Overwatch 2 is gearing up to welcome Season 4. In addition to a new Battle Pass that is expected to include new cosmetic content, a brand new support hero will be introduced: Lifeweaver, who is shaping up to be a welcome addition thanks to his play style. game and unique set of tools.
Recently at LEVEL UP we had the opportunity to chat with Blizzard Entertainment’s Gavin Jurgens-Fyhrie, Chonlawat Thammawan, and Kenny Hudson in an interview with other media and community members. There, the creatives talked at length about the abilities of the new hero and his role in the games of the popular hero shooter.
What are the abilities of Lifeweaver, the new hero of Overwatch 2?
Lifeweaver is a support hero, so his role in the matches will be to help his teammates. His primary shot is Healing Flower, which is to charge up and fire a burst of healing at a target ally. His secondary fire is Thorn Bolt, an alternative weapon that allows you to launch a flurry of projectiles to attack opponents.
In the interview, Kenny Hudson, Producer of Hero Design, commented that the idea of introducing an alternative weapon was born from the need to make the character have a tool to defend himself against threats.
Lifeweaver certainly has unique tools that set him apart from other support heroes. While he can heal his teammates, he also does a lot more than that. His first ability is Petal Platform, which, as the name suggests, creates a petal-shaped platform that rises when activated by an ally or enemy. It is useful for traveling long distances in the air and reaching high areas of the stages.
The second ability is Life Grasp, which allows Lifeweaver to pull a teammate to his location and protect them during the run.
While they will offer new offensive opportunities, it seems at first glance that these abilities also have the potential to be misused by players to troll their teammates. Members of the Overwatch 2 development team told us that they took some security measures to prevent malicious actions.
Kenny Hudson told us that there is some control to prevent, for example, users from using Life Grasp to pull their teammates off a cliff, which was challenging in development. Furthermore, he stated that they made sure that players always know when a teammate is using that ability on them through VFX, animations, etc.
Chonlawat Thammawan, Senior Technical Artist for Overwatch 2, complemented the response, stating that players can use mobility abilities, such as Tracer’s dash and Moira’s fade, to escape Life Grasp.
In fact, Lifeweaver also has a very interesting mobility power: Regenerative Step, which allows it to dash in one direction while healing itself a bit in the process.
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For his ultimate, Lifeweaver plants a tree that immediately heals nearby allies and grants constant healing while active. While its primary function is to restore health to allies, it can also be used to block enemies’ field of vision or impede their path. Of course, the developers confirmed that it can be destroyed and hacked.
Finally, the passive ability of this new character is to drop an item upon death that heals any player, which includes teammates and rivals. Kenny Hudson commented that allies will receive more health than enemies.
What is Lifeweaver’s playstyle? Is he a difficult character to use?
The creatives commented that Lifeweaver is a character with a lot of emphasis on utility, that is, supporting his teammates in different ways beyond offering healing. However, the hero design producer commented that he is a character who can heal a lot with his main shot, especially if he charges it to 100%.
In addition, he stressed that they tried to make it as fun and accessible as possible so that veteran players can get a lot out of it and newbies are proficient with it.
Chonlawat Thammawan commented that at first glance it seems that Lifeweaver is not a complicated character because he does not need an aim, but he points out that he is a hero who demands a lot of decision-making; the difficulty lies in using the skills at the correct time. Furthermore, he points out that the abilities can be used in many situations.
“I don’t know about the meta, but if I choose Lifeweaver over any other support hero it’s because his gameplay has a lot of surprise elements. Lifeweaver can do a lot of things that other characters in the game can’t. When we tested this character, on many occasions we found new scenarios, new combos with Life Grip and new interactions with the Petaloid Platform and the Tree of Life (…) All these combinations are so unique that they motivate me to choose (this character)”, commented Chonlawat Thammawan.
Like the previous heroes, Lifeweaver will be unlocked through the free and premium Battle Pass. It will be available once Season 4 opens its doors on April 11.
You will find information about the lore and history of this new hero if you click on this link.
But tell us, what do you think of the abilities of this new hero? Let us read you in the comments.
Overwatch 2 ya está disponible para PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC y Nintendo Switch.
You can read more news related to him if you click here.
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