Evolution of Symmetra - Overwatch Meta Archives

[@huy4957]

Actual Nostalgia seeing both photon shield, sheild generator, and beam lockon

[@bobbyboo22_]

I miss old sym i honestly like old sym better new sym is just tp whole team on point and repeat

[@dukebasti]

The photon barrier and shield generator are my true misses from early ow.

[@zoeyamon935]

I remember how much beam lock-on infuriated me. I couldn’t hit her and she could and AD spam (yeah I was not good, I had < 500 sr in s4 lmao)

[@galacticpotata8192]

@@bobbyboo22_plus old symmetra would work very well in overwatch 2

[@cadehill816]

I feel old realizing that this was just 6-7 years ago now…..

[@tailgrowth]

The thing I miss the most about the old Symmetra is hearing Junkrat yell out "I'm getting the feeling they have a shieeeeeeeld generator!"

[@Nkodtb]

lmao omg i havent heard that in years

[@lilmrscutsie4524]

omggg this gave me nostalgia. its crazy how i randomly bought overwatch in 2017 and ive seen it change sm over the years.

[@MarkusAT]

Symmetra is one of the game defining Overwatch characters. Only thing I really miss from the old Sym is the bunker busting secondary fire

[@Drillusion]

@Mr Jayboo Lol thats 100% because of nostalgia. Everything was more fun back then because it was new. If New Sym was the original Sym and original Sym was the new Sym, you would say the exact same thing. Sym objectively better now because of her TP (that can be used more than just a spawn TP)

[@BlueySchiffer]

@@Drillusion I don't think so. From 2.0 to 3.0 Sym she was brought way more in line with other characters i.e. she lost quite a bit of her uniqueness (though she's still one of the more unique heroes, imo) That she's better or not meta-wise is not relevant in the slightest. I like both but for different reasons.

[@aaarrriic]

@@Drillusion I agree with Mr. Jayboo, sym feels way less fun now.

[@bobbyboo22_]

@Mr Jayboo same new sym is just tp on point and repeat boring LIKE I LOVED OLD SYM so much like ugh But new sym is kinda fun when u get that high beam

[@nahaight1373]

@Mr Jayboo what???? Old sym was so boring and didnt even fit in overwatch, she was a campy hero that didnt really fit

[@ashton7742]

I really liked it when she could throw a shield that always moved forward

[@fendour_]

Have you ever heard of Sigma

[@bobbyboo22_]

@@fendour_ ew

[@bobbyboo22_]

@@fendour_ sigmaballs

[@SmearyBridges]

@@fendour_ where do you think they got the idea for his shield? Also Sigma can stop his shield. Symmetras kept going like a projectile.

[@Ajoi14]

@@fendour_ my guy

[@Amalgam03]

I think the worst part of the Symmetra rework is that you can no longer pick up debris and loose objects

[@vassertank]

hi i’m an OW2 player, could you explain?

[@Amalgam03]

@@vassertank okay, so back in the early days of overwatch 1, Her primary attack doesn’t actually activate the beam right away, instead causing a field of energy to form in front of her gun that will turn into the beam once you lock onto an enemy. This first part of the attack had the bonus effect of being able to pick up loose objects and debris and lets you carry them around. This has zero gameplay functionality whatsoever, but it was fun to mess around with, and it added to Symmetra’s perfectionist personality to be able to clean up like that. It also had the effect of letting you pick up the basketball in the King of the Hill spawns and get easy dunks

[@vassertank]

@@Amalgam03 thanks

[@digojez]

@@Amalgam03 Is it like the pick up beam thing I've seen in Garry's mod clip?

[@Absorbant]

​@@digojez pretty much

[@sakitoshi]

don't forget the perfect strategy of going no limits and having a team of 6 symmetra's with 650hp thanks to shield generator stacking.

[@zivi3862]

And then they go pharah mercy and Sombra

[@Amalgam03]

No, the strat was 5 symmetra and 1 torb for the armor

[@LiveActionKimPossibleRufus]

Just realized photon barrier is certainly where the development of sigma's shield came from

[@gustavobulhoes14]

As someone who came recently to the game, it’s always very fun to understand the process and difficulties to making the heroes to what they are today! Awesome job, guys!

