Of all of Overwatch's heroes, few feel more neglected than Bastion, the Omnic robot that speaks only in beeps and boops. The hero was tweaked slightly way back while Overwatch was still in beta, but since launch has seen zero adjustments or balance changes, despite being one of the least-played heroes in the game.
Classified as a defense hero, Bastion's Sentry mode gives it a devastating minigun at the expense of mobility. It's a powerful weapon against the unprepared, but is easily countered and completely shut down by a skilled opponent. Bastion's already an unpopular pick, but this makes it all but nonexistent in Overwatch's higher-level competitive or pro scene.
Other underplayed and "weak" characters have been addressed by Blizzard in balance changes since the game's launch. Thus far, Bastion has received no such treatment, but that may change soon. Deep into a thread on the Blizzard forums asking Overwatch's developers to address the state of Bastion, Overwatch principal designer Geoff Goodman said that changes are on the way.
"I'm actually working on some changes for him right now," Goodman said. "I'm not quite sure when these changes will hit the live game, we're still testing different things internally."
Goodman didn't elaborate further, so it remains to be seen if these changes will take the form of small tweaks, such as the boost to Pharah's flight, or massive changes in same vein as the recent Symmetra overhaul. Either way, we're looking forward to the chipper robot getting some love.
Blizzard's most recent changes nerfed Ana and D.Va and reined in Roadhog's hook. Overwatch is running a Chinese New Year event, featuring 13 new skins, until February 13.
