Overwatch 2 Season 12 has officially launched, introducing Juno, the newest character to join the roster since Venture in Season 10.
While Season 11 delivered significant updates focused on maps and crossovers like the Transformers event, the arrival of a new hero always generates excitement within the community. Here are the complete patch notes for the Overwatch 2 Season 12 update.
Introducing Juno in Season 12
The new Hero for Season 12 is Juno, the first Support character to join Overwatch since Illari was added in Season 6. In an intriguing twist, Juno is the first character in Overwatch lore to originate from Mars, and players might have caught a glimpse of her ship entering Earth’s atmosphere in Season 11 if they looked up while playing on US-based maps.
Her ship has now landed in Dorado, but players who went to explore found it deserted, with just a letter and a photograph of Mei left behind.
Juno is now live in-game with an exciting array of abilities:
- Mediblaster (Primary Weapon): A burst-fire SMG that heals allies while dealing damage to enemies.
- Martian Overboots (Passive): When airborne, pressing Jump lets you double jump, and holding Jump allows you to hover.
- Pulsar Torpedoes: Homing projectiles that provide healing over time to teammates and damage to foes.
- Glide Boost: Glide horizontally with enhanced movement speed.
- Hyper Ring: Deploys a ring that accelerates the movement speed of allies who pass through it.
- Orbital Ray (Ultimate): Calls down a ray that moves forward, healing allies and boosting their damage output.
Battle Pass Theme & Pricing
This season’s Battle Pass theme is ‘New Frontiers,’ featuring an Egyptian aesthetic, priced at 1,000 OW Coins ($9.99/£8.39). Alternatively, players can opt for the Premium version for 2,200 OW Coins ($20/£16.79).
Reaper’s Mythic skin this season is titled ‘Anubis Reaper,’ with additional skins available for Ana, Doomfist, Ashe, Illari, and Sigma through the Premium Battle Pass.
Permanent Clash Mode
Clash, which made its debut in Overwatch 2 during Season 10, is now a permanent core game mode. It features two initial maps, with more to come in future updates:
- Hanaoka: Inspired by the classic Overwatch 2CP map Hanamura.
- Throne of Anubis: Drawn from another classic 2CP Overwatch map, Anubis.
The Clash mode consists of five capture points. Teams must seize each point from their opponents progressively, with victory going to the first team to capture all points or the team that captures the most overall.
Hero Mastery Courses
In Season 12, Zarya and Pharah are the next heroes to receive Hero Mastery courses. Although Gauntlet was removed in Season 11, these Mastery courses offer an excellent opportunity to practice with your favorite Heroes before diving into competitive matches.
Overwatch 2 Season 12 Patch Notes
Avoid As Teammate Feature Updates
The Avoid List has been revamped with several new features:
- Players now have 15 avoid slots: 3 Pinned and 12 Recent slots.
- Pinned Avoid slots ensure that those players will never appear in your matches and do not time out like previous Avoid slots.
- Recent Avoid slots timeout after 7 days, similar to the old system, focusing on team formation without avoided players.
- When a new player is added to a full Recent list, the player with the least time remaining is removed.
- Time remaining for an avoided player in the Recent list can be refreshed using the Reset Avoid Expiration feature.
- Avoid List is now a separate tab in the Social menu, which appears only when at least one player is avoided.
- Players who were avoided at the end of Season 11 will be removed from the list due to the system’s updates.
Developer Comments: The Avoid system is designed to improve your gaming experience. With these updates, we aim to provide better management of avoid slots.
Spawn System Changes
- Group Respawn has been replaced with Wave Respawn for all non-Competitive modes.
- Wave Respawn has been introduced into Competitive Play.
- Default respawn time has increased from 10 to 12 seconds.
- Overtime respawn time has been raised from 13 to 14 seconds.
- Wave Respawn is disabled during Overtime.
- Overtime respawn time remains unchanged for Flashpoint.
- Wave Respawn is disabled when the Payload approaches the track’s endpoint in Escort and Hybrid modes (this coincides with the existing Anti-Stall system activation).
- Once the first hero on a team dies, they initiate a new Wave for their squad.
- Any hero dying within 6 seconds of a Wave’s initiation automatically joins that Wave.
- Heroes joining a Wave respawn simultaneously with the initiating hero, which can create a respawn window between 6 to 12 seconds based on timing.
- If a hero starts a Wave without others joining, they respawn 2 seconds faster, returning to the game’s previous 10-second respawn time before Season 12.
Developer Comments: These adjustments aim to reduce one-sided matches. For a detailed breakdown of our reasoning behind the respawning changes, visit our latest Director’s Take on PlayOverwatch.com.
Shop Updates
- Players can now try out all skins in the practice range from the Hero Gallery or the Premium Shop.