[@etlimenemen]

Hey man, welcome to OW, the platform where you lose your mind.

[@M9Divine]

I am sorry for your loss.

[@Karthikkun2805]

Same

[@jaredwii123]

F

[@thenozar7603]

I think people also forget that Sym's beam regenerates ammunition while building up charge when firing against a shield. This is subtle but very meaningful, it means you should always spam shields when you don't have a better target, as you'll never really just be depleting ammo and have to reload.

[@emanuelevigo9864]

I really really liked that function and I'm not finding pleasure in the fact that Blizzard completely removed it in Overwatch 2, I mean, she has 100 total Ammo again, but I really enjoyed melting shields :(

[@saconner9145]

@@emanuelevigo9864 because there is only one tank now, Symmetra’s shield busting power may have been too powerful during playtesting

[@emanuelevigo9864]

@@saconner9145 That makes sense.

[@oversizedmochalatte2607]

Sucks how’s it’s gone now :(( I used it all the time

[@LukaLolly]

@@oversizedmochalatte2607it’s back now!

[@dilpickle96]

the thing I miss most from old symmetra was junkrat's "looks like they got a s h i e e e l d generatah"

[@inzane0ne]

That became an inside joke with my friend group that lasted long after she lost the ultimate. It's still funny. It was only Junkrat and he wouldn't stop saying it.

[@FurryBoykissser]

"i HaVe A fEeLiNg ThEy HaVe A sHiElD gEnErAtOr"

[@alien-ann]

Oml he dragged it out so long xp

[@Amalgam03]

What I miss is that you can no longer pick up debris or the basketball for free goals

[@kosmosfan01]

This is a great video. When they put Sym back in support for the experimental, I was baffled on how she was able to help her team other than her shield generator ult because I only knew bit and pieces of her older versions. She couldn't heal her team and making her turrets be the only thing to do that was so awkward. I don't know how anyone thought it was a good idea to give her a lock on originally but seeing people grab the bodies is pretty funny 😆 I really like Sym as the best counter to double shield and if you are able to get to beam lvl 3, the microwaving is so satisfying. I still remember when Sym was starting to become a great pick against the meta and Blizzard nerfed her only a few weeks later despite her being such a low pick.

[@d0v1d4realz2]

I'd love if her beam could grab onto the bodies again, loved doing that before lol

[@sweethistortea]

@Mr Jayboo I started playing Overwatch when Symmetra was at her 2.0 state, and I still main her in 3.0. In my opinion she’s still unique and fun to play, she just needs a bit more help from her team when making a push at times.

[@peew1020]

@Mr Jayboo Well she's useful now, old sym was trash.

[@lulu.9732]

@Mr Jayboo no, she was not

[@lulu.9732]

@Mr Jayboo tracer ult was one of her biggest counters

[@noahdaglio9362]

I remember playing Symmetra when she was classified as a support, always doing so on Defense game modes. My match made teammates would yell at me to switch, until I teleported the whole team back to the point after a near wipe and saving the game for us.

[@RandomRon005]

I played Symmetra since Beta. Sym fit my playstyle of essentially strategist & controlling the map. Sym 2.0 was honestly my favorite & I felt she had more tools that could be utilized. - Primary: Never cared for the lock-on. But she was still deadly at close range. - Secondary: Was one of the only few things that could pass through barriers. So when you had a team using multiple barriers, you could possibly get a cheeky kill to a squishy behind their barriers. - Photon Barrier: So many ways it could be utilized whether it be pushing through a specific point or saving your teammate from getting killed. - Teleporter: Even though it only had 6 charges. It could be placed anywhere to get back from spawn quickly. It could essentially be used as a Mass Rez to save a point. - Shield Gen: Having 75 extra regenerable health in a certain area came in handy in many situations & sometimes saved you. I feel like they could've done more to expand the role of a support. But you always had the Sym cycle looking seemingly powerful, getting nerfed to oblivion so bad they had to redesign her character.

[@RickySama240]

Same here. Played since the beta and my favorite version of Sym was 2.0

[@bwebbzw264]

Petition to just bring back sym 2.0 please!

