Since Overwatch 2 launched last fall, the team at Blizzard behind the team-based shooter has been not just adding entirely new heroes, but also tweaking existing playable characters. Tanks have seen some of the biggest adjustments now that there’s only one locking into each server per team, and today Roadhog is finally getting a rework.
The Roadhog rework has been officially announced. Trying to make the tank a bit more viable after being sent to the depths of the playtime list, Blizzard is finally doing something about it. This isn’t just a buff to a single ability or a few stats, but instead a more thorough overall.
The biggest adjustment with Roadhog from the rework is his entirely new ability. Pig Pen is a very fitting name for something associated with the character, and an even more appropriate ability to pair with his partner in crime Junkrat. At least thematically, that is. This new addition to his kit will launch a trap that slows and damages nearby enemies. Here’s a breakdown of how Pig Pen works:
- Deals 60 damage when triggered and 30 damage per second in an area
- 3-second duration once acticated
- 40% movement speed debuff
- 12-second cooldown timer
Alongside Pig Pen, one of Roadhog’s original abilities is also getting reworked. Take a Breather is easily one of his more defining aspects of gameplay, and it’s getting a little more flexible to use. In what is very similar to D.Va’s Defense Matrix, the new implementation of his self-healing move means that Hog won’t have to use all of it in one breath. Instead, there will be a resource meter that lets you pick and choose when it’s time to heal up – either in small bursts or all at once. Here’s a breakdown of how Take a Breather works:
- Now activated by holding the Secondary Fire button
- Cooldown decreased from 8 seconds to 1 second
- New resource meter will deplete while Take a Breather is active
- Recharges when not in use
- At full charge, Take a Breather resorts 450 health over 3 seconds
- Take a Breather takes 12 seconds to completely refuel from empty
- Damage reduction decreased from 50% down to 30%
- No longer amplifies healing received upon ending
Lastly, Roadhog’s main weapon is getting a bit of an adjustment, too. His Scrap Gun used to have two distinct primary and secondary fire effects. Now, they’re being combined into one action. Here’s a breakdown of how Scrap Gun works:
- Total damage per shot increased to 160, from 150
- Shotgun pellet count reduced from 25 to 16
- Shotgun pellet damage increased from 6 to 6.25
- Now fires a shrapnel Colley of four large projectiles
- Each shrapnel projectile deals 15 damage
- Critical damage multiplier reduced from to 1.5x, down from 2x
9to5Toys’ Take
My big takeaway is that Roadhog is still going to play quite similarly following the rework to how he has beforehand. Without seeing any gameplay footage yet, the changes seem to address some of the main issues with why he wasn’t being played as often as other tanks. Roadhog’s rework now makes him a bit more flexible of a hero and looks to lower the downtime that the original Take a Breather ability promoted.
Roadhog is still going to be a massive target to Ana and her biotic grenade, but should be a bit more sustainable in some matchups. I personally don’t think that the changes go far enough at making the tank competitive, especially with how underpowered the role feels right now in the current meta. If I had to guess, Hog is going to see a lot of play following the rework just as players test him out, but ultimately, the tank will be worse off than before.
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