Overwatch Guide: How To Play Genji

The character centric Overwatch provides players with 21 different characters to choose from, which are split across four different classes. Each character brings its own strengths and weaknesses to the table and with that we are giving you some guides on just how to play certain characters, with the latest being the Offense class character Genji.

Like the rest of the Offense class, Genji is very agile and able to traverse the map quickly. In fact, he’s going to be one of the fastest in the entire game, which is no big surprise as he is a cyborg ninja after all.

While Genji is fast, he is more susceptible to dying quickly with a lesser health total, but the mix of speed and his attacks help to make a big difference in each match. This is largely helped by Genji’s passive ability called Cyber Agility that allows him to climb walls and perform jumps in mid-air. This pretty much means that Genji can get anywhere on the map he needs, similar to Reaper, which allows him to flank enemies quite easily.

Genji’s weapons are his Shuriken, which can be used by either pressing the right trigger or left trigger, or the comparable key on PC. Pressing right trigger will throw three Shuriken in a straight line right where you are aiming. This works well when you have an enemy right in your sights, especially if you are sneaking up on them. The other option is with left trigger, which instead throws a fan of three Shuriken that are not as accurate but can be more effective against moving targets or crowds. These work best from a medium range, as they are less effective up close or from afar.

With Genji utilizing projectiles, it would make sense that he would also be smart enough to be able to deflect them and that is exactly what he can do. By pressing R1, Genji can use his Deflect technique that that lets him use his sword to deflect enemy projectiles for two seconds, which are then sent back in the direction he is facing. You can also deflect close-range melee attacks, but there is no counter move involved here.

Deflecting enemy attacks is not the only use for Genji’s sword though, as he also has his very useful Swift Strike attack. By pressing L1, he will leap forward with a quick sword strike against an enemy. This might seem only okay on its own due to the cooldown meter, but what makes this move highly effective is that with each elimination you get using the move, the meter resets. If you can get a bunch of these in quick succession, you can really make a difference in a crowd.

Taking it up another notch is Genji’s Ultimate ability, Dragonblade, which has him bringing out an even more powerful sword to use. For an eight second period, you can deal 150 damage with each hit, making it easy to take down a crowd of enemies. The only downside is that you are still as vulnerable as ever, so you have to be very careful and try to catch the opposition by surprise, which can be done with a mix of his speed and passive ability. This is especially helpful in keys situations like the tail end of an Escort mission where you just need to take out the last few enemies that are blocking your way.

Overall, Genji is built for players that want a character with high mobility that can still dish out a relative amount of damage. However, you must know how to use that speed to your advantage to avoid dying quite so often. The Shurikens help this a bit as you can avoid as much up close combat through most of the match, as it can be hard to compete against Tanks, while instead focusing on taking the off beaten path with Cyber Agility to flank enemies and lead your team to victory.