TL-DR: it NEEDS to go…not it should go…it NEEDS to go as it can decide matches all on its own at a moments glance
The game - OVERWATCH itself - is about countering what the enemy team has…enemy is dive…counter dive…enemy is tank heavy…go anti-tank…etc etc…that might not necessarily be an easy thing to do…and its 10x as hard on MH because you can’t actually select counters…you can only play what’s given to you…if you are lucky you happen upon several counters and you proceed with the match…fine…
now add hero stacking…
Well what do you think happens when the enemy now has 2 of 1 character…especially given that many characters synergize with themselves
Examples:
- zaryas giving each other bubbles
- torbs/bastions covering each other’s attack angles
- reins/orisas trading shields
- mercys ressing each other on top of other teammates
it honestly doesnt matter what character it is…MOST characters present huge problems for the enemy team if theres more than one…with exceptions maybe being mccree, genji, widow and ana (because most people are terrible on her)
Well your team has to be that much luckier to deal with said situation…this usually results in one of two outcomes: either the game stalls if the stack is on the defensive side or they snowball if they’re attacking until the team manages to luck into a random kill of one of them or lucks into a countering comp…
this is pretty unlikely to happen quickly in a game mode where you cant select your character and because of this the team with the duplicates obtains a window/buffer to build ult charge while the opposite team is simply dying over and over again getting zero ult charge trying to adapt to the situation…basically it makes the situation even worse
And then you add in the timing of when it shows up…let’s say you’re attacking a point and there’s 1 minute left to capture…if either team gets one of these duplicate situations that are difficult to deal with…THAT point is decided because it’s going to take longer than a minute for the other team to deal with it…Ive actually kept logs in the past of my MH games (can link if you really want)…and i wish i was exaggerating when i tell you that most of the matches are decided by hero stacks
player skill is thrown out the window…it can literally not matter depending on the stack…or worse if its more than 2 (theres actually a limit to this as too many of one character can mean no adequate healing or tanking depeding on the character)
So again…this mechanic is not just horrible…its actually dictating the results…it DECIDES matches…that’s not a mechanic that should exist in a game that isnt supposed to be based on luck…
and before anyone jumps down my throat:
A) the game mode would STILL be random without it
B) yes there is luck involved but it should not be THE deciding factor…and there would still be luck without it
C) there are still bad combos that can occur (im looking at you pharmercy)
but at least without it you can generally say you lost because the other team was better…the game mode is supposed to be “fun” after all…i dont care who you are…there is ZERO fun in rounding a corner and seeing three bastions waiting for you on the other side and knowing that it is completely and utterly out of your hands…the game is pretty much over at that point (and there might still be 5 minutes left in the match)
note* - i know some people are going to say they like it…but the argument is that it doesnt belong in THIS particular game mode…its not designed to be able to deal with it…there are other places better suited for it…ie no limits (and i daresay total mayhem as it would at least fit the title)
the devs have spoken about changing MH (making it smarter possibly)…well a change or an alternate version is long overdue (and i cant imagine it would be a hard thing to do either - one modifier)…the BEST game mode available (imho) is majorly flawed at the moment…and its super obvious why that is
it NEEDS to go