According to winstonslab Zen has had the 2nd highest pick-rate overall in the OWL and top pick rate for Stage 4 so far.
Many people say he doesn’t need a nerf because he is skill-based, but for some reason that didn’t stop them from asking for a tracer nerf because she had the exact same problem of being decent at lower ranks and destroying at higher ranks. I’m fine with zen play, but I’ve seen so much through Contenders S2 and OWL that it’s getting a little boring to watch overall, he’s extremely good in basically both major metas (dive and deathball) and I don’t think that’s okay.
He’s not too OP, but I think he either needs a small nerf or Lucio/Moira need a buff to get them on his level in higher ranks so he isn’t such a must-pick.
I might be biased as Zen is one of my most used heroes, but I think he’s in a pretty good state. He outputs a lot of damage, but is also extremely vulnerable. His orbs make him very versatile, which was why he despite not really fitting into dive, mechanically speaking, was still a very popular choice then. In our current meta he can get so much protection and thus will be even more popular.
I don’t think a comparison with Moira is fruitful, as she can output so much more healing while Zen is more of a dps with some healing. Lucio, I don’t know, I think he should have potential in this meta as he can speed up the deathball and since the teams are more closely grouped up than in dive he should also heal more.
I would say that Zen excels in combination with Tracer, as she gains so much survivability from his orb. In a meta where Tracer was mandatory, he’s a given.
I honestly think we’ll see less Zen and more Lucio in games, as he synergizes really well with slower comps and also can peel quite well, and create distance. It will just take some time getting there.
Zen Main speaking -
Zen is not unbalanced. If a tank jumps you like dva, or maybe a gengu comes up on you with a little support, you are basically dead unless you get full peel from your team. I believe the reason why he is so popular is the discord orb and the trancendence, which is the strongest ult in the game. Right now, the Dragon-Grav is a popular win condition on most games - unless there is an ana backing that up, Zen can save you from many deaths with that ulti. Also, many players on Ladder call for defensive ults which only Zen and Lucio can provide (seriously, blizzard? Come on…!), while Lucios is great for Tech visors, it wont outlast Gravs and get you killed anyways and is therefor better used for engagements. Trancendence has no cast time and cant be interrupted, plus it outlasts dragonstrike, dragonblade and Grav and is therefor a musthave in most fights. But it also puts the focus on you, if the enemy is not braindead, they will prioritze you 24/7.
Mercy is still basically over powered, and Zenyata is the best support to pair with a Mercy so it’s basically a done deal to see him in almost every game - the whole shield and armour stacking from Brigitte also makes him pretty abuseable as Tankyatta as well. Moira still has her place for bulk healing in tank heavy compositions, it’s really Ana and to a lesser extent Lucio that just suck right now.
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Zen is a support character, Tracer is a DPS. If you check most nerf posts are made be support players who want certain DPS characters to be nerfed to the ground. Also a lot of support players are people who never played a shooter in their lives. Dealing with Tracer, something requiring precise aim and reflexes is alien them. Hence why they need something like Brigitte.
Overall assuming Tracer and Zenyatta are equally powerful you’ll see way more crap being thrown at tracer from the support mains while the DPS mains will simply learn how to deal with Zen instead of complaining.