Tomorrow marks the start of Overwatch's latest Free Weekend. And let me tell you, nothing will make hardcore players happier than an influx of new people to stomp, given that first-time players will have basically zero idea what they're doing.
With 23 heroes, too, Overwatch offers plenty of choices, not all of which are easy to jump in and play. This allows for a wide margin of error in both picks and playing that could put you on the unhappy end of a weekend supposed to inspire fun. Here is a list of heroes you should play if you've never played Overwatch before.
Best Heroes For First-Time Overwatch Players On Free Weekend
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McCree
McCree is your standard outlaw cowboy. Got one Revolver that has decent range. He can also fan the hammer to fire out all shots in rapid succession. He’s got a dive-roll and a stun grenade (flashbang).
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rnThe only thing that might trip up newer players is his ultimate ability, DeadEye. It essentially slows you down while you try to line up killing shots. But, if you use it poorly, you can be killed before even firing a shot off.
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rnBasic tips for this ultimate are to try to use it from a high-ground vantage point when you’re not the center of action and to always take the shot sooner rather than later. Just make sure you’ve lined up at least two killshots, and that’s good enough. -
Mercy
A lot of people may yell at you that your team needs a healer, and that may be the case. I would normally prefer a more experienced player as Mercy, since her role is so important, but, if you’re the only option, you better know how to do it. rn rnIn all honesty, though, her mechanics are really simple. Her main gun is a healing weapon. Point at a teammate who is low on health and left click. You’ll also be able to jump toward a given teammate and slowly glide to the ground if you’re in the air. rn rnHer ultimate also resurrects people. As long as you’re sure to resurrect more than one person, then you didn’t mess up too bad. -
Reaper
Reaper has two badass pistols that absolutely destroy tanks. He can teleport to high places to pick off snipers or get a better advantage. And if all else fails, he can go invincible for several seconds (not being able to attack) and float away while doing so.
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rnAlso, his ultimate is the simplest concept: get in the middle of everyone and press Q. This fires your weapons in a circle and wreak havoc. -
Roadhog
A lot of people are scared of Roadhog because his main ability is a skillshot hook, and your effectiveness as a Roadhog is halved if you can’t reliable land a hook. This will grab somebody from far away and bring them right to you, where you than blast them away with your huge shotgun. This can usually one-shot anyone with <250 health if you did it right.
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rnBut, even if you can’t reliably land a hook, he’s good just because he has a ton of health (600) and a self-healing ability that heals for 300.
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rnPlaying as Roadhog will also ensure you get an end-of-game medal in healing, which will give you bonus experience that will power level your hero. This progress will carry over if you elect to buy the game at any time after the Free Weekend. -
Soldier 76
The conversations of easy heroes almost start and end with this guy. He’s basically Call of Duty, the Overwatch. He has a sprint as a special ability (which no one else has), a fully automatic rifle with a grenade launcher as an alt-fire, and his ultimate ability is just auto-aim.
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rnSimple to understand, hard to mess up. He even had an AOE heal if you find yourself down on health.