[@ruga-ventoj]

Loved 2.0 she became an off tank like Mei with her flying barrier and utility. If they wanted to buff Symmetra, all they needed to do was lean into her hard light shielding. Make the Barrier lock in the sky. (I know they did that for Sigma, but they should have given it to Symmetra first) Give her a passive that shields or barrier heal faster near her. Have her deal more damage against barriers and shields. Or something else. On a tangent, they should have put back Defense Class when they pushed Role selection and made it a flex role between the three roles and substitute one of pairs. That way there isn't 17 offense guys to the 8 tanks and 7 healers.

[@heavymudkiplover]

It's really strange that they stopped diversifying the support role but continued it with tanks. We got Ball as a more DPS oriented off tank to fit with Dva and Hog but never a utility support like Sym. Honestly would love a rework to Lucio where he just goes heavy on the speed boost and shields and dropped the healing

[@AlyxTremblay]

I hope they return to the idea of a support with a turret/turrets(like torb or sym) in the future, it's a really interesting concept. Maybe not something that does damage but something that slows like mei primary fire or heals like mercy beam? They did at one point(a very long time ago in OW1) tease a Sym rework to return her to the support role and have her turrets heal instead of damage. Now, I don't think they should follow through with that(and I'm 99% sure they decided against it) but it is an interesting idea.

[@lanadelrey6613]

I do miss her in the support role, she was my second most played support & then she became a DPS and I barely touched her again 🥲

[@nureha-samapower6672]

Ye same can't really pick her anymore since damage Qs are 10-20mins long

[@huhjanus]

can't believe lana del rey was a sym main

[@lanadelrey6613]

@@huhjanus she’s THE best, an icon 😌

[@KarloStars]

I mained sym since the beginning of the game and I really loved V.1 & V.2 however I could never really adjust my playstyle to V.3 so I stopped playing her all together plus I role queue support only and don't feel like playing DPS just to play her and have people get mad when I'm not as good with other heros. I loved giving each team member their shields and keeping track of when they died so I could re-shield them but I also love the photon shield, it saved my butt so many times.

[@timwolfel659]

I also liked the first 2 versions the most. I also maimed sym since the beginning and I think shield gen was a nice ult and the old teleport was not as bad. Also that lock on was gone, was not a big problem to me. The current state of sym was the reason for me switching of her for maining other heroes.

[@Thiccems69]

bring old symm back Sadge

[@crazyduckthing1210]

It is a crime that Sym-Bastion was not mentioned once.

[@inzane0ne]

My favorite overwatch memory is probably from the 1st day of Symmetra's 1st major rework. We were 6 stacking in quickplay on Hollywood defense and our friend Doc decided to try the character first. He set up all 6 turrets by the door. As soon as the match started he started laughing hysterically. We couldn't get a word out of him. We just kept going "what? What is it?" Then he put down his shield generator right in front of all of us. The enemy team weren't even at the choke yet.

[@RickySama240]

I've been waiting for this video since the Evolution of Sombra one. I've played Symmetra ever since 2016 and has definitely changed a lot over the years!

[@naseb79]

She’s probably the most battle defining hero (with her teleporter) other than brig

[@O-01-45]

The thing I miss the most about old Sym was being able to turn the enemy's dead bodies into puppets with the beam. I may or may not have a problem.

[@jrams4145]

It's worth noting the Dallas fuel brawl style used this year of engaging fights from teleporters beyond the first fight on koth maps, it was pretty key to a lot of their brawl wins

[@CassCat69]

rush and the dallas coaches are genius

[@LegendScrims]

Great video! Used to 1 trick sym, favorite version was the lock on beam and the photon barrier you threw out, using it to stop a flash bang and then just winning the 1v1 there was also a lot of spawn camp potential with sym. Setting up some turrets in spawn and killing a squishy pretty much won you a fight cause they would be gone for so long. Thanks for making this love the Akshon esports videos!

[@drakath5727]

Favorite state was the second one. While I do agree the 3rd one was a healthy change I still miss just being able to mow through entire teams singlehandedly for the equivalent of a 6 man rezz 30 seconds into the match.

[@YellowNinja]

I'm still extremely bitter than 2.0 never got a single balance change. She was underpowered yes, but with some changes she could have been viable. Unfortunately 2.0 got trashed and instead we got the discount zarya beam.

