In Overwatch 2, Brigitte was inspired by the tales of valor she heard from her godfather, Reinhardt, and chose to take up arms. This fierce support is more defensive than others in her class.
Wielding a sturdy shield and her destructive Rocket Flail, you can often find Brigitte on the front lines backing up her tank and protecting her fellow support teammate. While this can be daunting for some enemy heroes to go up against, Brigitte has taken a couple of blows recently that have made her less of a threat.
When Brigitte first joined Overwatch in 2017, she was a force to be reckoned with thanks to her protective shield and armor boasting a jaw-dropping amount of health. Unfortunately, she was also too overpowered for her own good and upset many fans who played established heroes, such as D.Va and Tracer, leading to some leaving the game for good.
However, Brigitte has been reworked for Overwatch 2, with patches introduced to weaken her strength and health – and generally even the playing field. These changes have meant Brigitte isn’t quite as powerful as she was back in 2017, but if you fancy a challenge, then you’ll find everything you need to know to get to grips with this tank hero, below.
Overwatch 2 Brigitte
Overwatch 2 Brigitte: Story and background
Brigitte comes from Overwatch royalty. Being the daughter of our favorite Swede Torbjorn, she was able to pick up the art of forgery quicker than most. But, unlike her father, she didn’t have an interest in weapons but instead in creating armor.
Despite most thinking Brigitte would carry on her apprenticeship at her father’s workshop, the little soldier decided to follow her Godfather, Reinhardt, into battle. Throughout their travels together, Brigitte learned how to upkeep Reinhardt’s armor but also how to look after her soldiers.
After encountering a deadly gang called the Dragons, Brigitte got the shock of her life: Reinhardt nearly fell in battle. It was then that Brigitte decided to join the battlefield, learn to fight, and repair her soldiers in the midst of battle.
It was after she honed her skills that she and Reinhardt were called up to join Overwatch Recall and fight the omnics alongside many of our other heroes in the streets of Paris. In Overwatch 2, Brigitte is still with them, trying to make the world a better place, one battle at a time.
Overwatch 2 Brigitte: Abilities
Primary Fire: Rocket Flail
Description: Melee weapon with extended range
Instead of wielding a gun like most other Overwatch heroes, in Overwatch 2, Brigitte has gone for the more brutal option. Relying on her melee weapon Brigitte is able to bash around heroes within a six-meter range. While she can’t headshot enemies with this ability, the skill is rapid, with one swing per 0.6 seconds.
Some tricks and tips for this weapon:
- This is a great ability to use to clear space or scare away enemy DPS from your backlines.
- Using this skill is the best way to guarantee healing for your team, thanks to Brigitte’s Passive ability, Inspire.
Ability: Repair Pack
Description: A projectile that can heal targeted allies for a short time
Repair Pack does 110 healing over two seconds. With a max range of 30 meters, this is a great way to restore allied DPS heroes who are fighting in the backlines of the enemy team.
The best way to utilize this ability is to aid your tank. Now there’s only one of these in your team in Overwatch 2, the enemy team will often target them first. It’s your job to keep them alive, whatever the cost. You have a total of three charges; if multiple are thrown at the same hero, then the duration is increased by two seconds each time.
Some tricks and tips for this ability:
- The cooldown for this ability is relatively long at six seconds, so this is an ability to save for the right moment.
- Using this in the heat of battle can be risky as upon activation, there is a 0.25-second recovery period where Brigitte cannot attack in any way.
Ability: Whip Shot
Description: Brigitte can throw her Flail at a long distance dealing damage and knocking back enemy heroes.
Whip Shot is a projectile and so can travel 20 meters at a rate of 80 meters per second. This is a sharp attack that can catch even the quickest DPS by surprise.
This ability is a great one to use for environmental kills. This is when you use the map to finish someone off. While these usually push people into pits or off the side of the map, you can also push heroes into oncoming traffic on certain maps.
Some tricks and tips for this ability:
- You still can’t get a headshot with this skill, so best to aim for the body.
