Blizzard EntertainmentOverwatch 2 has finally introduced its long-awaited Hero Ban system in Season 16, but players who main one character are finding the experience horrible.
Hero Bans have been a long time coming in OW2. Bans have been tested in the esports scene for months now, and at long last, the feature is live for everyone in ranked, regardless of skill level.
While players can hope to protect their best heroes by labeling them as “preferred” there’s no guarantee they won’t be banned, either by their own team or their opponents.
So far, just days into S16, Hero Bans have received plenty of praise with some calling it the “best addition yet”, but the same can’t be said for players who only like to play one hero.
One-trick Overwatch 2 players are hating Hero Bans
Across social media, one-trick players have voiced their salty complaints with Hero Bans and other OW2 users have reported one-tricks of throwing their games if their character is barred.
“Don’t play comp if you only know one hero especially if it’s one getting banned in a majority of games. You are hindering yourself and others on your team. I legitimately had 2 games in a row where I lost because my team’s preferred heroes got banned and they didn’t know how to play anybody else,” one said.
“I had one guy who threw the game because we banned “their Widow” even though they didn’t actually indicate they wanted to play Widow at all,” another chimed in.
Others are saddened by not being able to play their mains, with one user on a Mercy subreddit being mocked for calling the ban “oppression.”
This user got harassed to the point where they deleted their post entirely, but oppression isn’t an entirely inaccurate way to describe what’s happening.
While people should be able to play more than one hero, it’s pretty much only Mercy mains who are getting discriminated against because of the hero they want to play.
One Mercy player got immediately target banned by her teammates when she hovered the hero, with them immediately judging her based solely on the character she selected.
This has resulted in retaliation against them, with some Mercy mains choosing to immediately pick the hero the other support player was hovering in order to get back at them for choosing the hero they wanted to play.
However, target banning someone who only plays that character is a valid strategy.
OW2 Twitch streamer Jay3 showed off the heroes he banned in his first game, explaining that it was best for one-tricks to learn how to flex.
“I feel evil but you know, gotta learn more than one hero,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with playing a hero that you enjoy and love. But when it comes to comp, be ready to flex.”
“I just hate 1 tricking. I think in a game where there are 40 characters. You should play more than 1. You can have a favorite, sure. But know how to play others.”
Oh trust me, I don’t hate mercy I just hate 1 tricking. I think in a game where there’s 40 characters. You should play more than 1. You can have a favorite, sure. But know how to play others.
— LG Jay3 (@Jay3OW) April 24, 2025
The developers say that hero bans will help them determine which characters need some adjustments balance-wise and are planning to share details with the community at a later date.
Whether we see any further changes to the system, such as a proper protect phase remains to be seen, but for now, one-tricks may want to consider learning another hero in quick play or the new Stadium mode in the event they’re unable to play what they’re most comfortable with.
