Before 2015, the closest thing we had to a multiplayer hero shooter was Team Fortress 2. Then came Overwatch with its innovative combat system and unique Pixar-esque graphics. Right from the start, Overwatch was destined for greatness, receiving critical and commercial accolades across the industry.
Fast-forward 5 years, and Overwatch is one of the most well-received and robust eSports titles around. And with Overwatch 2 just around the corner (and rumors of free-to-play servers and cross-play between titles), the franchise is showing no signs of slowing down! Fortunately, there’s plenty of time to gear up and get good before these massive changes come into play.
To help you jump into the fray, we’ve compiled the best PC and console settings based on current professional players and streamers. However, unlike other titles, Overwatch carries unique settings that differ between each hero, meaning there is no absolute best setting. Instead, start here, then make tweaks based on your favorite hero and playstyle.
Ready to get the team back together and become the newest member of Overwatch? Let’s get to it.
Contents
- 1 Best Overwatch Settings
- 2 Best Overwatch Mouse Settings for PC
- 3 Best Overwatch Keybinds for PC
- 4 Best Overwatch Controller Settings for PC & Console
- 5 Best Overwatch Controller Keybinds for PC & Console
- 6 Best Overwatch Video Settings for PC
- 7 How to Remove the Overwatch Frame Rate Cap
- 8 Best Overwatch Audio Settings for PC & Console
- 9 Putting it to Practice
Best Overwatch Settings
Optimizations in Overwatch come down to what every good competitive shooter does: high FPS (frames per second), and low latency. Luckily, Blizzard allows for a broad array of adjustments, meaning there’s plenty of tweaking to do to find that perfect settings combo. At least, that’s how it is on PC. You’ll find far fewer options for console setting adjustments, but we’ve included them when applicable.
The following sections cover the best mouse, keybinds, controller, video, and sound settings for PC and console.
Best Overwatch Mouse Settings for PC
Overwatch is all about juggling traditional shooter mechanics with unique character-specific moves, as well as how those both fit into the team meta dynamic. This means that specific mouse settings will vary from hero to hero and situation to situation.
But there are some useful guidelines to get you started, no matter how you choose to play. The following settings represent a good starting point, and they come from a variety of Overwatch league players, coaches, and streamers.
DPI: 400 – 1200
Mouse DPI in Overwatch is based solely on the character class you use. If you’re playing as a tank, you’ll want to opt for a higher DPI, while all other classes, including healers and DPS, will want to opt for somewhere in the 600 – 800 range. The only class that dips lower is sniper types like Widowmaker, where you’ll want to stick closer to 400 DPI for greater accuracy.
Sensitivity: 30
You’ll want to start with lower sensitivity for greater accuracy. Depending on the character you choose, you may want to push this closer to 40 – 50 (especially for DPS types).
Invert Look: Custom
No unique benefit here – just choose what feels most natural.
Best Overwatch Keybinds for PC
Like most of these settings, the best keybinds are often tied to a specific hero. That said, these are the most common general keybinds amongst pro players, as most of these controls remain consistent between player types (aside from the bindings for abilities). You’ll also notice that these keybinds are very similar to the starting keybinds. Kudos to Blizzard for hitting the mark.
- Directional: WASD
- Crouch: L CTRL
- Toggle Crouch: Off
- Jump: Space Bar
- Ability 1: L Shift
- Ability 2: E
- Ability 3: Q
- Interact: F
- Equip Weapon 1: 1
- Equip Weapon 2: 2
- Quick Melee: V
- Reload: R
- Next Weapon: Scroll
- Primary Fire: L Click
- Secondary Fire: R Click
Best Overwatch Controller Settings for PC & Console
Thankfully, Overwatch translates extremely well to a controller due to the diverse nature of hero abilities and how effective they are tied to face buttons. While most settings can remain at default, a few key alterations can give you an edge.
Horizontal Sensitivity: 60 – 70
You’ll want to up the sensitivity here to increase your movement speed, which is reflected better on console.
Vertical Sensitivity: 75 – 80
Similar to the horizontal setting, you’ll want to bump this up to a higher sensitivity to improve movement sensitivity and speed.
Aim Assist Strength: Custom
Aim assist on PC and console can be helpful, but it can become a crutch when competing. Try out various settings to see what sort of difference aim assist makes when aiming. When you’re ready to take things to the next level, turn this off to significantly improve your skills and avoid the pitfalls of relying on assistance.
Best Overwatch Controller Keybinds for PC & Console
Most keybinds vary from player to player and hero to hero, but these are the most common starter options.
- Toggle Crouch: B
- Jump: A
- Ability 1: L1
- Ability 2: R1
- Ability 3: Y
- Interact: L3
- Primary Fire: R2
- Secondary Fire: L2
- Quick Melee: R3
- Reload: X
- Next Weapon: Right D-Pad
Best Overwatch Video Settings for PC
If there’s one area that Blizzard didn’t skimp on when designing Overwatch, it’s your ability to optimize video settings (at least on PC). There are a ton of possible adjustments, which we’ve outlined below.
