(I was going to add this post as a comment to Legoboy's Pe-2 thread, but I think it might be better to stand on it's own and have more consideration. So if it sounds like a reply, it kind of was.)
Actually a point I was trying in vain to make about a year ago, I should reprise. I find that a great deal of interest and speculation is placed on the planes themselves as if they are the driver for success and results. Certainly the attributes and quality of the plane matter to a point, but what really makes a plane effective is the aptitude and experience of the player. This is consistent with most things, for it is the operator that is the driver and the material is just the tool.
People can debate the aspects of the Pe-2, or any other plane type and that is perfectly fine for what it is. When flown by a skilled and experienced player the Pe-2 or any other plane can exceed what could be described as it's base probable expectations. In other words, the more skilled the player, the more any plane can become much more successful statistically. Players who fly a certain plane in great volume can be much more effective than a player who only has limited time and experience.
This was the foundation for my argument in which when considering "buffs" and "nerfs", the decision should be weighed against average performances by average players, which make up the bulk of the volume of players. If there is a small group of highly skilled players flying a certain plane, of course that particular plane is going to seem "over powered". The reason is not necessarily the impact of the planes attributes as much as it is the sheer elevation that the highly skilled player contributes. No one a year ago wanted to have an honest discussion about "over powered players" and how they affect this game, instead it always gravitates back to the planes and their base statistical expectations.
Any plane is just a tool, a bunch of statistical attributes and qualities, what creates success and results is how that plane is commanded by the player. One of the reasons why the match maker struggles to create any semblance of "fairness" is that often it has no way of appraising potential skill, and thus impact on any battle that any particular player can make. If players had rankings, or were ranked into groups, or levels, this could be added. As far as I am aware, the match maker just focuses on plane type and numbers of bots versus humans. If there are other elements, maybe we should be aware of them?
I like many others, have been placed on teams where the other human players were statistically poor. Some of which could have less than 500, 200 or even 100 battles and win rates below 50%, 45%, and 40%. I think these types of balances should be open for debate. Should the match maker simply be "the luck of the draw" or should be as players ask or request something a bit more sophisticated and balanced? I have gone on record saying match maker will never be "fair", and that will always be the case, but that said, there is a lot of room for improvement.
Lastly, "over powered players" are not as "over powered" when competing against peers of similar skills and experience. In more balanced and evenly matched battles, planes do not seem over powered either. It is my assertion that the illusion of whether something seems "over powered" or not is based on very wide "mis-matches" between players during battles. Also in more of an evenly matched and balanced match maker, higher win rate players would see some decline and lower win rate players would see some increase.
The questions are, what is the goal of WG and what is the desire of the player base? Are they similar or vastly different?
Cheers!
Prenzlau
Edited by Prenzlau, 26 March 2019 - 04:09 PM.