Mercy (Overwatch)

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Mercy
Overwatch character
Mercy Overwatch.png
Promotional artwork
First appearanceOverwatch beta (2015)
First gameOverwatch (2016)
Created byBlizzard Entertainment
Voiced byLucie Pohl
In-universe information
GenderFemale
OccupationDoctor
Scientist
NationalitySwiss

Mercy is a player character appearing in the 2016 video game Overwatch, a Blizzard Entertainment–developed team-based first-person shooter, and its related animated and literary media. Lucie Pohl voices Mercy in English-language Overwatch media.

Within the Overwatch narrative, "Mercy" is the callsign of Swiss doctor Angela Ziegler, who provided key medical support for the original Overwatch group. In game, she is a Support class character who can heal and buff teammates and resurrect fallen teammates. The character is one of the more popular in the game, being noted by Blizzard to be the most played support character during the game's beta. However, her resurrect ability has been criticized in competitive and professional play levels, given the swing in momentum the ability creates, and she has undergone a major rework by Blizzard to try to make her a more well-rounded playable hero.

Gameplay[]

In Overwatch, Mercy is classified as having a "support" role, specifically as a healer for her team.[1] As a healer, a player using Mercy can see colored ghost images of their teammates through any obstacle, with the color indicating their health levels, and when in-sight, can see the health bar of the teammate.[2] Mercy is equipped with the "Caduceus Staff" and "Caduceus Blaster".[3] The Caduceus Staff possesses two firing modes: the primary fire, when connected to an ally heals them for as long as they are tethered to the healing stream, while the secondary fire buffs an ally's damage output.[3] The Caduceus Blaster is a small pistol which can deal effective damage at close range, but is otherwise weak.[3] Although Mercy comes equipped with the Caduceus Blaster, a close-range pistol, Kotaku noted that many Overwatch players ridicule offensive-minded Mercy players, referred to as "Battle Mercies", as firing the pistol detracts time from healing teammates.[4]

Her abilities include "Guardian Angel" and "Angelic Descent".[3] Mercy can use Guardian Angel to fly directly towards a targeted teammate, including those that have recently been eliminated, either to move quickly across the field or near a teammate to apply her staff's powers, or to dodge enemy fire. While aloft, Mercy can use the Angelic Descent ability to slow her rate of falling, provide more maneuverability.[3] She also has her "Resurrect" ability, allowing her to revive one fallen teammate shortly after they are killed, though leaving her vulnerable for a few seconds during the process and has a long thirty-second cooldown. Her Ultimate ability is "Valkyrie", which gives her omni-directional flight and several boosts for fifteen seconds: passive self-healing, increased "Guardian Angel" range and speed, increased five healing per second and damage boost range, chain healing and damage boost to all nearby allies of the target for the same amount, increased sidearm fire rate, and infinite sidearm ammo.[5][6][7]

Development and design[]

Mercy was one of the first twelve Overwatch characters introduced at Blizzard's BlizzCon 2014 event.[8] A Polygon story covering the event noted Mercy was equipped with feathery wings, a healing stream, and a pistol.[8] Mercy is voiced by Lucie Pohl, a German-American voice actress.[9] While Blizzard had been trying to find an actor native to the area that could perform a good Swiss-German accent, they found Pohl's accent to be good for the character and selected her instead, according to lead writer Michael Chu.[10]

In concept art for Overwatch, prior to her final design, Mercy had been represented as a black man with white hair and a broad build, but otherwise having similar outfits and abilities as the released version.[11]

In addition to her default skin, Mercy has received themed cosmetics, such as during the game's 2017 "Year of the Rooster" event.[12]

While Blizzard has made various changes to all of the heroes since the game's release, Mercy has seen very significant changes, including a complete rework of her skill kit, maintain to address how her ability to resurrect downed team members has impacted the game.[13] At release, Mercy's ultimate ability was "Resurrect", which revived any recently eliminated teammates within a certain range, granting them full health and a brief invulnerability.[14] Blizzard's developer notes on their July 21, 2016 patch for Overwatch referred to Resurrect as "one of the most powerful abilities in the game."[15] Timely and strategic use of Mercy's Resurrect ability was considered by players to be a game changer, either saving a defending team from a defeat, or allowing an attacking team to continue an offensive push despite several eliminations.[16] In August 2016, Blizzard added a buff to Mercy's "Resurrect" ability, as well as her general healing abilities, in order "to solidify her role as a strong, single-target healer."[17] Prior to a patch in September 2016, post-match Plays of the Games in competitive play were frequently dominated by a Mercy player using the Resurrect ability, requiring Blizzard to rework how the game selected Plays of the Game to reduce this frequency.[18][19]