[@llumas975]

Symmetra was never in the defense category. Her second rework was the same patch that combined the two dps roles

[@NotGahruvey]

Ahh the teleporter off the cliff. Brings back memories

[@StorminNormin411]

Symmetra support: her turrets float above her head. Enemies can attack them. The regenerate automatically. Pressing the ability will send the turrets out (they attach to walls as normal) pressing and holding this ability will call the turrets back to symmetra. This will work for DPS or healer but probably better as healer.

[@fredericabernkastel8354]

super interesting to see how symmetra changed and how she started out.

[@TheRedarm75]

I only miss her gun's unique gimmick of being able to grab objects, seriously why did they remove that? it was such good fun

[@Dluxn223]

Omg I totally forgot about that 😢

[@matthewr1207]

Nuke basketball

[@baval5]

They removed it because of the disco ball of doom. You put her turrets on a basketball or similar object in spawn, picked up the ball and carried it around. Porta-carwash.

[@EnigmaEnginseer]

@@baval5 Wasn’t even that good…

[@KlyosXA]

I would like to see adjustments made to her Orb. Making it more in line like Zenyatta's would make her more viable outside of her current niche. Maybe instead of increasing in size, charging the attack makes it pierce again on top of the damage. To balance, maybe it will require a bit more time for the Orb to be charged to Maximum. Turrets need changes. As the Experimental Support Symmetra proved, fights are rarely static and constantly changing locations. Perhaps change the cooldown mechanics so Turrets only go on cooldown when destroyed. That way she can set up a constantly changing defensive fortification.

[@Khastrx]

There are pros and cons to all variations. I do miss the support Sym with the shield gen and mini barrier, man it was really something to have that and all the Torb/Brig armours stacking on top of each other.

[@melon3109]

I miss og Symmetra. I miss when Overwatch was more unique than just shooter. When Symmetra and Torb had tower defense playstyles.

[@trickytechnition733]

I think torb still has the tower defense style down. If anything the auto build to level 2 turret and new area control torb juice Ult kindaade him feel more like a tower defense as the threats keeping you away were up more and more dangerous.

[@charKT-7461]

Overwatch is the most unique hero-shooter I know of. I can't think of a game that comes close to Overwatch

[@trickytechnition733]

@@charKT-7461 paladins is pretty close, still different, but it sometimes is a game me and my friend play when we are mad at ow but want an ow style game. Some of the heros would be pretty cool if put into ow too. Like ying is basically the turret heal symmetra that was on the exp card done right

[@jackmcmorrow9397]

actually, symmetra never was in the defence category; the role was merged with Offense to make the Damage role in the same update they added her 3rd rework.

[@j-sun3821]

i really liked having her "sigma" shield and walking up with it. It was a great pair with to get in close with her primary which is the ideal one to use. I like her secondary now but it can be very punishing if you miss any shots while fighting. They put a lot of good ideas through her and it's quite good now but i think there can still be a better version.

[@acicon]

I barely recognize her now. And since she's been put as a DPS hero, I never get a chance to play her anymore either.

[@ruga-ventoj]

Really should have broke the dps back into offense and defense with the role queue and let defense be a flex pick to substitute any of the one of the roles.

[@abdelali9279]

I started playing on 2018 and it was weird for me to see screencaps of Symm as support so it was good seeing her whole history, I personally started playing when double shield became meta and used her beam to eat up those shields and then finish their tanks with her beam and iirc there was a patch that made Zarya's and Symm's beam wider and stronger, you onlly had to turn to wipe out the whole enemy team, it lasted like some days before it was removed, fun times.

[@xord5293]

I really enjoyed the first sym purely because of the fact that I could set up tps on Volskaya 2nd point attack to catch the defending enemy off guard with instant 6 man respawn.

[@timwolfel659]

I think the reason why they invented shield generator is still a current thing. I mean you don’t need teleport for example in defense as much as you probably would use shield generator. To me they should make her E switchable between both. Sym was my first main in the game and the first char I bought a golden weapon. This video reminds me on the better times of overwatch.

