Re: Hero Pools - restrictions on player choice have gotten out of control

[Zijkrial-1523]

@SpringRocker-1446

Instead of actually balancing a game they introduce rng mechanics to a “competitive shooter”?

This is going to go down in history as a ‘what not to do’ in game design courses.

1. It’s not RNG.

@JeffreyKaplan

it’s curated by us. so it will be a combination of targeting metas that players are being vocally negative about (recent examples: double barrier, goats) and slightly encouraging other playstyles (i.e. “more mobile” comps might be fun for a week…)

but i am sure we’ll refine our approach over time.

2. They aren’t giving up on balancing the game.

@JeffreyKaplan

In regards to players wanting to ban for balance reasons, the way we plan to address this is with more frequent balance updates.

3. They aren’t relying on this as a fix; they are experimenting with a new season, as they should with seasons.

@JeffreyKaplan

If there are things we don’t like about Hero Pools, we can change it. Maybe they don’t come back for Season 22? Maybe they rotate faster? Maybe more or less heroes should be in the pool? We’ll all find out in Season 21.

As someone who actually understands what’s going on, I think it will go down in history as a huge step in the right direction for game balance.