Best heroes, tactics & more for Overwatch 2 beginners

Are you a complete beginner at Overwatch 2? With a number of characters to choose from, all with different abilities and roles in a team, it can be tough to get started and feel like you're actually contributing.

If you want some help kicking things off, we've covered some of the best heroes to start with, and some tactics that will help you generally when playing.

Best beginner heroes

When starting Overwatch 2, you'll want to pick the most basic heroes so you can understand the rules of the game and learn each map. Heroes like Soldier: 76, Mercy, and Reinhardt are great contributions to the team; here's why.

Soldier: 76

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Soldier 76 is the most approachable hero for those who have played other shooters like Call of Duty. He carries a standard assault rifle that feels comfortable for anyone who loves Activision's key franchise, and also has an easy-to-understand rocket launcher that can be activated with the secondary fire button.

Beginners with Soldier: 76 can also heal themselves with his Biotic Field ability. The ultimate is also simple to figure out, as it auto-aims your shots toward your foes. 

Soldier is the perfect attacking hero for newbies, allowing you to easily contribute with your simple but effective kit, and get a feel for how damage heroes slot into a team.

Mercy

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It's funny that Mercy is the best healer in the game, as she is also the simplest to understand. The left click on your mouse (or left shoulder button on consoles) buffs your enemies' strength, and the right click (shoulder button) has Mercy healing her allies rapidly.

You'll constantly hear a satisfying sound whenever an ally has full health from your support. In addition, she can revive fallen friends on the team with her ultimate, making her essential in any fight.

Mercy is accused of being a mindless character, but that’s not quite the case for people starting out. Principally, she'll teach you the importance of positioning in fights, so you know where to help your team the most without getting taken out and leaving the group without a healer.

You'll also get a feel for who you should prioritise with your healing and when, as it's no good to glue yourself to one ally when they're in no danger and not fighting.

Reinhardt 

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The best beginner tank character is easily Reinhardt. Just like Mercy, he's arguably the best of his class. His main attack is a huge hammer you can swing quite mindlessly when in amongst enemies to deal some big damage and send them flying.

However, his most important asset is his shield. It has 1600 HP and is vital for pushing objectives and tight chokepoints while keeping your essential allies safe from harm. He can also initiate the action with a charging attack that pins enemies for an easy kill, and can even knock them off the map.

Finally, his ultimate requires you to get in front of some enemies, letting you bring down the hammer and disable them all for a few seconds, which is perfect for wiping a team out and attacking the objective.

As a tank, Reinhardt teaches you the fundamentals of supporting your team by distracting enemies, taking the brunt of their attacks, and controlling the field of play. 

Best beginner tactics & tips

The first thing I'd recommend is to communicate with your team. There are emotes and callouts you can utilize with the Communication menu, which lets you organise with your team in vital moments, such as when attacking a point or defending a push.

Features like the ping system also let you be more specific, letting you call out an enemy position or call for a meet-up point where you can all push at once.

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To be the most cooperative player in Overwatch 2, I recommend learning the different roles of the game. The damage class is suited to reducing as many hit points as possible; the support class should focus on healing, and the tank class is there to be a big target.

It's also key to understand where each healing location is. There are med packs located all over each map, and if the healer has been taken out, they're your next saving grace to stay in the fight. 

Finally, just pay attention to the different heroes in the game. Each one has unique abilities you'll need to learn, especially when it comes to dealing with them. Many abilities have unique audio barks or animations that signal their coming, so with experience, you'll be able to adapt on the fly.