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Overwatch 2's Stadium is a gameplay mode first introduced in Season 16, enabling players to participate in a fast-paced alternative in which they create custom hero builds. During a match of Stadium, every player will lock in a hero of their choice, then play a series of mini rounds to earn Stadium Cash. Stadium Cash is then used to purchase and sell items to pair with unlockable Powers you can pick from every other round.
However, knowing where heroes currently stand in the state of OW2's Stadium's meta will be incredibly helpful, as there is no counter-swapping, which means that players have to lock in a hero for the entire match. This means that hero selection and overall team composition is key, as you will want to give yourself the best possible shot at having a good match. Here's a look at where each hero currently stands in Overwatch 2's Stadium mode.
In Overwatch 2's Season 16, there are currently seventeen heroes available on the roster. This includes a split of seven DPS, five Tanks, and five Support heroes, as listed below:
Here is where each one of these heroes stands in the current Stadium lineup:
S Tier Overwatch 2 Stadium Heroes
Overwatch 2's frejaCredits: Blizzard
Freja
If there's one character who comes to mind as S Tier in the entirety of Season 16's Stadium, it is most certainly none other than Freja. After being added mid-way through the season in an update patch, Freja immediately kicked off an uproar from fans; she was incredibly strong to the point where it was overpowered, and any team running a good Freja had a significant upper-hand.
Heroes with flying capabilities have proven themselves to be very strong in Stadium, and paired with Freja's kit of rapid-damage and AOE slow/explosives, she soon became a problem. After multiple nerfs and even removing some of her key hero Powers, Freja still remains in one of the top spots due to the sheer potential of what this hero is capable of in Stadium, as well as how strong she can be in third-person perspective with her slowed shot.
Juno
Juno's Torpedo build quickly became one of the most popular and notable Stadium builds, as it is notably strong at almost any gameplay level or Stadium Rank. Even following the changes, this build is still ridiculously good at both confirming kills and providing heals for your team when played correctly, as you can continue to refresh your cooldowns and reduce the time between them for every ally/enemy hit with your Torpedoes.
In addition to this, Juno has some of the best mobility in the game on Support, and Stadium enables you to customize this even more. As mobility comes in extremely handy due to Stadium utilizing a series of mini-rounds across several different maps and game modes, Juno is almost never a bad pick to have on your team due to the sheer value her kit provides on its own and the potential numbers a good Juno player can put out across an entire match.
Cassidy
Cassidy is, without a doubt, one of the strongest DPS heroes in Stadium, coming with some ridiculous build progressions that, in the right hands, can be a complete game-changer. From builds that significantly buff his survivability to the likes of progressions that reward aim with critical hit effects or even Tank-slaying Fan the Hammer builds, Cass has an extremely potent kit in terms of damage potential, impact, and farming for Stadium Cash to purchase increasingly expensive powers, making yourself even stronger.
A Tier Overwatch 2 Stadium Heroes
Kiriko
Kiriko initially found her footing in a very steady, strong spot since Stadium was released and has remained there ever since. Her Suzu builds are incredibly strong and, when used with the right timing, can completely negate key enemy plays and cooldowns. In addition to this, when building with the right Items and Powers, you can collect huge bursts of Ult Charge from a single Suzu (which you will likely have more than one of thanks to Powers), meaning you have your Kitsune Rush Ultimate in almost every team fight. This brings massive value to the battlefield, as her Ultimate is brilliant both offensively and defensively, often turning the outcome of a fight completely.
Reinhardt
As of Season 16, Reinhardt is in a great spot when it comes to OW2 Stadium, largely due to the sheer flexibility of his builds and playstyle. Rein has the capability to play hyper-aggressively with the likes of his melee lifesteal builds and can provide great cover to absorb key cooldowns and protect his allies with his shield, making him another really solid all-rounder in most team comps and even into pretty much any other Tank opposition, thanks to unique powers amplifying swing speed and effects, adding perks to his shield, and even reducing knockback from the likes of Lucio Boop, D.Va boostes, and Orisa Javelin.
Zarya
Zarya is yet again another very powerful hero who has remained in a great spot since release - even to the point where she has at times been the core frustration of Stadium players. Following all of the various changes and patches in Stadium since release, Zarya still stands on solid ground with great frontline presence, some very powerful bubble and beam builds, and yet again, some great utility with a kit that fits almost into any lineup.
Junker Queen
Junker Queen has remained in a very solid spot since the release of Stadium. She can bring massive value off her shout alone with the right build setup, and she is overall a very consistent Tank pick - generally fitting well into most team compositions and build lineups. Junker Queen can use Shout to heal her team while also damaging her allies, and then the Carnage axe swing is brilliant for sustain through bleed damage to the enemy and lifesteal to JQ. With good timing on the cycling of these abilities, she can be used to apply constant high pressure to the enemy frontline.
Soldier: 76
Soldier has been a strong all-rounder hero since Stadium's release, offering incredible flexibility and creativity that can be utilized in his builds to adapt to your playstyle. From making up for the lack of mechanical aim with lock-on mini-Visors and extra homing Rockets, to even combining Powers and Items to deal damage by doing nothing other than Sprinting around the battlefield, Soldier: 76 has a lot to offer. He can even have his value amplified further with the likes of Juno's Speed ring to boost him onto and out of flanking routes or Mercy's damage boost to pump up his damage numbers and make use of his lock-on capabilities.
