Re: The problem with Countermeasures in modern combat BFs (especially 2042)

Thank you for the invitation! 

I was a proponent of something like you are suggesting back in the BF4 days however I've since come to a different line of thinking. The reason is that you're either looking at leaving a pilot totally vulnerable to one type of missile or you'd have to allow them both counter measures and then provide them with a warning that specifically tells them what kind of missile is being fired at them. That's another key bind you have to make so things get a bit more complicated. More importantly though, that's a lot of UI and coding work that has to be done and DICE has a less than stelar track record of getting these right on feature launch, especially anything missile related. We need only look at Below Radar and the ongoing problems with Jet Radar missiles as examples.

In terms of magic countermeasures, I understand that IRL it is not uncommon to have a countermeasure system that fires alternating bursts of flares and chaff since the aircraft may not always know what type of missile is inbound. So the current flare like system can be thought of more as a flare/chaff combo. And while the current system lacks a complete anti missile array like ECM, towed decoys, lasers and the like, it does confer the advantage of being simple to implement, understand and maintain/balance. And I think with the exception of the Nightbird and maybe toning down the 40mm on the transport helis, most of the aircraft issues are largely resolved and we're in a decent place balance wise.

With regards to countermeasures defeating laser designation. Yes, this is a bit far fetched, but for balance purposes it kind of needs to be in place. If not, then you'd have to add another CM system specifically for laser guided AA with all the potential baggage that entails. Or you could let the laser guided AA be detectable with a specific cockpit warning noise (but undefeatable in terms of CM) and then reduce the damage to compensate. I think this still ends up being OP though as players could effectively lock down areas with SOFLAM.

So back to the current system, for thematic purposes we can imagine that by 2042 aircraft are equipped with some sort of laser based CM that can detect the approach of laser guided missiles and overwhelm their guidance systems. I think ultimately that a streamlined system better suits Battlefield, especially given the problematic history DICE has had with missile/cm matters.