Of course, no Heroes of the Storm update would be complete without some balance changes . Chromie and Tracer all saw buffs and nerfs to a few of their talents. Johanna and Zul’jin did as well, though the former’s Shield Glare had its mana cost increased, while the latter’s You Want Axe? trait was improved. Auriel, on the other hand, received buffs to her Bestow Hope trait and several of her talents that will aid her healing, damage, and survivabil

Though Blizzard's multi-franchise MOBA has technically been in maintenance mode since July 2022, Heroes of the Storm suddenly received a balance patch over a year later in September 2023. Every few months since then, Heroes of the Storm has consistently rolled out new patches, with the seventh such update arriving in early December 2

Battleborn, for all of the chaos on screen at any given moment, suffers from some notable framerate issues on PC, even on my high-end machine. This is something that has been reported on in mass across the Steam discussion boards, and while it certainly isn't game-breaking, these dips in framerate are extremely noticable after a buttery smooth Overwatch session. Add this to the fact that the weaponry in Battleborn lacks the tactile punch of that in Overwatch, and the former starts to feel like the less polished product. Shooting in Overwatch feels tighter and more responsive than it does in Battleborn, which is kind of a shame considering that you end up firing way more bullets and projectiles in Gearbox's shooter. On top of all of this, Overwatch is the better looking game, with Battleborn sporting noticable aliasing and texture blurriness, even on completely maxed out settings.

Besides the size of this update, the rate at which this Heroes of the Storm update arrived is particularly noteworthy. Since they resumed in 2022, most of these updates have had two to three months between them, and about a month between the patch's arrival on the Public Test Realm and the live release. Not only did this patch arrive faster than usual – less than two months after the last Heroes of the Storm update – but it also came the same month as it hit the PTR. While this could mean nothing, Heroes of the Storm ’s 10-year anniversary is on June 2, leading many fans to wonder if the increased attention could herald something big in store for the MOBA's big milest

My single biggest complaint when it comes to Battleborn is how annoying all of its characters are to me. Now, this is about as subjective as it gets, and I've had discussions with players that find every inch of its universe charming as can be. To me, it often feels like Gearbox is trying way too hard to be funny, which results in Battleborn's characters all seeming like that annoying guy at your office who thinks he's a stand-up comedian. The fact that the While Overwatch doesn't have a core campaign, there is definitely a fair amount of lore to be discovered by sheer observation, and every character manages to nail that ever so important balance between charm and obnoxiousness. It says something that there is a dedicated way to turn off Battleborn's dialogue; after all, in a game whose dialogue is exceptionally well done, shouldn't including this option not be a possibility?

If you can go out of your way to make something (that could be deduced as) rather bonkers -- knowing full well when and where to walk that perilous line between genuine and forced humour -- you can at least walk away knowing players will credit you with falling into the "they made it even though they didn’t have to" sub-section. And believe me, alongside "surprisingly addictive" mini-games, 2D backgrounds and actual reflective mirrors, humour is another opportune asset that can go a long, long way to appreciating what said game actually stood for at the given time. Away from the regular check-list on what specifically to critique. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with having a game that's entirely, unapologetically dry, perhaps perceived initially as far from comedy as one can get -- narratively or otherwise. But, ironically, this is why a "one last thing"-type of satire or bit on the side, works far better than when it's already wrestling for attention amidst a game that not for one second takes itself seriously and is instead its own fuel for fun and folly. Even if it is for the intent to promote something else entirely (video game-related or not) I will commend any developer who’s willing, for example, to throw together the good guys, the bad guys and the in-between guys into some surreal comedy skit-meets-daily life send-off to a game’s campaign .

Overwatch's Tracer is a perfect example of why Blizzard has created a game with a more appetizing personality than Gearbox. With a press of the E key, Tracer has the ability to warp back to a previous position, restoring the health and ammo she had at that point. Around half of the time one utilizes Tracer's Recall skill, she'll use her adorable English twang to drop the line, "Ever get that feeling of déjà vu?" Now, this is the type of quip that could be obnoxious if delivered imperfectly or Overwatchtactics.com too frequently, but it actually winds up being wonderfully charming every time. Combine this with her shrills of joy whenever she uses her Blink skill to warp around the map, and it's clear why Blizzard has made Overwatch's first hero the face of the franchise. With Battleborn, each character feels like the cheesiest character in a Borderlands game, and they never seem to be quiet. Add this to the fact that curse words are bleeped out, despite the fact that they're used frequently, and it often feels like Gearbox missed the mark on Battleborn's personality, which is a shame considering that its visual style is so striking and engaging.