When Wattson was added to Apex Legends as part of the game’s second season, most players welcomed the new defensive options she provided. In a title that’s largely about movement and reflexes, her skill set allowed folks to play a bit more cerebrally and create safe spaces within the map that her teammates can regroup in. She quickly became quite popular, though it seems that Respawn examined the way she was being used, decided she was a bit overpowered and nerfed her in the latest Voidwalker patch.
This patch made Wattson more vulnerable, taking 5% more damage to her health from all attacks. Her Ultimate, Interception Pylon was also downgraded so that she can only place one pylon at a time rather than three. They’re not dramatic changes, but they will require players to be much more careful when using her, especially when deciding how to best use Interception Pylon.
So far, reception from Wattson fans hasn’t been great, with some people claiming that these changes mean “her passive is damn near useless,” that this drastically affects her ability to hold down and that the whole point of her was to allow players to hunker down in the late game and that basically she’s dead. Or, as Redditor DocMettey puts it:
“They… sniff they…. they butchered our girl! She was only 22! Her Papa will never be proud of her again now that she can only place one Ultimate.”
Other players have pointed out that while she may have been nerfed, she’s still a very strong character. A 5% damage increase isn’t the end of the world, forcing folks to be more precise with her Ultimates isn’t a bad thing and that while many don’t see her as overpowered now, that’s because they’re not playing at the highest levels where someone can dominate with her.
Based on this, I think Wattson is still a smart pick for a competitive team with good communication. The proof will be in the pudding though, so let’s see how it pans out over the next weeks as Apex Legends players adapt to these changes.
