Summary
Overwatch 2has teased a potential rework of Mauga’s abilities. Mauga is one of the most recent additions to theOverwatch 2roster, which has gained a tank that, like some other heroes, has exposed the recurring problem that Blizzard’s hero shooter has with its balancing.
Mauga debuted inOverwatch 2in December last year, and players quickly noticed the Samoan tank’s strength. He proved to be highly resistant as tank heroes go while dealing high damage to opponents, along with healing himself and his allies. Mauga became so broken that someOverwatch 2players quit the gamein protest at the hero’s lack of balance. Since then, Mauga has been a recurring name inOverwatch 2patch notes, receiving five updates this year. Now,Overwatch 2is commenting on possibly making big changes to his kit.
Overwatch 2has teased that Mauga may receive a rework to his Cardiac Overdrive ability and his incendiary bullets. According to Lead Gameplay Designer Alec Dawson, speaking to Twitch streamer Spilo, the team is “looking at what they want to do with Cardiac Overdrive.” Dawson reveals that experiments have been done before, but the devs feel there is still more to be tested. The devs also questioned the effectiveness ofMauga’s incendiary bulletsagainst squish targets, and how to bring their effectiveness to other parts of the kit. The Lead Gameplay Designer explains that the idea is to make Mauga more rewarding against squish heroes.
Mauga and Overwatch 2’s Recurring Balancing Problem
During the five-second duration of Cardiac Overdrive,Mauga and his alliesreceive a 30% damage reduction and 60% of the damage dealt to enemies is converted into healing for him and his team. With Incendiary Chaingun, Mauga’s left click, the tank fires 18 bullets per second out of a total of 300, causing direct damage. If an enemy is hit 10 times by the Incendiary Chaingun, they will take additional damage for three seconds.
Although Alec Dawson didn’t give further details about Mauga’s potential rework, an adjustment to Cardiac Overdrive could make sense ifOverwatch 2plans to make the hero a diving tank. These heroes are known for their impressive defensive power and high mobility. Incendiary Chaingun can easily hit tanks but struggle against targets with smaller hitboxes. A potential rework could help Mauga against these heroes but at the risk of making him the bane of tanks' existence. With frequent updates, players wait to find out if Mauga’s rework will come, and what his place in theOverwatch 2metawill be afterward.
Overwatch 2
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Overwatch 2 is an always-on and ever-evolving free-to-play, team-based action game set in an optimistic future, where every match is the ultimate 5v5 battlefield brawl. Power up your railgun and disrupt the battlefield as Sojourn, or yield your axe and command attention as Junker Queen. Battle to take control of a robot and move it toward the enemy base in the new Push Mode. Bring the fight to new destinations across the globe in iconic locations like New York, Rome, Monte Carlo and Rio. Daily challenges and frequent updates mean there is always something new to play.
