One of the original tank heroes of Overwatch is an unstoppable force in Overwatch 2.

Zarya, a cannon-wielding Russian weightlifter, is the most played tank by the game's highest-ranked competitive players; according to Reddit user TheForrestFire (opens in new tab), 83.3% of top tank players in North America almost exclusively play Zarya, and all of the top 30 are in the top three most-played heroes. Also, when looking at the number of hours played by these players, Zarya's playing time far exceeds that of other tanks.

Overwatch 2's Top 500 leaderboard fluctuates slightly as players win and lose games, but TheForrestFire's results reveal how well the most skilled players are using her.EU and Asia s top 30 tank players also mostly main her, but there is a bit more variety in these regions, especially in the lower ranks.

It is worth noting that the number of professional esports players skews the rankings. They often compete in ranked tournaments for practice and are grouped with other esports players.

Zarya's power comes largely from the significant changes Blizzard had to make to her to survive in Overwatch 2's 5-on-5 format. With each team losing one of its two tanks, Zarya gained increased health and the ability to double her damage-absorbing bubble (Particle Barriers). Previously, she had the ability to bubble herself and her allies. She now has one all-purpose bubble ability using the 2-charge system, which allows her to stack bubbles on any opponent of her choice.

When she damages her bubble, Zarya gains a charge, increasing the damage of her gun. By using her bubble carefully when approaching a target or when a teammate is charging, she can compete with DPS heroes in damage output. Even in my average skill matches, Zaryas charges quickly and melts teams. Just when I think I can catch her without a barrier, she has another one. And if you let her go too long, she will build the ultimate Graviton Surge and wipe out your team in one fell swoop. She is the worst tank to play against, but she is so much fun to have on your team.

In Top 500 play, Zaryas is often backed by the two most played support heroes: Lucio and Ana; Lucio can speed boost her all over the map, and Ana can give her tons of healing. And Genji and Sojourn's high pick rate on damage rolls allows Zarya to be their aggressive play in teamfights and keep her charged throughout the match.

However, Zarya's dominance may not last that long. According to a tweet from "Overwatch 2" game director Aaron Keller (opens in new tab), she, along with several other heroes, will receive a balance change in an upcoming patch. The patch is likely to be released next week to give Overwatch League players time to practice before the Oct. 30 playoffs. The patch may be released on Tuesday, the day the game launches its "Halloween Terror" event, brings back the Junkertown map that had the fps drop bug (opens in new tab), re-enables Torbjorn in competitive matches, and finally against Zarya The same day they bring back to the game Bastion, a high-damage hero who could have been useful.