[@michaelc7418]

Symmetra needs some buffs because there is only 1 tank now in OW2 5v5, so her primary fire is harder to build up.

[@gnapod]

I've been a Sym main pretty much from the beginning and honestly, 2.0 was the best, it was so fun

[@AlexanderGarcia-uv7in]

She went from a fun niche (with very big potential if played well) to a boring hold M1 to go brrrrrr. She went from my most played hero back in 2.0 to my least in 3.0. Yes she is stronger (in most areas) but her playstyle was much more fun and creative on 2.0, at least for me.

[@leaffinite2001]

There is no way youre saying the auto beam lock on was less of a hold w m1 moment

[@michaelihnen4384]

@@leaffinite2001 yes actually, blasting balls at people behind their shield, quickly dropping a harassment turret just as a dps pushes on you, intercepting murder combos with your shield, and figuring when and where to fall back and set up a shield or maybe push through the flank and set up a cheeky teleporter to break the enemy backline. there was a lot more than w m1 in that version.

[@leaffinite2001]

@michaelihnen4384 thats not any more complex than she is now, also you maybe forgot about the auto lock primary that made playing her less engaging than hiding as mercy with res

[@michaelihnen4384]

@@leaffinite2001 there are at least three things on that list she can no longer do at all. i count that as a considerable shift in complexity. and the auto lock weapon was consistent, but low damage until you had accrued considerable charge time. staying alive long enough for your weapon to actually kill an opponent was also a skill you had to learn. returning to the actual point though, even with the lock on beam, you needed to do more than w m1. playing sym then was a series of strategic maneuvers that required dynamic use of abilities and weapon fire modes to actually excel. without the shield gen / teleporter there's no real defensive action, without the moving barrier there's no push aggression or sustainability, the new teleporter is only barely combat functional, and the new static barrier ult is time consuming to use and just generally not suited to a dps character. the only thing mostly the same is her turrets, which have been reduced in number so that you can no longer use them very well for scouting or trapping. all new sym has are exploding energy balls with low efficiency and w m1. you may not have found it engaging, but to me, she is the superior sym. and you may dislike the lock on mechanic for her gun, but i wonder how you feel about winston, who has that and a health pool as well.

[@mortenstenberg5452]

2.0 symm was so fun, i miss that build.

[@cromanticheer]

Great overview, but I do want to make a slight correction. Sym was never in the Defense role: she started as a Support at the launch of the game, and when she changed roles with her 3.0 rework it was to the merged "Damage" category. If you look at Sym 1.0 in relation to the other three 2016 launch Supports (Lucio, Mercy, and Zen) you can kinda get an idea of why she was considered a Support. Her Personal Barriers could be classified as a mini "preemptive heal," and Sym's Teleporter Ult served a similar role of helping allies get back to the fight faster like 2016 Mercy's Mass Rez Ult. She was an interesting experiment in an unorthodox "utility" Support, but ultimately was outclassed by all the other Supports who could actually heal. After seeing Bastion's OW2 rework I do have high hopes that Team 4 can help Symmetra find a more relevant niche. She's a really tough puzzle, though. Sym's Teleporter and Photon Barrier are iconic parts of her character now, but they feel odd to have on a "Damage" hero. Is it fine for her to be in Damage? Could she be reworked to settle in alongside the current Supports? I don't know and I don't envy the devs who have to figure a place for her.

[@ruga-ventoj]

They should have leaned into the hard light shielding with either a passive to regenerate shields hp and barriers faster and turned her shield health into a mini Lucio ult. (A high health but decaying/temporary shield hp, since the original permanent shield was troublesome) This would have got rid of the awkward position of trying to find people to reup shields if they needed it at all and would hint the connection to Lucio in game play outside of being told it with voice lines.

[@FTKComputer]

i hope in Overwatch 2 with the ability to customize it makes her more of a well rounded hero! I didnt even mind the support change it just needed some real work to make it feasible.

[@lordofthesheep173]

Another great video. I feel like you missed highlighting how with the new Sym rework - mainly the teleporter - it promotes a much more team based playstyle, with VC really allowing those strategies to thrive which is what Papa Jeff always wanted.

