Overwatch’s patch 1.30 is now live!

Well it seems Christmas came early. Overwatch Patch 1.30 is now live, which means heroes Ashe and her omnic sidekick B.O.B are now open for public play!

However, as Blizzard announced several days prior, the enormous 20GB update will require a full reinstallation of the Overwatch client. For further reference, they’ve included a list of good-to-know tips. Here’s the link.

HERO BUFFS

Technical issues aside, four heroes have been graced with buffs: Reaper, Symmetra, Mercy and Roadhog. Here’s a quick rundown of the changes:

Reaper:

• Passive healing percentage from Life Steal increased from 20% to 30%.
• Hellfire Shotgun pellet spread has been tightened.

Symmetra:

• Primary fire charges up 20% faster.

Mercy:

• Ultimate cost has been reduced by 15% and now provides 60 healing per second, up from 50.

Roadhog:

• Chain Hook will slow airborne enemies down when the hook lands, and the interval between the hook and reel sequences have been reduced.
• Chain Hook cooldown now begins immediately on activation.
• Scrap Gun projectiles have been focused more towards the centre of the spread for greater consistency.

MISC CHANGES

• Setup timer for Assault, Escort, and the hybrid maps reduced from 60 to 45 seconds.
• Assemble Your Team timer increased from 10 to 25 seconds on aforementioned game modes.
• “Unlock All” has been removed from Hero gallery.

NEW HERO: ASHE

Arguably the most hyped-up thing in Patch 1.30, the white-haired outlaw Ashe blasts her way onto the battlefield with a couple of nifty skills.

Her primary weapon, the Viper, is a semi-auto lever-action rifle that players can scope into. She’s also handy with the Coach Gun, which can be used as an ad hoc mobility tool or to damage enemies who get too close for comfort.

Her second skill lets her toss a bundle of dynamite into the fray, which explodes after a short time. Alternatively, it can be detonated manually by shooting it.

Last but not least is her Ultimate, where she calls in B.O.B, a rough, tough omnic henchman that essentially functions as a 7th team member. Pairing extremely well with Ana’s Nano Boost Ultimate, he’s great for disruption and suppression purposes. Knock yourself out.

THAT’S ALL, FOLKS.

Yup… I guess that just about wraps up the important bits in the patch, although you could always check out the full patch notes on the official Overwatch site.