Tracer is a difficult character to use in Overwatch, but with these tips you will be frustrating the opposing team in no time flat. Don’t misunderstand, Tracer is not for everyone. She requires precision aim and masterful reflexes, and if you’re just now picking up Overwatch and didn’t play during any of the beta periods, you may want to start with an easier character. Against novice teams, even a new Tracer can wreck havoc, but skilled players will read your movements and make your time with Tracer a rough one if you’re not prepared for the challenge.
Pulse Pistol
Tracer’s primary attack is her Pulse Pistols, which unload extremely fast. If you don’t have good aim you will miss half your magazine. If you just picked up Tracer and you’re wondering why you can’t kill anyone, work on your aim. These weapons unload so quickly it’s not hard to miss out on a lot of damage simply because your aim wasn’t up to snuff. With good aim you can take down an enemy hero faster than most other characters when they aren’t using their ultimate abilities. You just need to make sure your aim is on point.
Recall
This ability allows you to jump back in time by three seconds. That means everything reverts back to the way it was, including your health, ammo and the position of Tracer. When used randomly it’s only good for backing out of the immediate fight. However, when used in conjunction with well-placed Blinks it can be an extremely strategic ability.
Imagine Blinking into the enemy team, lighting them up and then immediately using Recall before they have a chance to retaliate. This only works if you know exactly where you were three seconds before using Recall, but with Blink you can make it almost impossible for the enemy team to track you.
Blink
Think of Blink like you would a short teleport. Tracer dashes a short distance in the direction she’s moving. You can Blink up to three times in a row, with each Blink usage taking about one second to recharge. That means you can Blink three times in a row to cover a decent distance, but then you won’t be able to Blink again for about a second, and you’ll only have one Blink available (it would take about three seconds to get all three Blink charges back).
This works great in conjunction with Recall as you can quickly sneak up on an opponent with a few Blinks, light them up, then Recall to return to your original position before using Blink. This combo of techniques allows Tracer to cover distance quickly, then return to a safe location before the enemy knows what hit them.
Pulse Bomb
Unlike many of the other ultimate abilities in Overwatch, Tracer’s Pulse Bomb is primarily going to be used as a single target attack. You can attach it to an enemy and it has a moderate explosion radius, but a smart team will make sure they’re spread out enough to avoid taking damage from the Pulse Bomb if they aren’t directly attacked by it. Don’t think of this as a negative aspect of the ability. In the right hands it can be very deadly.
Imagine a situation in which you Blink three times into a group of two enemies. You light up the first enemy with a barrage from your Pulse Pistol to take them out, then you target the second enemy with the Pulse Bomb and Recall back to safety. You just knocked out two enemies in the blink of an eye (no pun intended).
As you can see, Tracer has a solid set of abilities that can really make it difficult for the opposing team. However, if you get caught or the other team anticipates your movements, she goes down with relative ease. You need a plan of attack so you can use your Blink charges, Recall and Pulse Bomb to maximum effectiveness. Once you can do that, it’s very difficult to stop Tracer.