- Whip Shot is a great ability to create distance between attacking enemies and allies with low health.
Ability: Barrier Shield
Description: A frontal energy barrier that can absorb a limited amount of damage.
Think of this as a mini Reinhardt Shield. Not big enough to protect allies in Overwatch 2, Brigitte uses this to follow her tank into battle and keep herself protected. This Shield is also great for momentary protection, as she is able to cast it instantly.
However, there is a downside to this ability. When using her shield, Brigitte’s movement speed is decreased by 30%. This makes surrounding the stoic support and dealing the death blow incredibly easy.
Some tricks and tips for this ability:
- Her Barrier Shield’s orientation can be changed by moving the crosshair.
- The barrier is self-healing if you keep out of fights long enough, regenerating 85 health after being down for two seconds.
Ability: Shield Bash
Description: When the Shield is deployed, Brigitte can dash forward and stun enemy heroes.
This ability is a great way to make up for Overwatch 2 Brigitte’s pitiful movement speed. After taking the 30% speed reduction into account for using her shield, her total movement is increased by 470%.
While you can use this to escape from threatening fights, Shield Bash is a great way to get aggressive. The reason why Brigitte is so hated among Tracer, Genji, and D.Va players is that this skill can stun them for enough time to either cancel their Dash/ Rocket Boost, which is used for escape, or to cancel incoming attacks. Either way, after being stunned, these characters usually die a quick death at the hands of the entire enemy team.
Some tricks and tips for this ability:
- You can use this ability through enemy barriers.
- Shield Bash ignores Genji’s Reflect.
Passive Ability: Inspire
Description: Dealing damage to enemies heals nearby allies
Inspire is the only way for Brigitte to dish out consistent healing. Useful in the midst of battle, as long as she doesn’t stop swinging her Flail, then her allies within a 20-meter radius will get healing.
Sadly, this ability doesn’t do nearly enough healing as is needed, so it tends to not make a big difference when you are in hyper-aggressive fights.
Some tricks and tips for this ability:
- It’s easy to get distracted by dealing damage to enemies, be sure to also use healing abilities like Repair Pack to aid teammates.
- This applies a heal-over-time, so allies don’t need to stay in the 20-meter radius continually.
Ultimate: Rally
Description: Brigitte moves faster and provides all nearby allies with overhealth that lasts until enemy damage removes it.
Rally is best used when gearing in for a big attacking push or defending against a last-minute enemy attack. In Overwatch 2, Brigitte dishes out 100 health to every ally within an 8.5-meter radius, so it’s a good idea to group up first.
While it may not seem like much, this extra healing can be the deciding factor in an all-out brawl.
Some tricks and tips for this ultimate:
- This is best used when allies are gathered around a payload.
- Make sure to tell your allies before using this; communication is key.
Overwatch 2 Brigitte: gameplay breakdown
Brigitte has had a turbulent ride since her introduction to Overwatch in 2017. Being too overpowered for her own good, this character succeeded in creating a mass exodus from the game. Players became frustrated with her exceedingly powerful abilities and counter-mechanics, which meant that her character would make it almost impossible for heroes like Tracer, Genji, and D.Va to function.
It wasn’t until some months had passed that Blizzard decided to patch her character and decrease her strength. In Overwatch 2, Brigitte has never really seen the same heights of success since. She can’t dish out a significant amount of healing, and she is one of the worst supports when it comes to consistency.
Brigitte relied heavily on her tanks and their shields in Overwatch, being designed to push forward with them and dish out healing where needed. However, now there’s only one tank and less protection in Overwatch 2, Brigitte has become much easier to pick off. She isn’t particularly fast or mobile, so without some beefed-up shielding, Brigitte can often be left vulnerable.
Her lack of speed also impacts her viability in Overwatch 2. Blizzards have specifically designed the sequel to have more high-impact and shorter brawls happening throughout their maps. This means heroes need to be able to engage and disengage quickly. Sadly, that’s not in Brigitte’s ballpark.