Blizzard found that Mercy players overemphasized the "Resurrect" ability, as "it incentivized Mercy players to hide away from important battles, instead of taking part in them". With a September 2017 update, Mercy's "Resurrect" was moved out from being an ultimate ability to a standard skill with a long cooldown. Blizzard introduced her new ultimate, "Valkyrie", which significantly buffs all of Mercy's abilities and reduces cooldowns for fifteen seconds.[5] Blizzard felt by keeping the Resurrect as a skill and adding the new Valkyrie ultimate, it "gives her the opportunity to make big game-making plays and opens a number of new options for her".[6] Even her kit change, Blizzard has continued to fine-tune the abilities within the public test servers to try to achieve a proper balance. Jeff Kaplan said that Blizzard continued to find that with the new kit, Mercy players still kept out of battle save to use Resurrect, when they want the character to be treated as great healer for all team members.[20][13] A further adjustment was made to Mercy in a January 2018 patch; whereas the Valkyrie ultimate originally had reset the Resurrect cooldown and provided a second Resurrect that could be used immediately, the patch eliminated the reset and second Resurrect. The Overwatch developers stated that they found that many Mercy players were still holding back and using the immediate Resurrects granted by Valkyrie to swing control of the game and which was difficult for opposing teams to counter.[7]

During May 2018, Blizzard partnered with the Breast Cancer Research Foundation to offer a limited-time "Pink Mercy" skin that can be purchased by players, as well as a corresponding tee shirt with all proceeds going to the charity to support breast cancer awareness (akin to the pink ribbon).[21] Blizzard reported that the charity sale raised over US$12.7 million, the largest single-year donation that the Breast Cancer Research Foundation had seen.[22][23]

Fictional character biography[]

Mercy's fictional biography lists her real name, age, and base of operations: Angela Ziegler, 37, and Zürich, Switzerland, respectively.[1] The fictional bio also describers her as "a peerless healer, a brilliant scientist, and a staunch advocate for peace."[1] In the Overwatch universe, she is known to have been affiliated with Overwatch, being their head of medical research,[24] and operating as a field medic and first responder while with them.[1] She ascended to these positions in Overwatch via becoming the head of a prominent Swiss hospital, after which she developed a breakthrough in the field of applied nanobiology, which attracted the attention of Overwatch.[1][25] Although she disagreed with the militaristic methods implemented by Overwatch, she used their resources to develop her winged Valkyrie swift–response suit.[25] Mercy found herself at odds with her superiors and others in Overwatch, despite her medical contributions.[8][26] Mercy is also mentioned in Genji's fictional biography, with one line stating, "Hanzo believed that he had killed his brother, but Genji was rescued by Overwatch and the intervention of Dr. Angela Ziegler."[27]

Other appearances[]

Comics[]

In the tenth issue of the Overwatch digital comic book, Mercy is briefly featured and seen reading a letter, implied to be Genji's.[28]

Literary media[]

In a fictional news report uploaded by Blizzard, Mercy is quoted as commenting on the end of the Overwatch organization, describing the growingly negative relationship between Soldier: 76 (Jack Morrison) and Reaper (Gabriel Reyes): "after Morrison's promotion to strike commander, his relationship with Reyes changed, the tension became more pronounced as time went on. I tried to mend things. We all did. Sometimes when the closest bonds break, all you can do is pray you stay out of the cross fire."[29]

Mercy was the focus of a short story, "Valkyrie", released on November 11, 2019, written by Michael Chu, which focuses on the period around her joining of the Overwatch team.[30] The story tied into a limited "Mercy's Recall Challenge" event that allowed players to earn cosmetic items tied to the story.[31]

Reception[]

Cosplay of Mercy's alternate "Witch" skin

Mercy has been noted as one of the more popularly used characters in Overwatch; during the game's open beta she was the most played support class character.[32] Mercy's Witch skin for the game's Halloween-themed event was noted by Polygon to be extremely popular with Mercy players.[33] Following her major revamp in September 2017, Mercy has been found to be universally picked as at least one healer on a team in competitive play, and because these changes require her to be closer to combat, the concept of a "Battle Mercy" who mixes both healing with attacks gained popularity at higher-ranked play.[34] Some criticized this change, and felt it was a sign that Blizzard was trying to cater the game towards the competitive players over casual ones; high-level players felt that Mercy was a "zero aim" character prior to the September 2017 revamp, making it easy for new players to learn, but subsequently, the character requires more decision making and choices that can be difficult to casual players to learn.[35]

