NB: I’ve never really posted on the forums before, and for good reason. Discussions related to balancing and quality of life changes usually devolve into petty arguments and/or suspension-happy moderators (this has been especially true for issues regarding Mercy). I would like to try and hopefully avoid both, but I doubt I’ll be successful. Regardless, here’s my thoughts.
As a player who has poured countless hours into playing the various support heroes Overwatch has to offer, there seems to be a refusal by the developers to address community concerns about the current state of Mercy. The recent developer update has done nothing to alleviate tensions, especially after the major blow to Mercy’s overall healing ability with the change from 60hps to 50hps. This change is not only noticeable, but crippling.
On a more personal note, it has become rare for me to see anyone play Mercy in any given mode, and I myself have been mocked for picking her as a “troll pick hero”, regardless of the given context. These points have already been hammered home by many people past and present, but to put it simply; she is not fun to play at all. She is fun to counter and eliminate, but no one enjoys being Mercy.
Despite this, the silence from the developers themselves has been deafening. The changes to support were simply labeled as a success with no care or though being given to the individual cases.
I’m not posting this as a plea for a rework, or even a revert - that point has already been covered by people way prettier and smarter than me. All I’m really asking for is some indication that the developers are in fact listening to us (as they claim to be) and that our voices aren’t just being thrown to the wayside. I really do love Overwatch, and I really want to see the state of the game improve. However, this cannot be done if the parts of your community are being ignored, willfully or otherwise.
Im not sure what people are even expecting when they say this.
If they say theyre listening to the feedback, people will be mad because theyre not changing Mercy.
But the reality is, they balance a hero because its their hero, and they leave the reasons in their patch notes as to why.
It took them 6 months to acknowledge her when she was insane, now they’re working on a new hero, and reworking existing ones, seems obvious that they wouldn’t have much time for her.
Maybe because no matter what they do/say they “can’t win” and don’t want to say something that could be misconstrued.
You can still listen to someone without having to make a response.
I bet them replying and saying “We are listening to the feedback” wouldn’t be enough, even though it’s exactly what you’re asking for. What exactly more do you need to hear to be satisfied that they are?
I’m pretty sure Jeff says this in his Dev update videos, they do read the forum and they ARE listening but it’s IMPRACTICAL to respond to every single thread and/or they don’t want to promise things that are not ready yet or inadvertently give false hope to something that might not end up happening.
Blizzard is ALWAYS working on a new hero. OW releases 3 new heros per year, so there are always at least 2 getting worked on (while we’re waiting for hero 29, the dev team should be entering the finishing phase of hero 30 and starting the brainstorming for hero 33 (31 and 32 should by now be between design concepts and making animations/testing).
Also, Blizz isn’t a small indie studio. They CAN address all the problems in the game.
It’s more a question of knowing how to go and address them…
If I were to be more specific, I would say that the responces up until this point have been lackluster and impersonal. Every post made on the issue has followed the exact same format with nothing at all acknowledging that people are in the least bit unhappy. It is one thing to say that you’re listening, another to actually indicate that it’s true.
They have acknowledged Mercy. They’re not going to revert her and they think she’s in a good place. Just because they haven’t said the words you want to hear doesn’t mean they haven’t said anything, and anything else they do say will never be enough.
If more of the the Mercy feedback threads maybe said new things instead of repeating the same “revert Mercy” stuff that’s been constantly posted since the rework, they might be more inclined to listen.
From the beginning of the rework, statements about Mercy, by Devs, were only made (when made, so 3 times at max) in unofficial Mercy Threads.
They gave to the forum 3 threads, 3 official threads about Mercy rework. None responded to that.
I simply think people want to hear “Now we are thinking Mercy is in a good spot” “We are thinking to buff her” “We are working on another rework”. People doesn’t car what they will say, the want only to see a statement, RECENT, with “Mercy is THIS”.
I am support main and tank if needed, that’s just for your information
It states that the support class is in overall good balance, which is the case : people who master higher skill-demanding heroes can perform better using them while people who don’t or prefer to play chill can still have an impact with mercy. She just doesn’t outshine the other supports anymore.
You’re not mocked because you play a troll-pick, you’re mocked because the community will always find something to flame/mock people about, it’s just how it works. She isn’t ultra-meta anymore so meta-addicts will flame you for it
And she never has been : you tought she was fun because she had a bigger impact so you (general you, not aimed at anyone, I’ve been that you aswell) thought you did a better job and that it was fun.
While I don’t disagree that they can definitely still be listening and not answer, I think the problem is that Mercy players saw a really, really sharp drop off in her overall win and pick rate, the likes of which many characters haven’t seen without getting nerfs that absolutely nuked them and made them unplayable in the past. It would be one thing if her win rate was still decent after the changes, but she’s now only better than like Roadhog, Sombra, and one other super low character I can’t remember, and at like 48.something percent, which is well below 50 where many other supports are at currently by contrast. I think those factors mean that the Dev team need to acknowledge her current status in some fashion, otherwise players are going to think that her losing more matches than winning them and never being played is… Good… For her.
I disagree. I believe that whatever Blizzard says will only stoke the fires of an angry group of players. Everything they say gets torn apart by the community and used against them.
Oh, I definately appreciate the feedback regardless.
I always found it silly that users feel the need to post their credentials at the beginning of their posts in order to validate their claims, as if it makes their points any less valid, but I fall into the same habit as well.
This sadly does not seem to be the case for Mercy, as has been indicated by recent data highlighting that she excells at no level of play whatsoever (although she has always suffered in the higher tiers). I’m not at all saying that the outcome your stating isn’t desireable; I just think that it’s not the current reality.
I would say that it’s difficult for you to read the intentions of people you don’t interact with, and therefore must make assumptions as to intent. I am guilty of this as well, obviously. I can only present what I’ve heard and make an educated guess based on the context.
I will kindly disagree - I found her to be far more fun to play before the need for a rework was even proposed. I have not tricked or deluded myself into thinking otherwise. I know you meant this with the best of intentions, but it could come across a bit condescending to someone else. Just be mindful.
I can only speak for myself and those I directly interact with, never the whole community. My issue is not with what has been said, but what has not been said.
i know this will sound sad, but i check the bliz and dev tracker every single day, just to see even one comment on her. I know there will always be someone out there constantly making posts about her and i hate being put into that basket, because for me i just want to put my mind at ease, wether they are looking into her or not. As of recently i kinda gave up on her, i honestly thought i never would, and it makes me kinda sad to see the hero i love being called a “throw pick” and when i do want to play her its always “get off and change to ana or moira.” Anyways i agree with you and all i ask from the devs is to just give a single response so i can stop coming back to the toxic forums. (not this one)