredding backlines

• 😔 Mercy mains coping with memes

The good stuff in this patch—Brigitte’s smoother healing, Lifeweaver’s survivability—gets overshadowed by these oversights. It’s like Blizzard fixed squeaky doors while ignoring the collapsing ceiling.

Hero	Change	Community Sentiment
Ashe	Falloff range buff (40-60m)	❌ Console nightmare
Tracer	No nerfs to 6-damage shots	❌ Frustration
Mercy	No rework or adjustments	❌ Disappointment
Wrecking Ball	HP nerf	✅ Positive
Brigitte	Repair Pack speed boost	✅ Appreciated

Looking ahead, Season 20’s hype as a "game-changer" gives me hope. But this midseason patch? It’s a mixed bag that favors meta staleness over innovation. Maybe I’ll just main the story missions until then...