[@FWU100]

Its all good for Symmetra until you realize that everything on her Kit has delay or charging mechanic: M1? Charge for 4 seconds to deal real damage M2? Charge for 1 second to try dealing any damage E? Not only on a long cooldown but also has a deployment time of 2 seconds Shift? Again not only on a long cooldown but also has deployment time while also being fragile Q? A fricking Barrier that you can't place reactively, don't ever try to block a Earth Shatter with that because has dEpLoYmEnT TiMe

[@Abstractor21]

clearly not a main sym... because i think her kit is good, nothing more nothing less. i main her to master and i was almost silver so idk,

[@tuntuncortez6554]

11:03 soooo cute how they follow the leader, jumping and when the portal is made they wait in a line to go through the teleporter lol 🤣🤣🤣❤️

[@milanesadearsenico]

I loved Symmetra so much until they reworked her to have 3 turrets only. She was so good for control and area help

[@Zipperskull_]

So true, I wish she have 1 more turret.

[@ScripFing]

I just really miss the barrier, it was one of the most versatile and fun abilities in the game

[@purplewine7362]

@@Zipperskull_ learn to aim with her primary fire. So many sym and torb 1 tricks whose turrets do more damage than the hero itself lmfao

[@preposteroussvideos]

@@ScripFing facts

[@Nadiacatgirl]

I like her now.

[@remuvs]

feels like a fever dream thinking about teleporter and shield generator being the ultimate.

[@anmimc]

I was actually mad when they reworked Sym. I had to learn to aim 😭

[@cartoonkenj2209]

Symmetra has so many concepts they should just split her into a dps character and a support character similar to what they did with Hanzo and Genji during game development.

[@Neppiko]

"I'm getting a feeling they have a shield generator!" -Junkrat

[@jewels3846]

I played a few matches when Defense was still a category. Friends convinced me to pick it up and play Archives missions (the 2nd archive mission released that year) Next time I played I went PC to console and enough time had passed that it was just Damage now and the roster was bigger. Was probably just over a years break?? Was alot of whiplash to have what little I did know change so much. Its so cool to see what the game once was and how far it has come. Great video and so well put together!

[@shieldgenerator7]

The newest changes to Symm in OW2 include damage adjustments and my favorite change: putting teleporter on cooldown immediately when you create it, instead of when you destroy it. But it comes with the teleporter self-destructing after 10 seconds.

[@P0TAT01769]

I bought Overwatch day 1. Found it overwhelming and didn't play past day 1. Started again 2018 and now I'm balls deep into it. High Diamond.

[@404JNF]

I wonder how her photon shield would be perceived today if it was still part of her kit. Would there be a repeat of Brigitte’s shield pack overhealth crisis, or would people still think it’s relatively useless?

[@polar6066]

this video is pretty incomplete. but if it serves of any help, her ability went thru the same fiasco during beta. symmetra used to give out +75 shields on her e, and was a pretty incomplete hero besides that. her beta e was so powerful she created a meta centered on her, a genji, a tracer, 2 zens and one additional hero.

[@ruga-ventoj]

With her old photon shield, it was an over health problem in the Beta with 75hp and basically useless with the 25 at launch. Also it was awkward to use since it healed by itself, if all members had the buff, Symmetra lost a power until someone died and she had reapply it, if she could find the Hero. 2.0 was great with the barrier, but since she wasn't as strong at dps or utility use like Mei, she was left to her fans only.

[@chadspamton2159]

1:00 wow, never noticed that iris looks almost identical to echo aside from her face

[@cyclone4279]

i miss sym 2.0, she was more fun and original

[@jjojehong]

cant believe they didnt show the clip when viol2t stole sym from the otp

[@yeahkirkers]

i miss that she would gain ammo from beaming shields while still ramping. was so insane for brawling.

[@NibelungJ]

10:20 As a former Sym 2.0 main, I absolutely do not agree with this at all. IMO, her kit became less flexible, more team dependent, and even after all those years, she is still seen as a "braindead character being carried by her turrets" among casual players. Symmetra got deleted, and they created an entire new character with the same concept to use her assets to save work. 2.0 and 3.0 are as different as comparing Widowmaker and Ashe. Imagine if Widowmaker was reworked into Ashe's kit instead of giving us Ashe. That's how I felt with the 3.0 rework.

