It’s finally over, we’re free. Overwatch players no longer have to live in fear, cowering from the skies in anticipation of what is essentially an AH-64 Apache appearing overhead and gunning us all down, because Jetpack Cat has been nerfed yet again.
This comes as part of Overwatch season 3’s patch notes, where Jetpack Cat has undergone some decent changes, including a reduction in the shield minor perk, a speed decrease, and crucially, a fuel regeneration penalty while carrying a target, which has been increased from 2x to 3x slower.
The latter is big news for anyone who’s fallen victim to Jetpack Cat’s ability to carry allies into enemy backlines. What started as a goofy joke graduated to a viable strat as Jetpack Cat and Bastion quickly became meta. Jetpack Cat is one of the most mobile characters in Overwatch, so she’s pretty hard to hit as is, but add a flying Bastion in the mix, which can switch to turret mode and mow down any poor soul that can’t duck for cover, and then you have a server admin-level threat.
“While Jetpack Cat’s win rate and play rates remain low, Lifeline is highly effective at higher ranks when continuously carrying certain heroes,” the patch notes explain. “Increasing the fuel regeneration penalty while carrying a target and reducing the strength of Transport Shielding weakens this strategy, while weapon improvements increase effectiveness outside of Lifeline.”
If you’re still not convinced of the sheer power of Lifeline then just look at the recent Overwatch World Cup, where teams were forced to either ban Jetpack Cat or play into the Cat and Bastion meta—it was pure chaos.
This isn’t to say Jetpack Cat has just been left in the dirt, though, as she has got a couple of buffs. Damage and healing from Biotic Pawjectiles has been increased from 4 to 4.5 per pellet and the Headbutt major perk has had its damage increased from 30 to 50.
I’m not opposed to making Jetpack Cat stronger in these areas; so far my biggest issue with her has been her ridiculous mobility and the Lifeline ability, both of which have been addressed to some extent. Although, I’ll still probably ban her in competitive matches—I don’t want any of that smoke.
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