For this, I will use Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege as an example. The operator Ash is picked nearly 100% of the time in diamond(the highest rank in siege) and has a really good win Delta. But she isn’t overpowered because the operator Zofia is a better pick even though she has a lower pickrate than Ash. So why is Ash picked so much compared to Zofia? For one, Ash is very good at fragging, she is a 3 speed 1 armor who can just rush in and get work done. She is an easy op with a low skill floor but high skill ceiling.
Why am I mentioning this? I don’t think a hero should be nerfed when they’re picked too much because what if a hero is picked a lot because they’re fun? I think if they nerf a hero that has a high pickrate that sucks for their mains. We should instead look at their power level and how they fit in the meta. Brigitte got nerfed because she did too much too quickly and too effectively. I don’t think pickrate should be the deciding factor in who gets nerfed
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I partially agree but on the other hand it’s clear when a hero is underpowered through those very statistics, i wouldn’t worry though because i don’t think they’ll be nerfing reinhardt, ana or genji anytime soon, the only time they nerfed someone because of their raw pick rate is mercy after the rework and that was justified, well everything before her healing nerf at least…
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Sometimes a hero is picked a lot because they’re fun. They shouldn’t be nerfed because they’re too fun
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Agreed, that’s usually genji’s case, he’s had a high pick rate in unfavorable meta’s just because people really enjoy his kit, i don’t think he should be nerfed for that.
I’m talking about past metas with genji, the current one favors him because of ana.
If a hero is picked most across all ranks, then we have a problem.
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Ash in rainbow six siege is picked a lot in all ranks but she isn’t an issue
Says who? I don’t play that but it if the ppl aren’t really complaining then it is a different thing. if they do then maybe is an issue.
Lion is a big problem right now in siege. He isn’t picked much in ranked, but in pro league he is an overpowered behemoth. Even after his nerf.
Genji has a pretty high pickrate. But he isn’t overpowered, he’s just fun
At pro play there’s no “feelings”, no cute skins or low skill floors or WHATEVER besides pure gameplay power and consistency. If a hero dominates the pro/t500 then they’re overpowered.
No other way round it.
I’m not talking about pro scene. I’m talking about GM scene
If your argument is that we should not just view the GM scene as the sole noteworthy stat, I agree.
The things in OW aren’t always that simple. There are counters to be taken under considerations and also heroes who he enables or is enabled by. Pickrate is just one of the many factors.
Yeah. Same with masters and below. In the pro scene, D.Va is an issue. With a 98% pickrate she is problematic. But that’s a discussion for another day
The meta right now is GOATS (still) and Genji isn’t in it. Dragonblade is only useful with a Zarya or Reinhardt. And Winston is a good counter to Genji. He’s a B Tier hero
i don’t think he is really picked that much right now (he is not really a must pick) nor many ppl are complaining about him compared to other heroes. However, with brigitte out of the picture, he may be slowly coming back
I don’t think he will. He was never a must pick. He was meta but never a necessity
If he is meta that makes him a must pick. It is another question who has to be nerfed to get him out of the picture. Sometimes it is the hero itself, other times that hero is enabled by another one that makes them a must pick.
Except, players have clearly shown that the hero they select is strongly based on effectiveness especially in competitive play.
For example, take a look at Mercy’s pick rate vs Ana’s over the last six months in Grand Master.
You’ll notice Mercy’s pickrate nose dives and Ana’s massively rises without changes to either party that are specifically aimed at making the hero directly more fun or less fun.
Ana’s pickrate is higher than 15 other heros combined in GM. She’s fun but, she’s not that fun.
There is no end all be all statistic to use to determine OPness. Pick rate and win rate must be considered in relation to one another, tiers have to be considered, hero synergy (such as Nanoblade), map favors, etc, etc.
This forum discusses balance frequently but it seems few understand how complicated it is in this game. I pity those that have to balance this, as what appears to have minimal effect on paper can quickly butterfly out and cause extreme shifts.
I think it is important to simply remain open minded to all sources of information and take it all into consideration. The dismissiveness that seems rampant on this forum renders a lot of this forums content (as so much centers around balance) little more than white noise.
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Pickrate shouldn’t be the end all be all