FloodAnxiety wrote on Jan 28, 2023, 14:28:
I thought they gave up on rock paper scissors style balancing for OW2?

They had, during the OW2 beta. But there was an internal decision at some point around release to go back to rock/paper/scissors and it fucked everything up. Perhaps it's just that old habits die hard.

Sounds like fun.

FloodAnxiety wrote on Jan 28, 2023, 14:28:
I thought they gave up on rock paper scissors style balancing for OW2?

Yes, it has become too complex for Blizz's ineptitude. They are reactionary now, just looking for outliers in the data or developing trends. If they notice a spike in hero usage (like Hog and his 2-click-kill ability), they nerf it. If they noticed a hero trending out of usage, they buff it. But the gameplay still has a RPS element to it.

For example, say the enemy team runs flying damage heroes (Echo + Pharah) with a Mercy healer, and a Lucio speed boosting the tank. That's a formidable lineup, and (practically) impossible to beat If my team picks the WRONG counters (like Hazno, Reaper, Junkrat, Brigetta, Zen, Junkerqueen, Genji, etc). What my team needs is hitscan heros that can shoot the flyers out of the sky.

Maybe 50% of the time, players are too stubborn (usually pride) to switch, or too slow to realize what's wrong, or don't even know how to solve the problem. This is further compounded by the lack of voice chat (because it can be so toxic AND is now being recorded), so most people do not join the voice channel. Team strategy has to be typed out, and OW is way too fast for that slow dialog.

So when the match starts, it plays out a lot like Rock Paper Scissors: a game of chance. Either your hero selection works immediately, or you lose the round, and probably the match.

theglaze wrote on Jan 28, 2023, 14:24:
Competitive mode can produce spectacular matches in the hands of professionals in the Overwatch League, but it's inherently flawed in the hands of casual gamers

Well said, and much better than my snippy comment.

Looking over at the forums, it also appears that matchmaking is currently done on total team ranking versus matching role ranks. Also, new users defaulted to "Gold" ranking, and the inrush of new players with the F2P model wreaked havoc with the ranked matches. Apparently it's been set to Silver now, but the damage has been done.

theglaze wrote on Jan 28, 2023, 14:24:
Competitive mode can produce spectacular matches in the hands of professionals in the Overwatch League, but it's inherently flawed in the hands of casual gamers for two reasons:

1. Most casual players can only 'efficiently' play (maybe) a dozen heroes, but now there are 36 to choose from in OW2.
2. Most casuals cannot 'analyze' (in the heat of battle) a counter hero to attack the opponent. Or which hero they should swap to, to better compliment their own team.

Matches become lopsided and frustrating because a team can be inefficient (or stubborn) with hero selection and counter hero selection. That is it. That's what ruins most Competitive matches played by casuals.

OW is like a complex game of Rock, Paper, Scissors... except there's 36 of them, each with an Ultimate and 3 other abilities that interplay with teammates, or exploit against opponents.

Here's some solutions:
A. "Recommended Hero" should be highlighted in a player's Hero Selection screen during the match, giving players a suggestion on hero swap.
B. "Skill Rating" should be calculated for every hero a player uses, and not a blanket rating.
C. "Preferred Heroes" should be selected by a player when they queue for matchmaking.
D. "Matchmaking" should consider points B and C, so it doesn't build a team for failure (like putting to Genji mains or two Mercy mains on the same team).

I thought they gave up on rock paper scissors style balancing for OW2?

Competitive mode can produce spectacular matches in the hands of professionals in the Overwatch League, but it's inherently flawed in the hands of casual gamers for two reasons:

1. Most casual players can only 'efficiently' play (maybe) a dozen heroes, but now there are 36 to choose from in OW2.
2. Most casuals cannot 'analyze' (in the heat of battle) a counter hero to attack the opponent. Or which hero they should swap to, to better compliment their own team.

Matches become lopsided and frustrating because a team can be inefficient (or stubborn) with hero selection and counter hero selection. That is it. That's what ruins most Competitive matches played by casuals.

OW is like a complex game of Rock, Paper, Scissors... except there's 36 of them, each with an Ultimate and 3 other abilities that interplay with teammates, or exploit against opponents.

Here's some solutions:
A. "Recommended Hero" should be highlighted in a player's Hero Selection screen during the match, giving players a suggestion on hero swap.
B. "Skill Rating" should be calculated for every hero a player uses, and not a blanket rating.
C. "Preferred Heroes" should be selected by a player when they queue for matchmaking.
D. "Matchmaking" should consider points B and C, so it doesn't build a team for failure (like putting to Genji mains or two Mercy mains on the same team).

Whew, that's a relief! I was worried they might have created a poorly designed, opaque ranking system. Turns out I'm just too stupid to comprehend it.