Overwatch 2 New DPS Hero Venture: Ability Rundown

Blizzard Entertainment has dug deep when crafting their new DPS hero for the ever-evolving Overwatch 2 roster. Introducing Venture, a non-binary hero who brings a flair of exploration with deep-diving abilities unlike anything we've seen before in the free-to-play hero FPS.

Read on for more details about the new Overwatch 2 hero Venture, including their upcoming release date and abilities.

Overwatch 2: Venture Release Date

Following the success of Mauga's initial trial weekend in Season 8, Venture's limited-time trial weekend took place from March 28 to 31. Blizzard wanted to gauge the community feedback and make some last-minute tweaks before launch.

Venture will launch alongside the release of Season 10, scheduled to go live on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. All new content will become available at 11AM PT/7PM GMT after a short downtime administered by Blizzard Entertainment.

Unlike previous OW2 heroes, which were initially unlocked through purchasing the Premium Battle Pass or leveling the free Battle Pass, Venture will be free and available to play immediately upon release. This is part of Overwatch 2's campaign to become more accessible in the future and entice more players to try the game.

Overwatch 2: Venture's Abilities

Venture has been a long time in the making, as this DPS hero was initially revealed and teased during BlizzCon 2023. Maneuverability and mobility will be key, as Venture can delve underground and become invulnerable to attacks. Check out Venture's initial gameplay reveal trailer below.

(Passive) Explorer's Resolve

Gain shields after using an ability.

Venture's entire playstyle revolves around close-range melee combat, and their kit reflects that. In addition to the DPS passive of reducing enemy healing, Venture can also gain temporary shields upon using abilities. Venture gains +40 shields when using normal abilities and +75 shields after Tectonic Shock. These shields last for either three seconds or until destroyed, whichever comes first.

(Passive) Clobber

Venture's Quick Melee deals more damage.

Since Venture is all about being a bruiser with the enemy team with close-quarters combat, Venture can deal more damage with their Quick Melee compared to other heroes. This ability deals a whopping 70 damage as Venture bashes opponents with their giant drill weapon. This damage cannot be blocked by Deflect or Defense Matrix.

(Primary Fire) Smart Excavator

Launch a seismic charge that bursts after a short distance.

• Damage: 25 (direct hit) or 45 - 13.5 (explosion)
• Ammo: 8 shots

This primary fire ability is similar to Junkrat's Frag Launcher, with projectiles that explode upon hitting an enemy. All Smart Excavator shots can push enemies back with a knockback effect, which is ideal for crowd-controlling and zoning off objectives.

Drill Dash

Venture dashes forward, pushing opponents back. Can be used underground with reduced cooldown.

• Damage: 60 (first hit), 40 over 0.4 seconds (subsequent hits), and 5 (during Burrow)
• Cooldown: 8 seconds

Drill Dash is another of Venture's mobility skills. It works as a dash and crowd-control ability, as it can push enemies back if they come into contact while Venture is using it.

Burrow

Venture can dive and move underground and become invulnerable. Emerge to deal damage.

• Damage: 110 - 75 (maximum charge) 55 - 38 (minimum charge)
• Movement Speed: +40% while underground
• Cooldown: 8 seconds

Burrow is the most unique of Venture's abilities, as the first hero to traverse underground and pop out from underneath enemies. Players can press primary-fire, jump, or the ability button again to re-emerge. This will deal contact damage to nearby enemies and also knock them back.

Once successfully underground, Burrow removes most negative status effects like Orb of Discord or Biotic Grenade and automatically reloads all of Exavator's ammo. It can also be useful to block deadly attacks. Overwatch 2 developers have noted that the animation for Burrow leaves Venture open to attack and could be one of their primary weaknesses.

(Ultimate) Tectonic Shock

Excavator transforms, allowing Venture to send out damage shockwaves. 

• Damage: 130
• Ammo: 4 charges
• Duration: 7 seconds

Tectonic Shock transforms Venture's Excavator, allowing it to send out shockwaves through the ground. Any enemies hit by these abilities will be knocked into the air. Venture can use Drill Dash and Burrow while their Ultimate is activated. Overwatch 2 developers have compared it to " multiple Earthshatters from Reinhardt," the main difference is that Venture can charge Tectonic Shock to be more powerful.

Final Thoughts

Like all new heroes in Overwatch 2, it'll be at least a week until Venture is available to play in ranked and competitive modes, allowing players to get to grips with their techy kit. It'll be interesting to see how they impact the overall meta going forward into future seasons. Still, we don't have long to wait before Venture emerges onto Overwatch 2 servers!

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