No more one-shot kills for Hog mains
Overwatch 2 is a constant balancing act of buffing and nerfing heroes as the meta changes, and the character on the chopping block this time around is none other than everyone’s favorite hook-wielding heavyweight, Roadhog. He was known for his hook-shoot-melee combo that could kill players in one shot, which I knew all too well as a Mercy main.
The Overwatch 2 devs said that “these changes aim to reduce the frustration of dying in one shot immediately after being hooked and pulled by Roadhog,” while also reassuring players that his hook is still a “powerful utility to forcibly reposition enemy players.” The full details of Roadhog’s nerf are as follows per the official patch notes:
- Impact damage reduced from 30 to 5
- The enemy final position distance from Roadhog after being pulled increased from 3 to 4 meters
- Damage per pellet reduced from 6.6 to 6
- Recovery time reduced from 0.85 to 0.8 seconds
- Reload time reduced from 2 to 1.75 seconds
- Maximum ammo increased from 5 to 6
📝 Fresh batch of patch notes coming in hot 📝
🪝 Roadhog’s ability to one-shot removed
🦾 Orisa’s health bonus from Fortify reduced
🔫 Sojourn’s energy charge reworked
🐞 Various bug fixes implemented& more!
✨: https://t.co/VXegnLMpUB pic.twitter.com/GAvleo86WX
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) January 24, 2023
Roadhog isn’t the only hero on the Overwatch roster who’s getting some changes in this patch, either — Orisa, Sojourn, and Kiriko are also getting hit with some small nerfs. Orisa’s Fortify health bonus is being reduced from 125 to 75, Kiriko’s Healing Ofuda recovery time is being increased from 0.85 to 1 second, and Sojourn’s Railgun is getting changes yet again so that the primary fire damage is reduced from 10 to 9, and her primary fire will now generate 5 energy per hit against an enemy player, rather than energy accumulating from damage done to enemy players.
The patch will also come with a handful of bug fixes, including issues with certain skins and remixing the audio so that enemy footsteps are louder. I know this is a sad day for Roadhog players, but this is just another turn in the cycle that is Overwatch patches. One of these days Hog will be up on top again, but for now, maybe it’s worth trying out a new tank for a bit.
