Resurrect is one of the most controversial ability in all of Overwatch. We studied the impact of Resurrect over patches, and found that the Mercy rework completely changed the impact of the ability.   Patch 1.19 nerfed Resurrect while using Valkyrie.  The figure above shows the impact of Resurrect per match - Resurrect has been nerfed to lows we've never seen before.  Recall that immediately after the rework, Resurrects per match used to be 15 at Grandmaster - now it is only 6. For those of you keeping score, that is nearly 1/3 of the previous number. Without the extra charge and near invincibility due to instant Resurrect and lightning fast Guardian Angel.  Even more striking is the lack of skill-based differences between tiers we're used to seeing.  It used to be that higher tiers would get more value out of Resurrect - that is no longer the case as nearly every tier gets a set 6 Resurrects per match.  For those players that wanted Resurrect out of the game - it appears as though you (almost completely) got your wish.


So since Resurrect has been severely nerfed, what has the impact been on Mercy's viability in the current meta?  Looking at winrate, we see that Mercy has tanked: her winrates are down -4% on Average.  As expected, the higher tiers have seen the worst decline, as lower tiers still generally use Mercy best as a healer.

When looking at overall Winrate, the picture starts to look even worse.  Mercy used to have some of the highest winrates in all of Overwatch - reaching 54+% at Grandmaster.  Now, Mercy has the some of the lowest winrates - and second only to Ana among Supports.  We see that Lucio/Moira/Zen have much higher winrates by comparison.

Overall, the drop in winrate may be due to the fact that Mercy isn't as great as a sole main healer anymore, players haven't completely adapted to the changes, or that only stubborn Mercy players are choosing to run her even when they are losing.  Whatever the case, Mercy is no longer the standout support she once was.

Impact of the Mercy Nerf on the Support Meta

There has been a pretty big change in the support meta.  We have seen Mercy completely tank, especially at Grandmaster.  She is no longer a must pick, every other support has seen a rise in play.  The biggest boost has been to Moira, which may not be a big surprise to many players. 


Looking at total usage, we see that Mercy is the least picked support in Master and Grandmaster now.  Moira is now the most popular healer across the board, average nearly 60% usage across all tiers of play.  Ana is also seeing substantial play - though this seems unwarranted given the shield tanks in the meta and her abysmal winrate.  The support meta otherwise looks quite balanced