OW2 players question devs’ reasoning for nerfs to little-used hero

Overwatch 2 players are confused about why developers plan to nerf the seldom-used Brigitte in the Season 8 update.

A recent blog post from Blizzard Entertainment previewed the balance changes that will go live with Overwatch 2 Season 8.

For Season 8, OW2 players can expect buffs to Tracer, who will receive a damage increase for her Pulse Pistols. Similarly, buffs for Doomfist and Winston should help them prove a bit more formidable in combat.

The community isn’t celebrating every balance change, however. Nerfs to Brigitte’s Whip Shot has some players up in arms, and the reasoning behind the power reduction is hardly going over well.

Overwatch 2 players don’t understand the need for Brigitte nerf

While previewing the Support nerfs, Blizzard’s aforementioned blog post explained why the damage on Brigitte’s Whip Shot is being reduced from 80 to 70. The message reads in part, “Brigitte was the best-performing support hero since the last patch, and we are seeing your feedback that she is becoming a must-pick.”

Community members on the Overwatch 2 subreddit aren’t convinced. The thread starts with someone asking how the Support hero with the lowest pick rate in all ranks, barring Grandmaster, is “becoming a must-pick.” Meanwhile, the most popular Support in recent months, Ana, will receive no nerfs.

The user continued, “[Ana’s] strong, and complaints about her are frequent but… BRIG, with her pick rate that is equivalent to LESS THAN A FOURTH of Ana’s, is becoming a must-pick?”

Blizzard Entertainment

The Redditor isn’t alone in their frustrations about Overwatch 2’s upcoming Brigitte nerf. Several players chimed in saying they rarely encounter Brigitte mains while playing. “There [are] only like 5 people playing brig lol,” one person joked.

Meanwhile, others posited the change could be in preparation for the dive meta. As one user explained in the thread, “They’re preparing for dive meta. Tracer gets a buff, Winston gets a MASSIVE buff, and Brig gets a nerf? Dive meta, 100%. Which is fine, dive has traditionally been the funnest meta to be in.”

Still, others argue Brigitte’s nerf in Season 8 could be because of her relatively higher win rate, especially when compared to Ana. “Ana [has a] horrible win rate, Brig [has a] crazy big win rate with little lowest pick rate lol,” wrote another Redditor.

Reasoning aside, it’ll be interesting to see how the community-at-large responds to the Brigitte changes in the weeks ahead.