Overwatch Barrier Meta Nerfed in PTR Patch

Overwatch Patch 1.41 brought nerfs to the Public Test Realm (PTR) on Tuesday targeting the main components of the Barrier Meta dominating the top level Overwatch competition.

In Barrier Meta, Overwatch teams run Orisa and Sigma to keep up a huge amount of shielding at all times. Further building on the barriers provided by those two tanks, Symmetra is often included for her ultimate. Building around this core, Doomfist frequently appears as a damage dealer.

All four heroes received nerfs in Tuesday's PTR patch. Check out all their changes below.

Overwatch PTR Patch 1.41 Barrier Meta Nerfs

Orisa

Protective Barrier

• Cooldown increased from nine to 10 seconds

Sigma

Kinetic Grasp

• No longer blocks Chain Hook and Whip Shot

Gravitic Flux

• High gravity effect duration reduced from 1.2 to 0.9 seconds

Experimental Barrier

• Regeneration rate reduced from 175 to 150 per second
• Now has a one second cooldown after recalling the barrier
• Initial 0.2 second cast time removed

Symmetra

Photon Barrier

• Duration reduced from 15 to 12 seconds
• Health reduced from 5,000 to 4,000

Sentry Turret

• Damage per second reduced from 50 to 40

Photo Projector

• Players impacted by the primary fire beam should now hear a louder impact sound

Doomfist

Rocket Punch

• Time to reach max charge increased from one to 1.4 seconds

The Best Defense...

• Shield health gained per hit reduced from 35 to 30

Overwatch PTR Patch 1.41 also included balance changes for a variety of other heroes. The full patch notes are available on Blizzard's forums.

Photo courtesy of Blizzard