You can step back into the original team structure of Overwatch Classic, where heroes fall into four distinct roles: offense, defense, tank, and support. This format reflects the game’s early design and shapes how you approach team composition and strategy.
From May 12 to June 2, the 10th Anniversary event lets you join special activities and earn free rewards. In its first week, you gain access to the Overwatch Classic 2016 mode, which brings back the original gameplay style along with detailed patch updates for that era.
Overwatch Classic 2016 patch notes
You play with the original 21 launch heroes, organized under the game’s first four roles: Offense, Defense, Tank, and Support. Role structure differs from the modern format, so you select heroes within these earlier categories rather than today’s lineup system.
| Role | Heroes |
|---|---|
| Offense | Genji, Cassidy, Pharah, Reaper, Soldier: 76, Tracer |
| Defense | Hanzo, Bastion, Junkrat, Mei, Torbjörn, Widowmaker |
| Tank | D.Va, Reinhardt, Roadhog, Winston, Zarya |
| Support | Lúcio, Mercy, Symmetra, Zenyatta |
You experience Symmetra as a support hero in this version, reflecting her original design.
Hero kits, balance values, and role limits match the 2016 launch environment, giving you the gameplay structure and team compositions from Overwatch’s first year.
Overwatch Classic patch notes: Offense heroes
Genji
You regain Genji’s original high-mobility kit built around vertical control and fast resets. Cyber-Agility lets you scale walls and double jump, and your double jump refreshes after wall climbing, which expands your escape routes and engagement angles.
Your Shuriken fires a precise three-projectile burst. Swift Strike dashes forward to deal damage, and eliminations immediately reset its cooldown for chaining picks.
Deflect redirects incoming projectiles toward your aim direction and blocks melee hits. Dragonblade stays active for up to eight seconds, giving you a longer window to secure close-range eliminations.
Cassidy
You return to a classic revolver-focused kit. Peacekeeper fires accurate shots at range, and you can fan the hammer to unload remaining rounds at 70 damage per bullet.
Combat Roll moves you in your current direction and reloads your weapon. Flashbang once again stuns targets directly in front of you, restoring its original crowd-control role.
With Deadeye, you lock onto enemies in sight and fire to confirm shots. You can cancel the ultimate early and retain up to half of its charge.
Pharah
You control space from the air with improved uptime. Jump Jet launches you upward, and Hover Jets let you remain airborne longer than in later versions.
Your Rocket Launcher deals increased splash damage, rewarding direct hits and near misses. Concussive Blast applies stronger knockback, making environmental eliminations more consistent.
Barrage unleashes a sustained stream of mini-rockets, pressuring grouped enemies at close to mid range.
Reaper
You rely on close-range pressure and sustain. Hellfire Shotguns deliver heavy spread damage up close.
The Reaping returns to Soul Orb healing, restoring 50 health per orb after eliminations. This system replaces passive lifesteal and rewards finishing blows.
Wraith Form grants speed and invulnerability but cannot be canceled early. Shadow Step teleports you to a targeted location, and Death Blossom damages all nearby enemies in a wide radius.
Soldier: 76
You use a steady mid-range loadout with consistent damage. The Heavy Pulse Rifle deals 17 damage per shot, has no recoil, and gains increased spread during sustained fire.
Helix Rockets provide burst damage on impact. Sprint boosts your forward movement speed, and Biotic Field heals you and nearby allies within its radius.
Tactical Visor automatically tracks targets in view, letting you maintain pressure during team fights.
Tracer
You keep Tracer’s fast-paced core identity. Pulse Pistols excel at short range, and Blink gives you rapid directional teleports for repositioning.
Recall rewinds you to a previous location and restores your earlier health state. Pulse Bomb sticks to targets and deals extremely high damage, capable of eliminating most heroes on direct attachment.
Overwatch Classic patch notes: Defense heroes
Hanzo – Classic Kit Updates
You return to Hanzo’s original ability set, which centers on deliberate aim and positioning. Storm Bow requires you to draw each arrow before release, increasing range and damage as you charge it.