Competitive Play Updates
Mid-Year Rank Reset
- Competitive skill ranks for all players have been reset for Season 12.
- Players must complete ten placement matches for each role to receive a rank and begin climbing the leaderboard.
Developer Comments: Our intention is to reset ranks bi-annually alongside significant updates that modify gameplay, including major hero balance changes, the introduction of new heroes like Juno, new game modes like Clash, and core systems such as the respawn changes mentioned earlier.
Predicted Rank
- The Predicted Rank previously shown at the end of each match during Placements is now visible in all areas where rank is displayed for individual players.
- Predicted Rank is viewable only by players checking their own Rank (it’s not visible to others).
- Predicted Rank now determines if a group is Wide or Narrow, meaning Placements are no longer automatically regarded as Wide.
- This change allows players to experience quicker queues in several scenarios after their Rank is reset.
Hero Balance Updates
Developer Comments: Our last patch (2.11.1) effectively improved interest in the Tank role, positively affecting queue times for Damage and Support too. This patch focuses on fine-tuning several mobile heroes in the Damage and Support categories, particularly as we bring in new abilities aimed at increasing speed with Juno’s introduction.
Tank Adjustments
D.Va
Developer Comment: The enhancement to Defense Matrix duration did not yield the intended performance improvement for D.Va, leading to increased frustration for opposing players. Therefore, we’re reverting back to the previous duration.
Defense Matrix
- Maximum duration decreased from 3.5 to 3 seconds.
Idol
Developer Comment: Orisa’s performance still lags, so we’re boosting the impact damage of Energy Javelin to reward accurate usage.
Energy Javelin
- Impact damage raised from 60 to 80.
Zarya
Developer Comment: Zarya’s secondary fire didn’t benefit from the size adjustment changes in Season 9 since it’s designed primarily to aim at the ground. We’re raising its damage to ensure it maintains effectiveness relative to her primary beam fire.
Particle Cannon
- Secondary fire minimum damage increased from 47 to 55.
- Secondary fire maximum damage increased from 95 to 110.
Damage Role Adjustments
Echo
Developer Comment: No additional changes have been made following the decrease in health, as Echo is performing well as one of the top Damage characters.
Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Hanzo
Developer Comment: Hanzo’s position among the more mobile heroes is not as pronounced, but like Widowmaker, he can now one-shot the 225 HP heroes. This change will also create more decisive outcomes in Hanzo mirror matches.
- Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Junkrat
Developer Comment: This adjustment primarily revisits the earlier mechanics of Junkrat’s grenades, enabling better control over bounce angles while minimizing seemingly random impacts at the end of projectile lifetimes.
Frag Launcher
- Projectile size is now halved after the second ricochet.
- Projectiles maintain slightly more velocity upon ricochet.
Sojourn
Developer Comment: Following the reduction in maximum damage for the Railgun’s secondary fire, we’re evaluating the potential of Sojourn’s primary fire, enhancing its accuracy while better rewarding precision through increased headshot energy gain.
Railgun
- Primary fire weapon spread reduced from 2 to 1.6 degrees.
- Critical hits now grant 10 energy.
- Energy degeneration rate decreased from 33 to 15 per second after 7 seconds.
Shadow
Developer Comment: The increased movement speed while in stealth enhances Sombra’s ability to position herself advantageously or evade threats despite the health reduction.
Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Virus
Impact damage raised from 25 to 35.
Stealth
Bonus movement speed increased from 45 to 60%.
Torbjörn
Developer Comment: This change aims to bolster Torbjörn’s survivability against heroes most affected by armor’s damage reduction, like Tracer.
- Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
- Base armor increased from 50 to 75.
Support Adjustments
Years
Developer Comment: Illari’s damage output is substantial over the course of a game, which might necessitate ammo adjustments due to increased projectile size helping land hits more easily. We’re also addressing projectile collision issues to prevent early detonations.
Solar Rifle
- Maximum ammo reduced from 16 to 14.
Captive Sun
- Projectile environment collision size reduced from 0.15 to 0 meters.
Juno
Developer Comment: Feedback on Juno’s trial period has suggested she was both over and underpowered. Statistically, she showed strong performance in various categories, especially regarding healing output. The adjustments aim to enhance her utility while slightly reducing her healing capacity, ensuring that players can adapt to her playstyle.
- Juno has joined the playable lineup.
- Juno is now available for Competitive Play.
- Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Mediblaster
- Burst projectile volley fire rate reduced from 34 to 28 shots per second.
Pulsar Torpedoes
- Damage and Healing impact raised from 75 to 85.
- Heal-over-time reduced from 60 to 50 health.
Hyper Ring
- Deploy range increased by 3.5 meters.
- Cooldown reduced from 16 to 14 seconds.
Orbital Ray
- Beam travel velocity increased from 1.9 to 2.25 meters per second.
