Overwatch 2 players left confused over Mercy nerf in Season 3

Overwatch 2 Season 3 may not have added a new Hero, but its array of buffs and nerfs have altered the gameplay, particularly some interesting nerfs to Mercy that have left the community “bewildered.”

The third season of Overwatch 2 has landed and it seems that Blizzard’s beloved Hero shooter is only just getting started.

With the news that Overwatch 2 has been a colossal financial hit for Blizzard and the title also set to feature an incredible crossover with the critically acclaimed anime One Punch Man, it seems that the FPS title can do no wrong.

In the eyes of some players, though, this may not exactly be the case. Along with dropping the new Antarctic Peninsula map, Blizzard have also addressed several OW2 Heroes in the Season 3 patch notes. This includes surprising nerfs to Mercy, and the community is struggling to understand the decision-making process.

Mercy nerf in Overwatch 2 Season 3 causes confusion

Mercy has been a popular healer in the game going all the way back to the OG early years of Overwatch 1. She’s been the perfect partner for players eager to run around the game’s maps causing absolute carnage.

Blizzard are apparently displeased with the way the hero has been performing, though, and have implemented some pretty game-changing updates to the character.

This includes increasing the cooldown time for her Guardian Angel flying ability, the backward Jump cancel effect now makes her move 20% slower, and she’s even had some of her healing abilities reduced in terms of effectiveness.

One Reddit user has been left in “utter confusion and bewilderment” at the changes and said: “She is literally designed to be a fluid, highly mobile, movement-based support hero and I cannot understand why you would change the speed but ESPECIALLY the duration of her GA (Guardian Angel ability).

“OW2 has become a lot more fast-paced and if Mercy can’t keep up with that then she’s done for. The core of her survival is movement. Not that pistol whatever doodoo. It’s so funny that what the community wanted to be changed for Mercy (mostly damage-boost) was literally NOT addressed.”

What are these Mercy changes?
byu/archaijou inOverwatch

Damage boosting definitely seems to be the theme of the day where fans are concerned, yet Blizzard felt the need to alter Mercy in completely contrasting ways.

With over 1.3K upvotes, one top comment said: “I thought the whole dang issue was the damage boost? They touched everything BUT the damage boost WTF.”

Another user also chimed in: “I wouldn’t even mind the other changes but nerfing Guardian Angel was the dumbest decision ever.”

As with all buffs and nerfs, things are subject to change. If the Mercy changes aren’t well-received throughout Overwatch 2 Season 3, then the devs may always end up reverting the updates.

In the meantime, check out the dedicated Overwatch 2 fan who showed off their amazing Mercy cosplay, as well as the devs discussing the next collaborations they’d like to do.