Display Mode: Borderless Window or Fullscreen
There’s debate around whether Borderless Window mode results in smoother or more disruptive frame rates. Try switching between the two options to see what works best with your monitor and PC setup, as it seems to vary from user to user.
Target Display: Custom
Only set this up when using multiple monitors.
Resolution: 1920 x 1080
As with most shooters, aim for traditional 1080p resolution for consistent quality.
Field of View: 103 – 105
Set the FOV to extended to increase your peripheral vision.
Aspect Ratio: 16 x 9
Keep the basic 16:9 ratio to maintain a wide FOV.
VSync: Off
Keep this off to avoid screen tearing and save frames.
Triple Buffering: Off
This setting works in conjunction with VSync as a way to smooth out assets when loading in. Kept it off to avoid screen tearing.
Reduce Buffering: On
Released after the launch of Overwatch, this setting helps reduce input lag and is best left on.
Display Performance Stats: Off -> On
Toggle on when you need to troubleshoot your performance. Otherwise, keep this off to avoid distractions.
Display System Clock: Off
Keep this setting off to minimize distractions.
Limit FPS: Custom
Set this to the highest possible setting for maximum frame rates (300 at time of writing). If your PC struggles under the load, adjust to display-based.
Frame Rate Cap: 300
See above.
Graphics Quality: Low -> Custom
Start with this setting at low for best overall performance, then toggle the advanced setting and see the next section for more details.
Graphics Quality Advanced
Render Scale: 75 – 100%
Keep this somewhere between 75-100 to retain visual fidelity without losing frames.
Texture Quality: Custom
This setting doesn’t seem to cause any slowdown at any setting, and is really up to you.
Texture Filtering Quality: Low – 1x
Keep this low to avoid losing frames.
Local Fog Detail: Low
Unless you want super detailed fog that eats up frames, keep this setting on low.
Dynamic Reflections: Off
Dynamic reflections react to movement and lighting, which disrupts frame rate. Keep this off.
Shadow Detail: Medium – High
While you may miss out on a few frames, the ability to notice enemy shadows in almost every situation can be a vital tool.
Model Detail: Low
While Overwatch’s in-game models are most certainly pretty, they don’t offer a competitive advantage. Keep model details low to avoid drops in FPS.
Effects Detail: Low
Keep this setting low to avoid disruptive particle effects and improve frame rate.
Lighting Quality: Low
Keep this setting low to avoid circumstances where brighter light sources cause blinding glare across your screen.
Antialias Quality: Low – FXAA
Opt for FXAA to achieve clear and crisp edges around in-game assets.
Refraction Quality: Low
Another realistic lighting effect that disrupts your frame rate – keep this low.
Screenshot Quality: 1x Resolution
Screenshots at full HD will be fine 99% of the time, but feel free to adjust this based on preference.
Local Reflections: Off
Similar to local fog, this simply provides reflection details and should be turned off.
Ambient Occlusion: Off
Keep ambient occlusion off to avoid massive dips in frame rate in exchange for increased realism.
How to Remove the Overwatch Frame Rate Cap
To get the most out of your adjustments, be sure to remove the frame rate cap, or you’ll miss out on vital frames when making changes. To remove the cap, follow these steps:
- On your desktop go to Documents —> Overwatch —> Settings
- Open Settings_v0.ini
- Locate FrameRateCap=“300”
- Change to FrameRateCap=“400”
- Save the file and launch Overwatch
Note: make sure you’ve adjusted your frame rate cap, display mode, resolution, VSync, and limit FPS settings in-game before removing the cap. If you change any of these after the fact, it will automatically reset back to a 300 frame max.
Best Overwatch Audio Settings for PC & Console
Audio settings in Overwatch are a bit different from other multiplayer shooters, primarily due to the need to hear more environmental noise than usual. Check out the following audio settings and combine them with a quality headset for best results.
- Master Volume: 60
- Sound Effects Volume: 70 – 80
- Music Volume: 0
- In-Game Voice Volume: 100
- Voice Chat Volume: 100
- Voice Chat Mic Volume: 80
- Subtitle: None
- Sound Plays While In Background: On
- Group Voice Chat: Auto Join
- Team Voice Chat: Auto Join
- Match Voice Chat: On
- Voice Chat Mode: Open Mic
- Voice Chat Devices: Custom
- Playback Device: Custom
- Dolby Atmos for Headphones: On
The last setting, Dolby Atmos, is one of the biggest game-changers if you have a compatible headset. By keeping this on, it allows for noise to reflect spatial movement and give you a better idea of the direction of enemies and teammates.
Putting it to Practice
While Overwatch’s console settings panel leaves much to be desired (notice the lack of a console video settings section?), the overall ability to change PC settings in Overwatch is fairly impressive. By making tweaks that optimize frame rate and movement, you can easily get into the mix without fear of being to slow to adapt to enemy plays.
Remember, these are simply the best general settings. Depending on your main, you may find yourself doing a lot of re-tooling to get it just right. That’s the gift and the curse of Blizzards incredibly in-depth hero shooter, which can at times make the console version look less complex and more appealing.
Still, if you’re willing to put in the work and start with our settings, you’ll be a pro hero in no time.
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