Classes

There are three classes you can play in Overwatch 2: Tank, Damage, and Support. Each class plays a crucial role in turning the game in your favor and securing your team's victory.

Tank

The Tank class is often considered the “front line” of your team’s offensive or defensive strategies.

A Tank’s main role is to shield incoming damage from the enemy team. Depending on the Tank hero you choose to play, “shielding damage” could look very literally like holding up a shield in the direction of enemy fire, using your big Tank body to block damage, or drawing the enemy team’s attention off of your advancing team.

On the offense, a good Tank hero will “make space” for the team. Because Tank heroes have so much health and shield, they create a big obstacle for the enemy team to contend with. As such, the zone around a Tank hero tends to be one of the safest areas to play in.

No matter which game mode you are playing, expanding the area your team can more safely play in is crucial. Damage and Support heroes have less health than Tanks, and so are considered “squishy” heroes. Without a shield protecting them, or a Tank drawing all the aggression of the enemy team towards them, Damage and Support heroes can die quickly, taking away the amount of damage and healing your team can do.

The Tank class passive ability also reduces the amount of “knockback” they receive from other heroes. Coupled with a Tank’s own ability to stun or knockback enemies, Tank heroes excel in pushing back or pushing through an enemy line without getting “punished”, or dying too quickly.

Damage

The Damage class heroes are the heavy hitters on your team. While Tank and Support heroes can also deal damage, picking off enemy teammates is a Damage hero's primary focus.

Damage heroes are often the most mobile players on your team. Damage heroes are more likely to have “vertical mobility” included in their ability kit, whether that means wall climbing, teleporting, or flying.

In Overwatch 2, the Damage class has a passive ability that gives a burst of movement and reload speed when you get an elimination. This new buff to mobility is a vital tool in your arsenal, as repositioning is such an integral part of the Damage role. The quicker you are able to reposition, the greater your chances of staying alive outside of your Support’s line of sight.

Some Damage heroes excel at flanking, or eliminating heroes in the enemy team’s backline. Other Damage heroes output massive amounts of damage, perfect for burning through the enemy team’s shields. Overall, the main role of the Damage class is to turn the fight in your favor by eliminating enemy heroes.

Support

The Support class is your team’s lifeline, quite literally. Support heroes keep your team alive by pumping them full of healing, or by giving them the advantage in a fight.

While the main role of the Support class is to heal your teammates, this class is far more than a walking health pack. They provide many other types of “support”, whether that means boosting an ally's damage output, increasing their movement speed, or even preventing the enemy team from healing their teammates.

Support heroes tend to be “squishy” characters without much health, but in Overwatch 2, the Support class has a passive ability that automatically heals them over time. This ability to passively regenerate health not only gives a Support hero better survivability but allows them to focus on healing their teammates without having to pause to worry about keeping themselves alive.

Keeping your teammates within your line of sight without putting yourself in a dangerous position is all a part of the balancing act of playing the Support class.