Overwatch hero guide: McCree
Quick on the draw and lethal up close, McCree is a gunslinger with moves worth mastering.
Overwatch hero guide: McCree
Role: Offense
McCree is a gunslinger best used up close or at medium range. He's moves slowly, but his combination of combat roll, reloading, six-shooter, flashbang and dead-eye skill make him formidable against the unprepared. Use all four abilities together to own your enemies on the battlefield.
Latest updates
The June 14 patch significantly nerfed McCree’s alternate fire DPS, while decreasing the reload speed of his Peacekeeper. His bullet damage for the fanfire was reduced from 70 to 45, almost half, while reload speed has been cut in half. This was done due to his performing "too well" against a myriad of targets, creating an environment wherein not having a McCree on your team left you at a significant disadvantage.
I hope you’ve been practicing your headshots because he’s now marginally less useful against all tank heroes. Deadeye will also now drains consistently, as opposed to two 50% reductions. Some more recent changes see an increase of his firing speed by 15%, and a damage falloff decrease by 10 meters, which still leaves it higher than it was at launch.
Strong against: Tracer, Reaper, Winston
Weak against: Genji, Widowmaker, Reinhardt
McCree's abilities
Combat Roll
McCree rolls in the direction he's travelling, reloading at the same time. This is best used as a defensive move while reloading his weapon, which only has six bullets.
Fan the Hammer
With the secondary fire of his Peacekeeper, McCree fires all six shots from his revolver at a single target. This is a great tactic when up close, and combined with the combat roll to reload, makes for a devastating attack while remaining mobile.
Flashbang
McCree tosses a flashbang grenade, dealing a little damage and stunning his opponent. Follow it up with Fan the Hammer and watch them crumble.
Ultimate Ability: Deadeye
When activated, McCree is able to target every enemy within his field of vision. The longer they remain in his field of vision the more damage he will do. Once he pulls the trigger, his bullet will always hit the targeted enemies.
McCree strategy tips
- McCree's Fan the Hammer ability is lethal up close. It will kill the majority of enemies apart from tanks if all six bullets hit.
- Flashbang will be blocked by Reinhardt's barrier, but you can still throw it over his shield to stun him.
- When using Deadeye, the red dot indicates how much damage it will deal. When it stops growing, it it will kill the enemy outright. Timing is everything.
- McCree is great for those with an eye for accuracy. Headshots from his Peacekeeper deal a lot of damage.
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