Overwatch Is Making Heroes Like Mercy Less Viable Than Ever

"If you play a character like Mercy or Lifeweaver whose primary utility is in straightforward healing, you might've noticed that it's a bit harder to keep your teammates alive than it used to be. That's because there's a new universal passive across all heroes that reduces incoming healing on players who have been damaged in the past three seconds."

"Where once you'd have to be chased down by a damage hero and pestered with bullets to feel the effects of this healing reduction, now every opposing hero can limit your support's healing output for long enough that some characters like Mercy can't outheal incoming damage like they once did."

"Heroes like Winston and Moira, who are able to apply constant damage through their beam-like primary fires, can now overpower Mercy's healing with little effort, even when she's using her ultimate ability. Because she's a single-target healer, her entire utility has been cut off at the knees."

A universal passive ability now reduces incoming healing by 30 percent for most heroes and 15 percent for tanks across all characters in the game. Previously exclusive to damage heroes, this mechanic now allows any opposing hero to limit support healing output. Single-target healers like Mercy are particularly affected, as they cannot outheal incoming damage like before. Heroes with constant beam damage, such as Winston and Moira, can now overpower Mercy's healing even during her ultimate ability. This change fundamentally undermines the utility of straightforward healing characters, forcing them to struggle with sustaining teammates while having limited opportunity to provide damage boost.

Read at Kotaku