Sonic Arrow briefly exposes enemies near its impact point. Scatter Arrow replaces later reworks and splits into multiple fragments that ricochet off surfaces, making tight corridors dangerous for opponents.
You can climb vertical surfaces with Wall Climb, but you do not have access to Lunge. That limitation reduces your escape options and forces you to rely on map awareness.
Dragonstrike unleashes twin spirit dragons that travel through walls and pressure grouped targets. You can use Scatter Arrow and Sonic Arrow to check corners and punish flanking enemies hiding out of sight.
Bastion – Original Configurations
Bastion’s Classic version plays very differently from modern iterations. You actively switch between forms using Configure, choosing between mobility and raw firepower.
- Recon: Mobile mode with a light automatic weapon.
- Sentry: Stationary turret mode with a high-damage rotary cannon.
- Tank: Ultimate form with a powerful, mobile cannon.
Sentry mode delivers sustained damage and can shut down narrow entry points. However, you cannot move while deployed and your ammunition is limited.
Self-Repair restores your health but leaves you unable to fire. Because Sentry mode exposes your back and sides, you must monitor flanking routes carefully.
Configuration: Tank grants mobility and heavy burst damage, letting you pressure clustered enemies or break defensive holds.
Junkrat – Early Explosives Setup
You rely on unpredictable projectile paths with Frag Launcher, which fires bouncing grenades. These explosives can damage you if you stand too close.
Concussion Mine has a single charge. You throw it and detonate it manually, using it for displacement or limited mobility.
Steel Trap immobilizes the first enemy who steps on it. This tool pairs well with narrow paths and objective zones.
Rip-Tire lets you control an explosive tire and detonate it for high damage. If you fall in combat, Total Mayhem drops live grenades at your position.
Compared to later updates, you have fewer burst combinations and movement options, so you must plan engagements more carefully.
Mei – Full Freeze Mechanics
Mei’s primary fire from Endothermic Blaster can completely freeze enemies in place. Once frozen, you can eliminate them quickly with an icicle from Alternate Fire.
- Primary Fire: Short-range freezing spray.
- Alternate Fire: Long-range icicle projectile.
Cryo-Freeze makes you invulnerable while restoring health. You can stall objectives or survive focused attacks.
Ice Wall creates multiple pillars, each with 500 health. This durability allows you to block choke points or split enemy teams more effectively than in later versions.
Blizzard deploys a drone that freezes enemies within a large radius, enabling team follow-up damage.
Torbjörn – Scrap and Turret Management
You manage resources directly through Scrap Collector, gathering scrap from fallen allies and enemies. You spend that scrap to create Armor Packs for teammates.
Build Turret places a level 1 turret. You upgrade it to level 2 by striking it with Forge Hammer.
- Rivet Gun (Primary): Slow, accurate projectile.
- Rivet Gun (Alternate): Close-range, high-damage burst.
During Molten Core, you gain armor and increased attack speed. If you have a level 2 turret active, it immediately upgrades to a powerful level 3 turret for the duration.
You must balance scrap usage between team armor and turret maintenance to maximize impact.
Widowmaker – Long-Range Lethality
You switch between automatic fire and a scoped sniper shot with Widow’s Kiss. Scoped shots charge quickly and deal higher long-range damage.
Grappling Hook pulls you toward elevated positions but has a longer cooldown, increasing the risk if you misplace it.
Venom Mine acts as a poison trap and provides area denial.
Infra-Sight reveals enemy positions to your entire team, improving coordinated pushes and defensive holds.
You rely heavily on positioning since mobility tools recover more slowly, and missed shots leave you exposed.
Overwatch Classic 2016 Patch Notes: Tanks
D.Va Updates
You pilot D.Va in her original 2016 form, focused on close-range pressure and mech uptime. Her Fusion Cannons fire automatically with a wide spread, while her pilot form uses the Light Gun for sustained shots.
She flies forward with Boosters, blocks incoming projectiles using a channeled Defense Matrix, and triggers Self-Destruct to overload her mech. The explosion detonates after four seconds, and you can call down a new mech with Call Mech after ejecting.
