Last week we learned that Overwatch support hero Symmetra would be receiving a dramatic overhaul that would go so far as to reclassify her as a defense hero. One of the game’s developers, Geoff Goodman, has been talking about the rework on the game’s forums. We’ve got some new details on Symmetra’s turrets, weapon and ultimate ability.
Turret Tweaks
After her rework, Symmetra will only be able to deploy three turrets instead of five. Each turret will have 30 health and will deal twice as much damage as the previous turrets. However, Goodman did mention that the health levels are likely to change over time throughout testing.
“Keep in mind it’s almost like you’re deploying two turrets at a time now, since they are more powerful individually,” Goodman said. “You lose a little bit of map coverage, but overall the turrets are actually more impactful, not less.”
Blizzard is also working on a new, unique way for Symmetra to use her turrets. She will have an undeployed turret that she will be able to fire like a projectile. This turret will stick to surfaces on the map and then unfold to deal damage, just like her regular turrets.
“Currently they will travel effectively infinitely in a straight line,” Goodman said. “The projectile speed isn’t super fast though so enemy players can see them coming. They can’t currently shoot them out of the air though, but we’re still iterating and may allow this.”
Goodman also mentioned his team toyed with the idea of making Symmetra’s turrets heal instead of do damage in order to keep her as a support hero. However, the team felt it was “super awkward” because of how quickly characters move around maps.
Weapon and Alternative Fire
It’s possible that Symmetra could be getting a brand new weapon, though nothing is set in stone since Blizzard is continuing to rework the hero. Goodman’s team plans to replace Symmetra’s weapon with one that fires a straight beam that is “fairly thick and has increased range.”
“It still has the potential to gain extra damage by dealing damage like it does now, but instead of going 30/60/120 dps it is currently 65/130/195 dps,” Goodman said. “This means the weapon has significantly more potential, but it is more difficult to get it to max power.”
Meanwhile, Symmetra’s alternative fire will still be a charged-up, larger projectile, but it will be seeing lots of changes. This projectile will now have an increased speed and will also impact enemies and environments by exploding and dealing area damage around it.
Ultimate Ability
The most significant part of Symmetra’s rework lies in the changes to her ultimate ability. Her current teleporter ability will be moved to an E ability, leaving room for her Photon Barrier to become her ultimate. This shift of abilities will revolutionize the way they will be used and how Symmetra will be played (and countered) overall.
The reworked teleporter ability will now allow the player to place it 25 meters away instead of right in front of them. When placing the exit, the entrance will automatically be built right in front of the player.
Interestingly, heroes aren’t the only things that can use the teleporter. Now, objects such as Torbjorn’s turret and D.Va’s exploding mech can also pass through time and space across a map according to Goodman.
“[As for] her Photon Barrier … [it] … is now very different as well. Instead of placing a moving barrier, she places a static barrier wall that effectively is infinite in size and has 5,000 health,” Goodman said. “She places this wall much like Mei places her Ice Wall, which means you can place it at some range and you can also change the orientation.”
Goodman emphasized that these changes are in their early stages and that there is currently no estimate on when players will get a chance to see the new Symmetra.