Tracer Overwatch 2 – Everything you need to know

There are 35 different heroes that players can pick from in Overwatch 2. Each hero has their own unique personality and playstyle, including their own special abilities and weapons. In addition, every hero falls into one of three different roles to help differentiate them in battle. These roles are tanks that can defend their team, supports to heal their allies and DPS that can quickly deal damage. Knowing which hero to pick can greatly increase a team’s chance of success. Tracer is a DPS hero that can blink and reposition herself to make it hard for the enemy to hit her. Here is everything that players need to know about using Tracer in Overwatch 2.

Who is Tracer in Overwatch 2?

Tracer is a DPS hero that dual-wields rapid-firing pistols and can quickly get in and out of an engagement by using her Blink and Recall abilities. Because of this, she is very good at dishing out punishment and retreating and can cut down less armored heroes with ease. Those who are looking for a quick and agile hero will find Tracer to be a solid choice that can lead their team to a win in Overwatch 2.

Note: You can read about all of the Overwatch 2 characters here.

DPS heroes were reworked in Overwatch 2

Overwatch 2 has changed a few things from the original Overwatch, however, one of the biggest changes was to team composition. In the original Overwatch, teams consisted of 6 players each. In Overwatch 2, teams are now composed of 5 players. This means that each team has one less tank. To counterbalance this, each role received a special passive ability to help them out in combat. For DPS heroes such as Tracer, this was a 25% movement speed and reload speed bonus for a few seconds after scoring an elimination. Further eliminations do not stack the buff but do reset it. For an already fast and agile hero like Tracer, this can make a huge difference in battle.

Tracer’s abilities in Overwatch 2

Tracer plays mostly the same in Overwatch 2 as she did in the original, and because of that, players will feel right at home with her this time around. The biggest change to Tracer is that she had the damage of her Pulse Pistols reduced from 6 to 5 per hit. However, with the way armor now works in Overwatch 2, she will now actually deal more damage to heavily armored characters, such as tanks. This means while her damage overall is slightly down, she will be more effective as a damage dealer overall.

Pulse Pistols

The Pulse Pistols are Tracer’s signature weapons. She holds one in each hand and fires these short-range weapons at a rate of 20 rounds per second. At close ranges, these pistols can do a maximum of 5 damage per bullet, falling off to 1.8 at longer ranges. This means that players who choose to play as Tracer should not try to duel at longer ranges, and should use her mobility to get in close. The Pulse Pistols have a magazine capacity of 40 rounds and take 1 second to reload.

Blink

As Tracer’s primary movement ability, Blink allows her to move swiftly across the battlefield. Blink can hold a maximum of 3 charges, which can all be used in quick succession if necessary. Charges each have a 3-second cooldown and are constantly refreshing in combat.

When Tracer uses Blink, she will teleport in the direction she is facing up to 7.5 meters away. This ability can be used not only to close gaps to deal damage up close, but also to get away from enemies if things start to go south. Careful use of Blink is one of the most important abilities for any Tracer player to learn and its mastery can cause a player to become a really slippery target for the enemy team.

Recall

When Tracer uses Recall, she can rewind time backward up to 3 seconds. The recall will move Tracer to where she was 3 seconds before, in addition to restoring her HP to the highest level within the last 3 seconds. Tracer’s Pulse Pistols will also be fully reloaded during Recall. This is great for getting some hits in on a high-risk target before moving back out of harm’s way. In addition, it can be used to escape a bad situation and let the player reassess their next actions.

Casting the ability takes Tracer .91 seconds for her to finish Recalling, and she is immune during the duration of the Recall. Recall has a cooldown of 12 seconds.

Pulse Bomb

Tracer’s Ultimate Ability is Pulse Bomb. When used, Tracer will throw a large bomb that can stick onto any surface or enemy that it lands on. After a brief delay of 1 second, the bomb will explode, causing up to 350 points of damage to a directly stuck enemy. The actual stick of the bomb itself also causes 5 damage to an enemy. In addition, Tracer can also be damaged by her own Pulse Bomb, which can eliminate her if she gets too close. For this reason, Tracer should take care when using the ability. 

Used properly, Tracer can move swiftly into a group, stick a priority target and get out before the target explodes, potentially taking others with it. Because of this, Tracer can single-handedly win team fights if she can take out tanks or supports with this ability.

Tips for playing Tracer in Overwatch 2

Tracer is an amazing hero for dealing with quick single-target damage. She is able to pick out priority targets and get in and eliminate them and then promptly Recall before an enemy can even react. Because of this, players should aim to use their high mobility and large burst damage to take out foes without getting hit. However, even if they do get hit, they can use the Recall ability to heal up or Blink towards a support or health pack before returning to the fray.

Tracer struggles against enemies that can slow her down or snare her, however, and is weak against large burst damage or close-range weapons that deal a large amount of damage per shot. Therefore, she should stick to rushing in and out of fights, picking out targets and eliminating them, rather than trying to go toe-to-toe with groups.

Pick Tracer to rush to victory in Overwatch 2

Tracer is one of the most mobile characters in Overwatch 2, and because of this, players can use it to their advantage. While she is not the best at long-range combat, she is able to cover ground quickly and take opponents by surprise. Players who want to get things done quickly can pick Tracer and help their team rush towards victory in Overwatch 2.