Video game journalists also praised Mercy; in his review of Overwatch, Phil Savage of PC Gamer, expressed, "I particularly love how varied the movement is between characters," praising Mercy's glide ability and citing Mercy as "the perfect example of how every aspect of a character can, in the best cases, support a specific style."[36] Savage elaborated, "alone, she's vulnerable and slow – easily ambushed and dispatched. But, with line-of-sight to a teammate, she can spread her wings and fly towards them. It's fun to do, and also reinforces the symbiotic partnership between healer and healed: Mercy needs her teammates as much as they need her. It's masterful design."[36]

Due to her Resurrect ability being able to cause such an impact on the flow of a game, Kill Screen's Joshua Calixto referred to Mercy as "the most terrifying character in Overwatch."[37] In professional play, such as the Overwatch League, some have argued that Mercy's Resurrect ability was still too much of a game-changer in these competitive matches; this concern persisted even after Mercy's September 2017 rework. Damian Alonzo for PC Gamer said that strategy for competitive Overwatch is generally about achieving a player advantage, which could be achieved with an early kill and which can snowball into greater advantages throughout the match, but Mercy's Resurrection completely undoes that advantage, nullifying such early kills and without any consequences.[38] PCGamesN's Ben Barrett also said that because Mercy can undo the effects of short-term gain strategies like flanking with Resurrection, these strategies become futile, and resorting to more standard attack patterns slows down the pace of the game.[39][40]

