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Overwatch hero guide: Hanzo

Guide by Staff Contributor
Published on

A mid-range sniper, Hanzo can find and kill targets even if they're hiding behind obstacles.

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Overwatch hero guide: Hanzo

Role: Defense

Hanzo is the closest you'll get to a stealth character in Overwatch. He's a sniper but his bow is only deadly at close to medium range, but various arrows make it versatile and not just for headshots.

Latest updates for Hanzo

A couple of updates for Hanzo provide some alleviations to difficulties most face while playing him. First, his movement speed is now decreased by 30% instead of 40%, and the maximum projectile speed of his arrows has been raised by 30%. Hanzo’s arrow size has also been decreased by a total of 33%.

Strong against: Bastion, Widowmaker, Torbjorn

Weak against: D.Va, Widowmaker, Tracer

Hanzo's abilities

Wall Cimb

Hold the jump button near a flat surface and Hanzo will climb it, enabling him to get height and positional advantages over the opposing team.

Storm Bow

Hanzo's weapon needs arrows to be notched and fully drawn to deal maximum damage. Anything less is really only useful if your enemy is weakened or very close for a headshot. It's not very accurate as a long-range sniping weapon, either.

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Sonic Arrows

Enemies hiding? The Sonic Arrows sends out a pulse and tags all enemies within a radius for you and your teammates to better target.

Scatter Arrow

Scatter Arrow is great for enemies hiding behind obstacles. Fire it and it splits into multiple projectiles fired out in a cone, meaning you can get more than one target at a time. It's Hanzo's most useful ability and requires practice to use properly.

Ultimate Ability: Dragonstrike

This fires a pair of spiraling dragons in a straight line, causing damage to anyone in its path and passing through walls.

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Hanzo strategy tips

  • Use Dragonstrike to force opponents out of the way and into the path/fire of another teammate.
  • Fire the Scatter Arrow at the feet of larger enemies to send all the splintered arrows up at them for massive damage.
  • Use a Sonic Arrow first to pinpoint an enemy, then immediately notch a normal arrow as an enemy rounds a corner or comes out of a building.
  • Headshots are lethal at close range and do a lot of damage. If it's Hanzo against one other hero, take an extra second to notch, fully draw back and aim for the head.

Back to Overwatch guide: best heroes, abilities and strategies for Blizzard's shooter

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