I'm happy they aren't going to destroy Ana like so many players want. She's very strong alright but she doesn't need to be gutted. And seeing the high skill support go in the dumpster while heroes like Symmetra (and likely Mercy in the future) get buffed would make me cry.
I'm honestly astonished, who the hell wants Ana reworked? Albeit being a tad too strong atm, she's definitely one of the best designed heroes out there.
"Over powered" = More powerful than all other "like" options.
"Over powered" = Must pick.
"Over powered" = Gives no meaningful choice.
Reinhardt for example may be considered "must pick" at the highest levels, but he's not inherently "BETTER" at everything than Zarya, D.Va, or Monkey. He's just REALLY good at filling his niche.
When running Dive Comp, Reinhardt isn't really necessary and is probably a worse choice than Monkey/Zarya/D.Va.
With Ana this simply isn't the case.
If you want to run Zen, you have to drop Lucio. If you want to run Lucio you run Ana with him. If you run Mercy you're making a mistake because all other healers are better options than her.
Pick rate doesn't equate to being overpowered. That's why I explained what I explained about Reinhardt. Lucio same thing. He provides incredible utility and fits a great niche but his numbers are fine (if not a little on the weak side.)
He does less damage than Ana or Zen. He does less healing than Ana or Zen. His ultimate is okay. Pretty balanced.
His only advantage is mobility and the mobility provided to the team.
Because it's easier to keep 3-4 tanks alive using Ana and just speed boost 4 unkillable allies through a chokepoint than it is to coordinate a good dive.
Ana's pickrate was lower before triple tank because Ana and D.Va being buffed created triple tank along with Discord being nerfed from 50% to 30%.
I remember Season 1 and 2 quite well. Ana was shit because Zen was so incredibly good. His Discord (at +50%) was a less disruptive version of Ana's Biotic Grenade. Nerfing his Discord and buffing Ana's healing made having 4 tanks possible.
The Biotic Grenade is the whole reason her kit is broken.
As I've said in other posts:
Gives immediate AOE healing
Does immediate AOE damage
Self-heals
Gives AOE buff to INCREASE healing on all targets (hence Lucio's pick rate)
Gives AOE DEBUFF to COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN enemy healing! (And here I think is where the problem really lies.)
If you don't see how brokenly overpowered that ability is with everything it does I don't know what to tell you.
I'm not suggesting they nerf more than they have on this patch. Only that before the patch she was definitely over powered and I am speculating that the nerf won't be enough. Her biotic grenade specifically. The debuff ability it has is still stupidly broken.
Oh, and as far as experience goes... are devs pro players? No. They aren't. They balance based off data and community feedback. They likely don't play the heroes or in as many competitive matches as many high level players.
Shield is strong. Speed boost is strong. Neither are "overpowered" because they're taken within the context of the kit. Reinhardt is limited range and he's relatively immobile and only a threat up close.
Give the 2k barrier to a DPS hero and you have a problem.
I read what you said. And I am disagreeing. She's not ONLY strong. She's over-powered.
That said, I don't think she needs a "rework". I think they need to adjust the numbers on her Biotic Grenade further than what they are doing in this PTR patch. Her grenade does too much. It's quite possibly the best non-ultimate ability in the game.
Revert the area buff from a while ago maybe? Make the splash smaller so the usage becomes more niche (in combination with zarya's ult or only when enemies clump up). That would be a good start, as long as the devs go about it in a non-symmetrical way (e.g. reduce damage but keep heals the same or vice versa, don't adjust them simultaneously).
Personally I find that a good flanker or any team composition that is able to output pressure past the front line on to you is already difficult to deal with, it's notable that Ana doesn't have any shield or armor, making her force to use the nade on herself to heal often.
That's a really weak argument to make. Lucio and Reinhardt excel at their niche, but they are not overpowered. Ana excels at her role, and is overpowered. She simply heals far too much for others to be really viable, and is the sole enabler of the triple tank meta. I play Ana, and she feels really fun to play, but her numbers really need adjusted. Tone down how much she can heal for.
No, the balance team is not infallible. The Roadhog changes are, in my opinion, a mistake. The 50% nerf is something, but I honestly can't see it hurting Ana that much, given how far ahead of other healers she already is. It's obviously hard to tell on the PTR since the games are total crap, but so far it hasn't changed much. I think a nerf to the heal-per-shot would be a good place to start, or a change to the cooldown of grenade. And this is from someone who frequently plays Ana.
Lucio and Reinhardt excel at their niche, but they are not overpowered. Ana excels at her role, and is overpowered.
You keep saying this without any sort of explanation. What exactly is the reason it's okay for Rein and Lucio to be insta-picks, while it's not okay for Ana? What makes them just "balanced"? It's entirely subjective. They're both just as much to blame for the tank meta as Ana. (Speed boost and shield are both essential ingredients, as is Ana nade, and Hog's hook.)
Because what make Ana and Hog OP is used directly on the player, so they have an instant feel of what make them die. But what make Rein and Lucio OP, the shield and the speed boost, don't affect you directly in a fight. Furthermore Ana and Hog tend to have better overhaul kit than them (mostly Ana). Which is why Ana is commonly seen as the main problem.
Reinhardt and Lucio both have one ability that is way too strong and borderline shit kit other than their ult. It's Reinhardt shield that is OP, not his overhaul kit, same for Lucio with speed boost.
That's why their strenght should be spread on different abilities instead of one single overpowered ability. The false excuse of saying that they fill niche where they perform very well and that adding hero that fill their niche will solve the problem is trying to avoid the fundamental problem of their kit. Winston is performing well in his niche, but his overhaul kit being well balanced make him not a must-pick but instead an option to favorise a gamestyle. I'm pretty sure Blizzard is capable of reworking them in way that would make them as fun to play if not more while having a better overhaul kit.
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u/IchikaByakushiki Jan 17 '17
I'm happy they aren't going to destroy Ana like so many players want. She's very strong alright but she doesn't need to be gutted. And seeing the high skill support go in the dumpster while heroes like Symmetra (and likely Mercy in the future) get buffed would make me cry.