Kiriko Updates
Developer Comment: Despite being perceived as powerful, Kiriko has consistently underperformed in win rates. We are placing her in the 225 health tier while enhancing her damage consistency through adjustments to her Kunai weapon.
Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Kunai
- Critical multiplier reduced from 2.5 to 2x.
- Damage increased from 45 to 60.
- Recovery time increased from 0.5 to 0.55 seconds.
Lifeweaver Changes
Developer Comment: The Petal Platform has been adjusted to prevent unintentional usage, resetting back to the ground if no player stands on it. We’re also lowering its health for more reasonable counterplay.
Healing Blossom
- Healing progress can now charge passively at a reduced rate.
- Holding a full charge no longer reduces movement speed.
Petal Platform
- Duration now counts down only when the platform is elevated.
- Platform resets if no player stands on it for 2 seconds.
- Duration increased from 10 to 12 seconds.
- Health reduced from 400 to 300.
Rejuvenating Dash
- Healing reduced from 60 to 45.
Mercy Adjustments
Developer Comment: Mercy’s Guardian Angel ability allows her to be quite evasive, and we want to preserve that strength by placing her in the 225 HP category while enhancing her healing and damage boost output.
- Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Caduceus Staff
- Primary fire healing increased from 55 to 60 health per second.
- Secondary fire damage boost increased from 25% to 30%.
Moira Updates
Developer Comment: Moira is challenging to eliminate due to low cooldowns on her Fade ability and self-healing, prompting us to adjust her health pool while slightly enhancing her damage potential.
- Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Biotic Grasp
- Secondary fire damage increased from 60 to 65 damage per second.
Lucio Adjustments
Developer Comment: As one of the most agile heroes, we are moving him to the 225 HP category while increasing his Primary fire damage to enhance his effectiveness at range before engaging.
- Base health reduced from 250 to 225.
Sonic Amplifier
Primary fire damage increased from 18 to 22.
Hero Quality of Life Improvements
Developer Comments: In addition to the balance changes making Juno a viable support option, we also took community feedback into account for several small improvements aimed at enhancing the experience of playing with or against Juno.
Support Improvements for Juno
Juno’s Quality of Life Enhancements
Mediblaster
- The weapon model visuals and firing sounds now alert players when the weapon is low on ammo.
- Heal sounds are now more noticeable for the Juno player when healing allies close to full health.
Pulsar Torpedoes
- The cooldown for canceling this ability after no successful lock-ons has been shortened from 5 seconds to 2 seconds.
- Line of Sight checks have been improved to more accurately identify targets with visible hitboxes.
- An extra 5-meter range forgiveness has been added for targets moving beyond the 40-meter maximum.
- The local cancel sound has been amplified for better notification to the Juno player.
- Ally and enemy impact sounds have been updated for greater clarity for the Juno player.
- Healing torpedoes now feature new impact visuals when hitting barriers or near walls.
Glide Boost
- Now better adjusts when Juno encounters level architecture like doorways.
Hyper Ring
- Juno players will hear the initial Hyper Ring sound when entering their own ring for the first time.
- Sounds when re-entering the Hyper Ring have been enhanced for better auditory cues.
Orbital Ray
- The enemy voice line announcing the Ultimate has been adjusted for better tonal contrast with the ally version.
- The enemy version of the ray’s activation sound has been made more perceptible.
Map Updates
Flashpoint Changes
- Passing through your spawn door barrier will grant a temporary speed boost, allowing faster access to the capture point.
- The speed boost is removed upon taking or dealing damage.
- This speed boost applies to both default and forward spawns.
- It also counts towards the existing movement speed bonus cap of 75%.
Push Mode Adjustments
- Collision changes have been made to the Push bot to prevent contesting from specific high ground locations.
General Map & Mode Updates
- Improvements to our map recency system will increase the variety of maps and modes available at the season’s start.
- In Clash and Flashpoint, capture point outlines can now be viewed through walls when the capture point is active.
- Lighting scenarios in Quick Play and Competitive modes have been randomized.
Bug Fixes
General Fixes
- Fixed an issue where the Gotcha achievement was not being awarded properly.
- Resolved a bug preventing weapon skins from displaying in the weapon variant menu.
- Fixed a problem preventing first-time users from skirmishing while waiting for a game.
Hero Specific Fixes
Ashe
- Fixed a bug affecting some effects when using Ashe’s mythic skin on Steam.
Years
- Corrected an issue with Illari’s Solar Rifle secondary fire inadvertently impacting the environment instead of players when aiming near edges.
Juno
- Adjusted the effects of Juno’s Pulsar Torpedoes when they land near D.Va re-entering her mech.
With Overwatch 2 Season 12 now in full swing, check out how to unlock new OWCS viewership rewards and whether the 6v6 format will be making a return.
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