Thoughts on seer reinforcement
Seer has been nerfed since I started playing, and now Seer is buffed again.😵 First, I don’t know if the designers have played this game; they don’t know how frustrating that season was back then, a...
Forum Discussion
It's true that debuff abilities tend to create stress gameplay experiences regardless of whether they're strong or weak. People play games to enjoy their free time, so if those kinds of experiences become more common, it's only natural that some players will drift away.
From the developers' perspective, I can imagine this change being part of an attempt to address the current mobility creep in the game.
That said, extreme buffs and nerfs should both be avoided. Balance changes are like untangling a knot of string: if you pull the wrong thread at the wrong time, the situation only becomes more complicated and harder to fix.
I believe the first step should be bringing overly buffed or overly nerfed characters back to an appropriate state. Neither buffs nor nerfs should be excessive, but developers shouldn't hesitate to make necessary adjustments either.
Trying to compensate by buffing other elements is not a real solution; it's merely postponing the problem. We need to confront the root cause instead of looking away from it. There are no shortcuts to solving balance issues. Even if it's time-consuming, the only way forward is to address them carefully, one step at a time.
Give me an example of the game that has at least 10 pick options that is "balanced" :) I will play it the next day to see if that is the case :P
Closest so far from my experience is Valorant where agents do not matter from "strength" perspective as mechanics in lower ranks matter more and everyone is 1 shot. Agents and abilities come into play when people can communicate, pull off strategies, high/top level play. And even then there are legends that dominate picks for one reason or another.
Apex I think even went on record saying that they do extreme buffs/nerfs on purpose, also to involve legends like Seer back in rotation (dude has been rock bottom pick for like 10+ seasons).
Besides things like that crazy million damage gun I think crazy buffs for legends is actually good, everyone should get one and situation should be like intense = 1 mistake / wrong comp pick and you are in severe disadvantage. So people are forced to think, predict, organize, strategize.
Otherwise Apex has been and will be "W+shoot" close range bot lobby. You know what I mean if you managed to say kidnap people with Wraight portal or catch people running into you in Wattson fences or pressure team into small building and then Caustic gas or Fuse ult them to death. For me that is the essence of the game.
I don't believe it is possible to intentionally rotate the meta through extreme buffs and nerfs while also increasing strategic depth in Apex.
I don't deny your point that this has been achieved in other games. However, whether the same approach can be applied to Apex is a different question, given its unique game design and development environment. At least from the current state of the game, it does not appear to be succeeding. I know even went on record saying that they do extreme buffs/nerfs on purpose intentions and the actual results. But the developers' intentions and the actual results should be evaluated separately.
Nor do I believe that extreme balance changes increase strategic depth. On the contrary, if they widen the power gap between characters, they push players toward a small number of options, which in turn fixes the meta and makes gameplay increasingly repetitive and formulaic.
To me, strategy is not about memorizing the optimal compositions and tactics prepared by the developers and then reproducing them. Strategic depth only exists when players have room to think, make decisions, and find their own solutions based on the situation they face.
The more extreme buffs and nerfs make the strongest options obvious, the more players are encouraged to memorize and reproduce the perceived optimal solution. As a result, opportunities for independent thinking and decision-making become more limited. That is not an increase in strategic depth; if anything, it is a reduction of it.
I support buffs and nerfs when they are necessary. However, I believe excessive buffs and nerfs intended to force meta shifts should be avoided. There is no convenient shortcut that guarantees success.
Not gonna lie it seems that your attention to post reading might correlate to your in game decision making :)
- my point was that no game so far has achieve legend balance! :) unless you can name one or a few
- despite legends being unbalanced you can still make use of other "non meta" just via pure surprise factor - humans are by nature habitual -> when they face something out of ordinary, brain needs to switch form "autopilot" to thinking -> creates a delay or confusion -> you get the upper hand. E.g. Ash snare vs always sliding Axle.
- you can't talk about "meta" or OP legends if you don't even try to think during the game. Every legends can point and shoot. If you play game like that with occasional utility usage...well you 100% Plat or lower unless you are like 1% top aimer - not using abilities is just huge disadvantage in Apex where TTK is high as well as say Valorant where TTK is basically instant
- given above said about TTK in Apex you actually have a lot of time to think, just need to get into that habit vs panicking or intentionally auto-piloting what many especially dumbstick users do
- also if you have been around you should know that changes actually force people to change their strategies. Best example I can recall was "support meta" = Gibby Lifeline Newcastle with gold knockdown shields. Support characters were basically non existing at that point, Gibby was only one somewhat played but in higher tier ranks only. Respawn made that trio basically indestructible -> people learned how to play support -> major nerfs were made -> you still see plenty of those agents in game up to this day
Apex community are just "weird" with all the stats, trying to achieve nr.1 kill X legend in region, "maining" legend while not even using their utility to an average level etc. I mean most play legend because they have heirloom on only that legend...that is just dumbest thing I have ever heard in competitive game = choosing legend because you have a shiny spinny thing that blocks field of view and distracts your attention... if you are that "skilled" I mean every legend is OP vs you :D
Look at that latest heirloom that can produce fireworks...I rest my case.
Start adjusting and learning legends or stop posting stuff like this in forums with 0 objective feedback. That's all I can ask for :) as I am sure I could successfully play any legend vs you and players alike not because I am god of the game but just because I have invested thousands of hours into the game playing every legend in it to a very significant amount of hours while thinking how to maximize their advantage.
Featured Places
Apex Legends Feedback
Give feedback about the Legends, maps, weapons, loot and more in the Apex Legends community forums.Community Highlights
- EA_Mako28 days ago
Community Manager