Mercy
As Stadium continues to evolve with patch updates, tweaks, and changes, Mercy has fallen into a very good spot in the Stadium meta. She has some very good builds, paired with the ability to enhance key players with Damage Boost - strengthening the likes of an already oppressive Freja, Cassidy, or Soldier player. She fits into nearly any team comp and generally provides great heals in team fight situations, as well as improved utility in terms of Resurrect and Valkyrie. Mercy can even be played aggressively in situations with such combinations, particularly ones combined with her simultaneous Damage/Healing on Valkyrie that makes her pretty much unkillable during this time.
Reaper can find a lot of value in the backline eliminator playstyle thanks to additional Powers and Items that let him fly and/or recover HP while in Wraith, stack weapon speed or power on hits, and even cast mini Death Blossoms on other abilities. These can be hit-or-miss, so where Reaper truly brings a lot of value in Stadium is from high damage/high-speed Tank-busting builds. Through this approach, he is capable of single-handedly applying enough pressure to even completely shut down Tanks (particularly Brawl Tanks), enabling his team to overcome them and often turn a fight.
Genji
Genji managed to hold a solid spot in the current Stadium meta, proving to be a very strong pick in the right hands without facing some of the concerns and 'overpowered' complaints that other DPS have struggled with. While he has received a couple of tweaks, his build utility is still incredibly strong and helps to really make his dive playstyle more viable through additional buffs/passives/ability effects. Players also have quite a few different build directions they can go depending on what is needed, such as a Dragonblade build, Melee sustain/survability build, and Swift Strike build.
Lucio
Lucio started off in a very strong spot but has unfortunately fallen a little bit due to nerfs to some of the key requirements of his most viable builds. However, he still works brilliantly in many team comps, such as a double speed comp with Juno and a brawl Tank such as Reinhardt or Junker Queen (especially if they run lifesteal). In this case, between you and your Juno, you can just boost your Tank in and out of safety to provide value, amping up heals at the right time to sustain through the fight. Additionally, Lucio is still one of the best peel heroes in the game, so you can also provide a lot of value by denying pressure from your allies by booping enemies away or off the map and displacing them from teamfights.
Mei
Mei is a character who provides utility to the team fight through her CC and Slows, with approaches that involve spamming mini-Blizzards and Slows from other abilities and keeping herself alive with Freeze. Where Mei tends to struggle is with the opponent's flexibility to work around this with their own builds. Unfortunately, following a few nerfs to some of these key abilities, Mei is just in a bit of a weaker spot than where she initially started, with other heroes rising to meet (and even surpass) her in terms of a viable pick.
D.Va
D.Va had a bit of a rocky start to Stadium and was arguably one of the worst characters in the game at release. However, she has improved quite a bit since then with patch changes and new builds emerging. There is quite a bit that can be done with her builds to help play against or around primary counters and some huge defensive value in Matrix builds, letting you absorb heavy amounts of damage on a per-round basis.
Orisa
While Orisa isn't the most consistent pick, you can still get some value out of her with the right build and an approach that focuses on harassing the enemy and applying pressure rather than going for kills and lighting up your stats. Survivability builds on Orisa work quite well, especially with the likes of her stun from her Spear and her Javelin Spin pushback, opening up opportunities for your allies to confirm kills.
Moira
Moira has improved a bit since Stadium's release, with some very interesting builds emerging across Season 16. In terms of options for Moira, she already has some of the strongest burst healing capabilities in OW2 and thrives when her team fights together in close proximity to make the most of those heals. Stadium can push these numbers even higher with a heal-focused build for maximum output, primarily with a focus on her Orbs. In addition to this, she also has great Fade and Biotic Grasp buffs/Powers/Items to consider that provide Moira with more self-sustain and survivability, therefore keeping her in the fight longer to pump heals.
C Tier Overwatch 2 Stadium Heroes
Ashe
Unfortunately, while Ashe does have a couple of viable Stadium builds that can work well, such as Burn, Coach Gun, or Ult-farming B.O.B. Jr., she generally struggles in comparison to other DPS heroes on the roster. The other hitscans tend to have better damage output and build flexibility, which can put Ashe behind in Stadium Cash and therefore hinder her build.
In addition to this, Ashe is a sniper hero, meaning she needs to hold her ground and position very carefully, as she lacks the mobility other heroes have. In the chaos of Stadium, lack of mobility can often be a huge factor to consider, as there is a lot going on with the likes of Lucio/Juno's speed and flanks, Soldier and Cassidy's hitscan and flank potential making an unfavorable 1v1, and the capability of enemy Tanks such as Rein, Zarya, and JQ being in a strong spot to deny Ashe the space she needs to operate at full force.
Ana
Much like Ashe, Ana isn't necessarily in an awful spot in Stadium, and her Perks/Items are very fun and strong to use. Unfortunately, with Stadium being so chaotic and fast-paced, Ana can often struggle to keep up due to her sheer lack of mobility as a sniper Support. With the rounds being so short, even one death on Ana can be critical, as she takes so much longer than the likes of a Juno (Speed Ring), Lucio (Speed Boost), Mercy (GA), and even Moira (Fade) to get back to the team fight and help. However, if you are able to live undetected in your team's backline and heal uninterrupted from afar, you can pull out some great plays with her Nano/Sleep/Nade builds and high healing output.
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