Overwatch devs reveal hidden Genji Deflect change in PTR update

[jwplayer Y7PB7YwV] Genji’s Deflect received a hidden change on the Overwatch PTR in a new update according to the game’s developers.

The cyborg ninja hero has received quite a few buffs recently to his projectiles, and also his Deflect ability. The two major changes now let him cancel its animation at will. Previously, this was only possible by wall climbing or activating Dragon Blade.

The other significant upgrade came to Deflect’s duration. A buff on June 16 saw it increase from 1.5 seconds all the way to 2. However, it also came with a bit of a bug.

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In a post on the official Overwatch forums, user HarleKing explained how the Deflect sound effect didn’t last the full two seconds and was the same as before.

As a result, players who time their shots when they can no longer hear the Deflect effect were having their attacks reflected back into their faces because the ability was still active.

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“How are we suppose to learn the new duration if the sound queue is .5 seconds shorter than the actual ability?” the upset player asked.

In Overwatch, timing can be everything and even the slightest mistake, such as firing a shot a fraction of a second too early can have extreme consequences.

Deflect is one such ability that can really punish over-eager players looking to score quick eliminations by having their attacks and even Ultimates used against them.

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Luckily, it seems like the developers were aware of this bug and fixed it, though the change wasn’t included in the PTR patch notes.

“We have a fix for this issue in 1.50, currently in PTR. Give it a try and let us know how it goes,” replied developer Matt Whited.

There’s no telling when the PTR change will hit the live servers, but hopefully it’s combined with a patch that includes the new Experimental Mode changes to Brigitte, Ashe and D.va.

Still, it’s good to know for players that Genji Deflect bugs are being worked on and should be fixed shortly.