[@Symphiney]

You share a very popular opinion amongst Symm mains. The r/SymmetraMains subreddit has polls fairly frequently asking whether people prefer old Sym or current Sym, old Sym has always won by quite a wide margin. I just think the video creator believes “she’s better now” also means “Sym mains must also enjoy her more now”

[@NibelungJ]

@@Symphiney I think it's a bit more nuanced than that, but in general it boils down that, at launch, Overwatch was the shooter for non-FPS players, and people that don't have strong FPS roots gravitate towards the less conventional heroes: Reinhardt, Lúcio, Mercy, Symmetra, Mei, etc. One thing we have more in other games and less on competitive shooters is a strong personal identity. So one MAJOR aspect of Symmetra 1.0 and 2.0 is that her gameplay was very open-ended. That leads to two Sym mains playing her completely differently from each other, but equally effective. We valued that we could insert a portion of ourselves in how we play the character, and that made us feel strongly connected to her kit. Because that level of skill identity you could not mimic with most of other OW heroes. Since those more traditional FPS heroes have a more grounded and solid gameplay, what matters for their players is stability and practice to perfection. We don't get the same high seeing Symmetra being played in OWL and always placing the TP and turrets at the exactly same place every fight she is used. It's bland and do not showcase what the hero is capable of. It's just... effective. Or as I read some time ago, Symmetra players don't like to outPLAY the enemy team. They enjoy much more outSMARTING them. And current Sym have much less options to outsmart the enemy team than before.

[@stunninggold9265]

i remember when sym got buffed to the damage role, my friends called it "the microwave strat"

[@dilsoncamacho4100]

IMO they should rework symmetra in OW2 into a support again.

[@vicethane]

I love Symmetra. I mained her from 2016 till I stopped playing OW at 2020, I used to get a sense of pride everytime I get a POTG as Sym. She was unique compared to to other support heroes in that she provided support through different means rather than healing. I loved her 3.0 rework and I played all the time. sometimes I miss playing her then I remember OW is kinda shit right now and they reworked her for the bazillion time.

[@handsoaphandsoap]

One thing I miss about her kit is her weaker and squisher 6 turrets, I loved having them as utility to check all angles of the map for flankers. Other than that, I think all her changes were steps in the right direction and she’s been moved to a state she should be in.

[@jonathansuber1551]

Damn I stopped playing OverWatch before they changed her I didn't know about half of that stuff

[@SylverstoneKhandr]

Playing as a Symmetra main made for some fun times at the start and some really tough times later down the line. Despite pulling in decent results and being handy with her previous kits, I'd always have to prove myself first in a lobby of toxic asshats demanding an insta-switch or just blaming everything on the one guy who dared to go Symm. The changes made to increase her viability was also a bit of a downer because while it kept the character relevant, a lot of the old charm was just gone and forced people to consider other characters to main instead. It's great to see how she developed over time, though.

[@stepanserdyuk4589]

Teammate: Repick Sym, we need DPS Me on old Symm: become a golden DPS with a POTG about a penta kill

[@samo2585]

i started playing OW on mid-season 5. this is so amazing and interesting to me and for any new player. thank you

[@pt4005]

Spoiler she’s returning to support in ow2. It’s a big rework hence why she’s not been mentioned yet in any ow2 news

[@-NoNo.]

I wish she was more viable let’s see what they do for her on ow2

[@Mocita]

I was a Symmetra One-Trick, and I loved her 1.0 and 2.0 iterations. While her Teleporter as an ability was a good idea, I loved giving my team the option to come back immediately or even have a Shield Generator up for extra health. I’ve even had a lot of games where the Tracer used their ultimate specifically for the Generator, and as far as I’m concerned that’s a hell of a deal. I could always built my Generator back up and place it somewhere else for them to try and find, and then waste more time and another ultimate looking for it.