Key differences in this version:
- No Micro Missiles
- Defense Matrix lasts several seconds and then enters a 10-second cooldown
- Pilot form can take damage from her own ultimate blast
Reinhardt Changes
You play Reinhardt as a frontline anchor with heavier defenses and wider crowd control. His Rocket Hammer delivers strong melee swings, while Barrier Field projects a large frontal shield.
This version grants:
- Higher Barrier health than the modern iteration
- Only one Fire Strike charge
- A broader Earthshatter with increased horizontal and vertical reach
You still engage with Charge to pin enemies and use Fire Strike as a ranged projectile. When you activate Earthshatter, you knock down enemies across a wider cone, making positioning critical.
Roadhog Adjustments
You rely on close-range burst and pick potential. The Scrap Gun fires a spread shot at short distance, and Chain Hook pulls enemies directly to you.
Hook behavior is more forgiving and can latch onto targets within generous range. After a successful hook, you can combine Scrap Gun + melee to instantly eliminate lower-health opponents.
You also retain Take a Breather for self-healing and Whole Hog to push back and damage enemies in front of you.
Winston Revisions
You control space with Winston’s Tesla Cannon, which damages enemies in a frontal cone. This version does not include a long-range alternate fire.
Your Jump Pack launches you forward and deals damage on landing. Barrier Projector places a dome shield, and its cooldown begins only after the barrier fully expires.
When you activate Primal Rage, you gain significant health and switch to powerful melee strikes that knock enemies away.
Zarya Tuning
You build energy through damage absorption using Particle Barrier on yourself and Projected Barrier on allies. Each barrier operates on its own cooldown, allowing more flexible timing.
Zarya gains more energy per absorbed damage than in the current game. With higher charge, your Particle Cannon beam and alternate grenade fire deal increased damage.
You finish team fights with Graviton Surge, which pulls enemies into a concentrated gravity well for coordinated follow-up.
Overwatch Classic patch notes 2026: Support heroes
Lucio updates in Classic
You use Sonic Amplifier as your primary projectile weapon, while Soundwave pushes enemies away at close range. His core kit centers on aura management through Crossfade and team shielding with Sound Barrier.
In Classic, Crossfade reaches 30 meters, not the smaller modern radius. You cover a wide area without tight grouping.
Healing output sits lower than current versions, but movement speed gains more value. You enable faster rotations, cleaner disengages, and coordinated rushes between fights.
Key differences:
- Larger aura radius
- Reduced healing numbers
- Stronger emphasis on mobility
- Sound Barrier grants temporary extra health to nearby allies
You play him to control tempo, not to maximize raw healing.
Mercy in the 2016 rule set
You heal with Caduceus Staff (Primary Fire) and amplify damage with its alternate beam. Guardian Angel lets you fly to teammates, while Angelic Descent slows your fall.
Classic Mercy keeps Resurrect as her ultimate ability. Instead of a single-target revive, you can restore multiple fallen allies at once.
In the right position, you can bring back up to five teammates instantly. That swing can reset an entire teamfight.
You still regenerate health after avoiding damage, and you can defend yourself with the Caduceus Blaster. Damage boost stacking with multiple Mercy players creates high burst potential.
Symmetra’s original support toolkit
You play Symmetra as a utility-focused support rather than a damage dealer. Her Photon Projector uses a short-range beam that ramps up in power, with a charged orb as alternate fire.
She provides Photon Shield to grant allies regenerating shields. Those shields return if the ally survives.
Her Sentry Turrets slow and damage enemies, making choke points harder to cross. Multiple Symmetra players can layer turrets for stronger area denial.
The Teleporter connects directly to spawn. You reposition your entire team quickly after respawns, reducing downtime and reinforcing defenses.
Zenyatta’s Classic configuration
You fire Orbs of Destruction, charging volleys for higher burst damage. His core support tools remain simple and direct.
Orb of Harmony heals a single ally over time. Orb of Discord increases the damage an enemy takes by 50%, making them a clear focus target.
He does not have Snap Kick in this version.
With Transcendence, you become invulnerable and rapidly heal nearby teammates, countering heavy damage ultimates and stabilizing fights.