A relationship between Mercy and Genji was hinted at in voice lines added in early 2017; fan reception to these voice lines was mixed, particularly among fans who engage in "shipping" characters from the game.[41][42] Fans of the game created a couple name, Gency, for the duo's possible relationship.[41] The relationship is one of the more popular fan-created ones, based on Genji's fictional biography, which includes Mercy saving his life. Gita Jackson of Kotaku wrote that, "while some fans don't like the idea of the characters being canonically straight, there are other concerns that go beyond preference for a particular [relationship]. Some fans believe that 'shipping Mercy and Genji is inappropriate because Mercy is the Overwatch foundation's doctor. For them, the conflict of interest in a doctor/patient relationship is enough to make the ship feel inappropriate," adding that "some fans see the relationship as predatory on Mercy's part."[42]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Heroes – Mercy". Play Overwatch. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  2. ^ Marks, Tom (May 24, 2016). "Overwatch has hidden, character-specific settings you should take advantage of". PC Gamer. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Overwatch hero guide: Mercy". VG247. September 17, 2016. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  4. ^ Grayson, Nathan (June 26, 2017). "Top Pistol Mercy Will Wreck Your Shit, But Only If She Has To". Kotaku. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Nunneley, Stephany (September 19, 2017). "Overwatch: Junkertown map is live, update includes changes to Mystery Heroes, D.Va and Mercy abilities – patch notes". VG247. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Moore, Bo (August 24, 2017). "The way Mercy resurrects heroes is changing completely". PC Gamer. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  7. ^ a b Grayson, Nathan (January 30, 2018). "Blizzard Nerfs Mercy's Rez". Kotaku. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  8. ^ a b c Hall, Charlie (November 7, 2014). "A guide to the first 12 characters in Blizzard's Overwatch". Polygon. Archived from the original on September 12, 2016. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  9. ^ "Voice of Mercy". Behind the Voice Actors. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
  10. ^ Crecente, Brian (March 20, 2017). "Sombra's voice actor doesn't mind the haters, loves her character". Polygon. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  11. ^ Jackson, Gita (October 17, 2017). "Everyone Has A Crush On This Concept Art For Overwatch's Mercy". Kotaku. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  12. ^ "Overwatch's Year of the Rooster update - all skins, emotes and cosmetics". PCGamesN. January 24, 2017. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  13. ^ a b Meyes, Maddy (January 5, 2018). "Blizzard Can't Leave Mercy Alone". Kotaku. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
  14. ^ Rosenberg, Mike (July 20, 2016). "'Overwatch' hero spotlight: How to suck less with Mercy". Mashable. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  15. ^ Lylirra (July 21, 2016). "[PS4] Overwatch Patch Notes – July 21, 2016: Bug Fixes". Overwatch Forums. Battle.net. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  16. ^ Gilliam, Ryan (November 16, 2016). "How Blizzard is making Overwatch a successful esport, and where it needs to improve". Polygon. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  17. ^ Grayson, Nathan (August 17, 2016). "Overwatch Test Patch Nerfs Genji, Buffs Mei And Mercy". Kotaku. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  18. ^ Grayson, Nathan (September 7, 2016). "The Overwatch Characters Who Get Play Of The Game Most (And Least) Often". Kotaku. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  19. ^ Dalzell, Jamie (September 14, 2016). "New Overwatch patch arrives on PC, PS4 & Xbox One. Increases payload speed on Eichenwalde". VG247. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  20. ^ Minotti, Mike (November 3, 2017). "Overwatch lead Jeff Kaplan on Moira, Mercy's troubles, and fixing toxicity". Venture Beat. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  21. ^ Marshall, Cass (May 8, 2018). "Overwatch partners with Breast Cancer Research Foundation, offers charity Mercy skin". Heroes Never Die. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  22. ^ Bankhurst, Adam (July 9, 2018). "Overwatch Raised $12.7 Million For Charity Thanks To Pink Mercy". IGN. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  23. ^ Nunneley, Stephany (October 17, 2018). "Overwatch Pink Mercy charity skin and shirt raised $12.7 million for breast cancer research". VG247. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  24. ^ Ramos, Jeff (May 24, 2016). "The definitive Overwatch timeline". Polygon. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  25. ^ a b Purchese, Robert (August 10, 2016). "Yes, Overwatch has a story. Here's everything you need to know". Eurogamer. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  26. ^ @PlayOverwatch (July 6, 2016). "[ARCHIVE] Communications Records of Ziegler, A. – Overwatch File 00231 – Security Classification: CONFIDENTIAL" (Tweet). Retrieved January 31, 2017 – via Twitter.
  27. ^ "Heroes – Genji". Play Overwatch. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  28. ^ Chalk, Andy (January 9, 2017). "Overwatch voice lines may hint at a Genji and Mercy romance in the making". PC Gamer. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  29. ^ Shaw, Olympia (July 6, 2015). "Fading Glory: On the Trail of Jack Morrison". Play Overwatch. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  30. ^ Gilliam, Ryan (November 11, 2019). "New Overwatch short story previews mostly normal-looking Doctor Mercy skin". Polygon. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  31. ^ Nunneley, Stephany (November 12, 2019). "Overwatch players can earn the Dr. Ziegler skin by participating in Mercy's Recall Challenge". VG247. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  32. ^ Frank, Allegra (May 20, 2016). "Overwatch open beta stats reveal most popular heroes, trillions of damage dealt and more". Polygon. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  33. ^ Frank, Allegra (October 12, 2016). "Overwatch fans' devotion to Witch Mercy is literally huge". Polygon. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  34. ^ Meyers, Maddy (October 12, 2017). "Almost Everyone Is Playing Overwatch With A Mercy On Their Team Now". Kotaku. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  35. ^ Myers, Maddy (October 23, 2017). "Mercy's Redesign Shows The Tug Of War Between Casual And Competitive Overwatch". Kotaku. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
  36. ^ a b Savage, Phil (May 28, 2016). "Overwatch review". PC Gamer. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  37. ^ Calixto, Joshua (August 12, 2016). "Mercy is the most terrifying character in Overwatch". Kill Screen. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  38. ^ "The Overwatch World Cup proved why Mercy's Resurrect needs changes". PC Gamer. November 7, 2017. Retrieved January 11, 2018.
  39. ^ Barrett, Ben (October 20, 2017). "The Overwatch competitive community thinks Mercy is too strong, and boring, for the World Cup". PCGamesN. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  40. ^ Velocci, Carli (January 22, 2018). "Why Do People Hate Mercy in 'Overwatch?'". Vice. Retrieved January 22, 2018.
  41. ^ a b Frank, Allegra (January 9, 2017). "New Overwatch voice lines have fans convinced that these heroes are now a couple". Polygon. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  42. ^ a b Jackson, Gita (January 10, 2017). "Overwatch 'Shippers Clash Over New Mercy, Genji Voice Lines". Kotaku. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
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