Genji Guide “mi o stetemo myo-ri wa stezu.”

Table of Contents

• ×Introduction
  • 1. Genji Overview
  • 2. Genji's Strengths
  • 3. Genji's Weaknesses
  • 4. Genji Synergies
  • 5. Genji Counters
  • 6. Genji Is Strong Against
  • 7. Genji TL;DR Tips
  • 8. Reading Further for Genji
  • 9. Changelog
• +Abilities and Strategy
  • 1. Genji TL;DR Tips
  • 2. Genji's Abilities
    • 2.1. Cyber-Agility
    • 2.2. Shuriken (Primary Fire)
    • 2.3. Shuriken (Alternate Fire)
    • 2.4. Deflect
    • 2.5. Swift Strike
    • 2.6. Dragonblade
• +Playstyle
  • 1. Genji Playstyle Introduction
  • 2. Offensive Combos with Genji
    • 2.1. Harassment with Genji
  • 3. Genji's Defensive Maneuvers
  • 4. Genji's Ultimate Usage
• +Synergies and Matchups
  • 1. Genji Synergies
    • 1.1. Zarya & Genji
    • 1.2. Zenyatta & Genji
    • 1.3. Winston & Genji
  • 2. Genji Counters
    • 2.1. Winston & Genji
    • 2.2. Brigitte & Genji
    • 2.3. Pharah & Genji
  • 3. Genji Is Strong Against
    • 3.1. Widowmaker & Genji
    • 3.2. Ana & Genji
• +Maps
  • 1. Best Maps for Genji
    • 1.1. Genji on Temple of Anubis
    • 1.2. Genji on Hanamura
  • 2. Worst Map for Genji
    • 2.1. Genji on Watchpoint: Gibraltar

Genji is one of the Offensive Heroes, and is arguably the best Damage Per Second duelist in the game due to his extreme mobility, high damage output, versatile Kit, and small hitbox. At 200 health, Genji is quite vulnerable, and, like Tracer, a single wrong move will get him killed in the heat of battle. This is why Genji players must always be two steps ahead of their opponents. "Measure twice, cut once."

Genji has soaring damage potential, but this comes from utilizing ability chains in masterful synergistic style; not simply from spamming his primary weapon ( Shuriken). Using all of these abilities to chain together a devastating combo requires high levels of skill, marked patience, and true foresight into opponent play. Aside from high damage, Genji also has very high mobility (rivaling, or according to some views, including our own: surpassing Tracer's), allowing him to dash into an enemy team, kill a main Support, and dash out before opponents know what happened (he is a ninja, after all).

Given this combination of traits, Genji should be played almost exclusively as a flanking, backstabbing, and ambushing hero. Your goal as Genji is to get behind enemy lines, burst damage vulnerable targets (snipers, support heroes, Bastion), and get out before you can be damaged. A good Genji will be relentless: constantly harassing the enemy team's backline, forcing enemies to "look for the ninja," while the rest of Genji's team plows over frustrated opponents.

Although Genji has the damage potential to kill squishy heroes, those that can last longer have good chances of repelling his attacks. Therefore, Tanks counter Genji to some degree if they can get in his face, however, Genji can farm ultimate off of low mobility tanks like Zarya, Reinhardt, and Roadhog, so there really is no "hard counter" to an exceptional Genji (which is why he is a top-played hero in Overwatch League games.)

Finally, Genji's ultimate ( Dragonblade) turns his high damage potential into an almost unfair game of "sword tag." As such, Genji can rip apart enemy teams (especially if they are stacked, as he can deal massive Area of Effect damage) during his ultimate. In fact, if Genji hits an enemy with a Swift Strike and two Dragonblade hits, he can deal 290 damage in less than 2 seconds, an output that effectively kills 20 of the 27 heroes in the Overwatch universe. Add a Nano Boost from Ana, and Genji can deal 435 damage in under 2 seconds, effectively killing a whopping 23 of the available 27 Overwatch heroes.

• Superb duelist
• Excellent flanker
• Ultimate ( Dragonblade) provides massive burst damage potential, and is very difficult to counter due to Genji's high mobility from Cyber-Agility and his Swift Strike resets

• Very high skill cap
• Easy to shut down if used improperly

Zarya is Genji's best ally due to her ability to shield him with Projected Barrier and group enemies together for an easy team kill when combining Graviton Surge and Dragonblade. Zenyatta is the best support hero for Genji since he can help him secure kills through Orb of Discord and can keep him alive when he is ulting by using Transcendence. Lastly, Winston is a great hero to use with Genji due to their similar playstyles that can be combined to surprise and burst down squishy enemies.

Genji is hard countered by abilities that lock onto him and heroes that can chase him when he Swift Strikes away, which means Winston is the best tank against Genji due to the auto-locking mechanics of Tesla Cannon and his ability to chase Genji with Jump Pack. Genji thrives on killing split supports, but Brigitte can handle herself against a Genji. Barrier Shield prevents Genji's main form of DPS, and Brigitte can stun Genji with Shield Bash if he gets too close. Additionally, Brigitte's Inspire will draw out a duel between her and the ninja, the last thing a flanker wants from a support. Last but not least, a practiced Pharah can keep her distance from the cyber-ninja's abilities while suppressing his flanks with her Rocket Launcher and Concussive Blast.

Widowmaker has little chance to stand against a Genji who pounces on her without sustaining a headshot. Ana's lack of escape abilities and reliable self-sustain can make her an easy target for an aggressive Genji, and her Nano Boost (while offensively helpful) forces her teammates to suffer the full wrath of Genji's Dragonblade.

• Genji is a flanker! Unless he has Dragonblade available, he should never take on two undamaged enemies at once. The only time Genji should engage multiple enemies without backup is when he can kill one of them with the burst Damage of Shuriken and Swift Strike.
• Harassing as Genji is just as important as securing kills. If Genji can distract an enemy from a teamfight (especially a healer or a DPS hero) while dealing damage to the enemy team, he is doing his job. Therefore, Genji players should never try to force kills in regular combat situations.
• Waiting for the right opportunity to use Genji's Dragonblade can make the difference between a win or a loss. For this reason, Genji should always make sure that he can secure at least two kills with Dragonblade if he chooses to use it on his own. More importantly, Genjis should coordinate Dragonblades with ally ultimates if possible. When coordinated correctly, there is little the enemy team can do to stop him from ripping through their ranks.
• Swift Strike should rarely be used outside of securing kills, reaching caught-out enemies, and escaping death.
• Genji should constantly be using Cyber-Agility's double jumps to turn himself into a smaller hitbox that will frustrate attacking enemies.
• Always use alternate fire Shurikens when face-to-face with enemies to maximize Genji's DPS.

See our Abilities page for further information

About our Author

Mournflakes is a flex Grandmaster Overwatch player who boasts a career high SR rating of 4433. His favorite heroes are Roadhog, Soldier: 76, and Ana. He has played Overwatch since its initial release, and has put over 700 hours into competitive play. When not writing guides, you can catch Mournflakes streaming on his Twitch channel.

To take things further, we have 4 more pages that you can read:

• Abilities and Strategy: an overview of your hero's abilities and how to use them;
• Playstyle: a detailed explanation on how to play your hero;
• Maps: how to make the best use of your hero on each map;
• Synergies and Matchups: where we detail your synergies, your counters, and the heroes you work well against.

• 15 Mar. 2018 (this page): Guide updated and moved to new format.

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