Assist mains are ecstatic that Overwatch 2 is including a much-needed new healer to the roster, however Ilari might not be the healer you’re in search of. I bought in some (albeit restricted) playtime with the brand new character, who’s dropping with Overwatch 2: Invasion, and I’m a bit apprehensive for my healer mains. Not solely does she have a reasonably excessive talent ceiling, however I can see her simply turning into a thorn in gamers’ sides.
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Ilari can do an honest quantity of harm, and has some fairly spectacular mobility, which might result in gamers specializing in utilizing her for attacking relatively than therapeutic her squad. She’s described by Blizzard as “lethal in the precise palms, particularly for gamers with a excessive mechanical talent,” and I believe that she might find yourself being deadlier than different aggressive, high-damage healers like Moira, Brigitte, and Baptiste.
If that’s the case, that could possibly be a significant downside for Overwatch 2’s simply upended meta.
New healer Ilari talents and preview
Throughout my hands-on preview, I solely get to play Ilari (who’s Peruvian, and attracts her energy from the solar) a number of occasions, however I rapidly understand that she’s a personality that can require some severe apply. Her Photo voltaic Rifle has two totally different firing modes: a extra exact hitscan shot that does injury to enemy gamers, and a projectile beam of sunshine just like Zarya’s weapon that can heal her teammates. This projectile, like Moira’s therapeutic stream, has to recharge relatively than reload, so that you’ll have to pay very shut consideration to the meter to make sure you can maintain pumping your teammates with that candy, candy nectar.
Her therapeutic pylon, which sends out little spurts of well being that remind me of Lifeweaver’s important firing mode, can present some nice passive heals—however it may be destroyed, and gamers will goal it instantly as with Baptiste’s protection matrix “lamp.” The destruction of her pylon critically knee-capped her therapeutic functionality, particularly since her therapeutic beam’s power ranges appeared to deplete relatively rapidly in 5v5 scraps. Her beam can simply heal a singular participant going through off in opposition to one or two enemies, however with out the pylon, it may be exhausting to maintain up the workforce in group firefights. You’ll must be very intelligent together with your pylon placement (it could follow surfaces, so throwing it on the nook of a wall is nice) to make sure she will be able to successfully heal a number of teammates without delay.
Picture: Blizzard
Ilari has a pleasant little motion potential referred to as Outburst that can launch you within the path you’re shifting, and holding bounce will ship her even greater. It’s nice for getting out of sticky conditions, however I can even see it being utilized by extra aggressive gamers to shut the hole and take out enemies.
Her final, Captive Solar, is extremely highly effective, a lot in order that I can think about Blizzard will nerf it not lengthy after she debuts on August 10. Throughout it, Ilari hovers in midair and fires an explosive ball of photo voltaic power that has an honest AoE impact. “It’s the primary final within the sport that’s focusing on enemies,” senior sport designer Piero Herrera mentioned throughout a press roundtable. Enemies hit by it have their motion slowed down, and in the event that they take sufficient injury from it, will explode. You’ll be able to see how Ilari’s package is tailor-made for aggressive, damage-focused play, proper? Effectively, Blizzard desires that.
The healer who hurts
“We needed to create an attack-centric help,” Herrera mentioned. “So, a number of goal mechanics right here, proper? FPS gamers are actually going to like taking part in this character, though it’s a help.” Her heightened motion capabilities make her “actually good at flanking” in line with Herrera, which additionally means gamers who aren’t all that eager about therapeutic can go away you hanging to chase down an enemy Genji.
As a help important, I’m all too conscious of the plague of gamers who wish to play injury however don’t wish to wait within the longer DPS queues, so that they play help like DPS and concentrate on killing enemies relatively than therapeutic teammates. That’s why Ilari scares me.
Picture: Blizzard
Now, that might not be the case for each particular person taking part in Ilari, however traditionally Overwatch has had points with folks deciding on the help position and selecting to concentrate on injury as an alternative—and whereas this will work in sure conditions (when you have a second healer who can pump out a ton of heals, when you’re doing a lot injury that the enemy workforce can’t retaliate, and many others.), it doesn’t all the time.
Ilari can, nonetheless, very simply turn out to be a help participant who does spectacular quantities of harm and therapeutic—in the precise palms. Due to her excessive talent ceiling, she’ll want a deft hand to have the ability to goal her railgun for each assault and heals and superior spatial/map consciousness to have the ability to cleverly place her pylon and maximize the effectivity of her Outburst bounce. For gamers who can discover that steadiness, she’ll be a improbable asset in aggressive modes. However for individuals who choose her simply to get kills, she might find yourself being an extremely irritating addition to the roster.
Ilari drops as a part of Overwatch 2: Invasion on August 10. She gained’t be out there in aggressive modes simply but, as is custom with new heroes.