[@Odisher7]

I remember how, related to this, they said that hero roles weren't important, and were just meant as a guide for new players. How things have changed xd

[@mikemichalski4859]

How the hell do you not have more views

[@teatimetala]

Super happy to see this content as a Symm main! I wasn't able to play her when the temp shield ability was there, but I pretty much used her for the rest of her reworks. During the lock-on era, it was fun to close down on characters who would easily dodge projectiles like Genji. During the aim-based era, I would eagerly run up to tanks and burn down their shields then use the built-up charge to wipe other nearby enemies. I feel bad as a Symm main being flamed just by picking her when I tried my best to observe pros and non-pros alike use her optimally and apply their strats to my own playstyle. She's genuinely fun to play and I hope that more people would understand why she's an insta-lock for certain players in the community.

[@sethkang4410]

i miss the old her.

[@Trillonice]

ok so they moved symetra's old photon barrier to sigma...

[@ruga-ventoj]

Yeah, could have been Symmetra's and stayed to her off tank playstyle but no, she became a poor dps behind 16 others and a new guy took her toys. *sigh*

[@valleman5456]

Loved all of her iterations, especially the proton barrier. She was my main getting high diamond and top500 first CTF season. Hope to main her again once Overwatch2 drops

[@alexandredesouza3692]

Man, do I miss Symm 2.0 having your own personal shield was so much of a life saver. I'll never forget that one Hanamura game when I held the point on second point offense for two minutes. Lock-on, Turrets, even the teleporter ult, bringing the full six players from spawn directly onto the point and I survived to win the game, dominating that one D.Va who couldn't kill me

[@mr-clem]

I miss sym 2.0 I miss my shield gen😓

[@Strawberry_shortcake732]

I want her should generator back so bad

[@ot8983]

Also important to mention that in her 2nd rework, she went from 6 turrets to 3, but they had double damage and a slow effect

[@Jumpingmelonz]

I genuinely miss the tractor beam days when you could just run around enemies as the laser(s) melt them. I was an attack symmetra back when she had her shield and I'd just sit by the spawn defense spawn and get a pick or 2, effectively taking them out of the defensive position.

[@vristlol4369]

We miss you Jeff...

[@bawbtehbildhar2762]

Those “switch off Sym” clips make me wanna cry. Fun times😔😮‍💨

[@ozzone719]

I stopped playing around when doomfist was released, so I never saw the reworks. I do remember when people would go 6 symm and create ovens tho

[@dukebasti]

Pausing this at Meta archives Symmetra, because she was my first main and they decided to "put her in line" in too many categories in the beginning I believed the DPS and defense needed to be aligned but they did away with the fourth class of characters. I can't wait to finish this video now!

[@siffy5340]

Melting barriers as sym is so satisfying, i hope they give her gaining ammo from shields back that was a fun part of her aswell.

[@OnyxOblivion]

Really miss V2 with the generator.

[@shooshiwhooshi8736]

While I think her current state is way more balanced then her release, I still do miss her lock on and moving shield. I kinda wish Overwatch 2 brings something back from that time, in the PvE mode of course.

[@Goldhawk7]

I miss running Symm and being the bane of enemy tracers and genjis Lock on beam for the W

[@bobbyboo22_]

Sym old photon barrier could also block shatters!

[@FurryBoykissser]

ye when sigma got released i instantly thought of symm 2.0 and if the enemy team had a rein i always then just wanted to block shatters with shield

[@bobbyboo22_]

And kill pharahs when they ult 😈

[@michaelgarbett4088]

As a lover of "utility" characters in games, I fell in love with Syms original tele/shield gen. I miss that soooooooo much.

[@valtarg1299]

Hearing Symmetra feels weird when you are used to Rampart

[@ZerotheBlade]

Not to mention that depending on which CTF map you are on, Symm is key for defense because you can hide the turrets to give your team time to kill the enemy.

[@Chaosmite]

Symmetra had 3 turrets during beta, then 7 turrets at launch, then down to 6 at her proton shield rework.

[@shieldgenerator7]

0:11 actually, she was moved to the Damage category at the same time that Offense and Defense got merged, so she was never actually in the Defense category

[@shadowwsk3507]

1:03 I need mama hong in the game NOW

[@williamumbranox7217]

Photon shield with beam lock-on was my favorite state of the game. I could anticipate mcree flashbangs, counter ults, charge the fuck in... man. I miss it.

[@GaymerXL]

Rewatching this after they nerfed her again for the Overwatch 2 beta, lol.