Overwatch 2

Overwatch PTR Now Available - February 14, 2018

Overwatch PTR Now Available - February 14, 2018

A new Overwatch patch is currently in development and now available for testing on the Public Test Region. For information on how to participate and what changes are included in the upcoming patch, read on below.

Mission details:

If you encounter any game-related bugs while playing the PTR, please post in the PTR Bug Report forum.


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To participate in the public test, you must have an Overwatch game license for Windows PC attached your Battle.net account in good standing (i.e. it hasn't been suspended or banned). 

Step 1: Restart the Battle.net desktop app.
Step 2: Navigate to the Overwatch tab on the left-hand menu.
Step 3: Select "PTR: Overwatch" from the REGION/ACCOUNT drop-down menu.
Step 4: Click "Install" to begin the installation process.
Step 5: Once the PTR client is installed and updated, click "Play" to begin!

Note: In order to access the PTR, you must have installed Overwatch and logged into the game at least once. If the PTR is not available for you after following the steps above, trying logging into Overwatch, exiting the game client, and then launching the PTR again.

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Q. On which platforms is the PTR available?
A. The PTR is available on Windows PC only. 

 

Q. What regions are eligible to participate in the PTR?
A. Accounts from all regions (excluding China) are eligible to participate; however, the PTR will be hosted on our Americas region. As a result, if you plan to play the PTR from a region outside the US, please anticipate lowered performance and increased latency. 

 

Q. Is there a cap to how many players can participate on the PTR?
A. The PTR can currently support 10k concurrent players (or players logged into the PTR at the same time). If we happen to reach this cap, any new players attempting to log in to the PTR will be placed into a queue.

 

Q. What languages will be supported on the PTR?
A. The PTR is available in all supported languages, though some content may not be fully localized yet.

 

Q. Will any account progress from the live game transfer over to the PTR with me, or do I need to start from scratch?
A. A copy of your account from the live game will be transferred over to the PTR automatically, and all progress will transfer over with it (level, unlocks, stats, etc). Please note that this copy is pre-made, though, and based on an earlier snapshot of your account.  As a result, depending on when you last played, your PTR account may not be as up-to-date as your live game account.

 

Q. Will any progress I make on the PTR transfer over to the live game? 
A. No. Any progression earned during the PTR—including levels, achievements, stats, skill ratings, loot boxes (including rewards from loot boxes), currency (including Competive Points), and cosmetic items unlocked with currency—will not transfer over to the live game.

 

Q. Will I be able to purchase Loot Boxes on the PTR?
A. No. All real-money purchases are disabled on the PTR. 

 

Q. Where can I share feedback about the upcoming patch content?
A. This iteration of the PTR is intended to make sure the upcoming patch is working correctly before it's released, so we'll be primarily focused on uncovering major bugs and technical issues. Though you are still welcome to share your feedback through our normal channels, it's unlikely that we'll be able to incorporate changes based on PTR feedback in this patch cycle.

 

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Please note that the below patch notes only include changes currently available for testing on the PTR. While many of these changes will also be available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in a future patch, the PTR is PC-only and therefore will only reflect changes coming specifically to that platform.

To share your feedback or report and issue, please post in the PTR Feedback or PTR Bug Report forums.

HERO UPDATES

Doomfist

  • Hand Cannon
    • Ammo recovery rate increased from 0.8 seconds to 0.65 seconds per bullet

Developer Comment: This change will help Doomfist more consistently be able to use his weapon as part of his combos.

Mei

  • Endothermic Blaster
    • Freeze (slow) duration increased from 1 second to 1.5 seconds
    • Weapon alternate fire ammo cost reduced from 25 to 20

Developer Comment: Increasing Mei’s slow duration helps her freeze targets that are particularly elusive such as Genji or Lúcio. Lowering her alternate fire ammo cost allows her to more safely use it without costing her the ability to freeze enemies.

Sombra

  • EMP
    • No longer blocked by small objects (e.g. sign posts)
  • Hack
    • No longer gains ultimate charge from health pack healing
    • Cast time reduced from 0.8 seconds to 0.65 seconds
    • Now disables the following abilities:
      • Genji—Cyber-agility
      • Hanzo—Wall Climb
      • Pharah—Hover Jets
      • Lúcio—Healing Boost and Speed Boost (turns off current song entirely), Wall Ride
      • Mercy—Angelic Descent
  • Machine Pistol
    • Machine Pistol spread reduced from 3 to 2.7
  • Opportunist
    • Enemey health bars are now visibile when health drops below 100% (formerly 50%)
      • Her ability to detect enemies through walls at 50% or less remain unchanged
  • Translocator
    • Duration increased from 15 seconds to 20 seconds

Developer Comment: The goal of these changes for Sombra is to remove the necessity for her teammates to take damage and heal themselves with her hacked heath packs to try to get her ultimate charged up quickly. Her ultimate will now come up less often, but there are more abilities that are disabled by Hack so it is more effective when used. Previously, Opportunist would only activate when an enemy’s health bar dipped below 50% but now the passive will reveal all damaged enemies which should help Sombra identify targets to pick off. Overall these changes should make her more effective and less reliant on her ultimate.

USER INTERFACE UPDATES

Mercy

  • Valkyrie
    • No longer shows enemies’ health bars unless they have taken damage

Developer Comment: This helps remove some clutter from Mercy players’ screens when they use her ultimate

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