Forum Discussion

Seasoned Adventurer

2 months ago

Slowly becoming pay to win

Title says it all. Some of the new premade builds coming out are just too good. Jean Spectre Sniper anyone? What a joke. They are slowly making this a pay to win in WOC but are doing it very sneak...

feedback

rsandersr47

Seasoned Ace

2 months ago

Suggesting a build is only as good as the player controlling him is just not true. It's like arguing nature vs nurture and suggesting an athlete is only as good as his coaches allow for him to be. I promise a 6'5, 4.2 40, Beast of an athlete with avg coaching will often out perform a 5'2 kid with 0 athleticism and the best coaches in the world. Now we all know both come into play, and it's true that player ability and skills are more important than the build, I'll concede that much.. but if we are playing chess and I pay for a few extra pieces.. it's an advantage, you are paying to be better not a guaranteed win by any means, but maybe Jean gets you 1 more win every 5-10 games.. that's p2w.. and it begins a very slippery slope. Where do we go from here? Are we going to expect even better builds in the future? Saying these advantages are only advantages of the player takes advantage of them seems like an excuse to suggest p2w in any game doesn't exist. If I pay and get a shark card in GTA and buy a jet to take out my friends but crash it into a building then p2w isn't in the game because the character in the game is only as good as the player using him. We all know having a jet would be a huge advantage, of course it doesn't BUY you the win but it is "pay to win" easier. If i was able to play someone equal to me in every way and they had Jean and I made a custom build, they are going to beat me more often. The gane of hockey is random, bad bounces happen.. the build isn't so good that it can't be stopped but we can't act like this is good for the game. It puts money in EA pockets but it's bad for the game. Remind me again YOUR words for why we go X-factors innthis game? Something about players feeling/ behaving differently was it? Now you make a build that is just better than what anyone can make so people buy it and choose that and we get rid of player creativity, and differentiation. I gotta ask how this makes sense? What is the long term plan here? Is WoC just gonna be a money grab now? At this point if we're gonna do that just go 2k route.. make us pay for attribute points (or earn them) and build out our guy.. at least we will have custom builds rather than pay for pre-made one's.

KidShowtime1867
Hero
2 months ago
In a video game, builds are constrained by balance systems and do not replace player skill, decision-making, or execution. Paid or preset builds may be more efficient or forgiving, but they do not prevent non-paying players from competing, which is a key requirement for true pay-to-win.
The real-world athlete, chess, and GTA analogies are flawed because NHL is a high-variance, rule-balanced game where no build guarantees success or bypasses core mechanics. The idea of two “equal players” differing only by build is unrealistic, as player reads, positioning, and teamwork matter far more.
Preset builds do not eliminate creativity; they lower the barrier to entry and standardize roles without invalidating custom builds. Claims about a slippery slope toward heavy monetization are speculative rather than evidence-based.
Ultimately, the issue is perception: losing to something someone paid for feels unfair, but that feeling is not proof the system is pay-to-win. Skill remains the primary determinant of outcomes.
EA_Aljo
Community Manager
2 months ago

Suggesting a build is only as good as the player controlling him is just not true. It's like arguing nature vs nurture and suggesting an athlete is only as good as his coaches allow for him to be.

Most of my club runs with sub 6 ft. players to maximize speed. On defense as well. Why are we able to beat clubs running bigger players focused on hitting? Because they focus on hitting. They are frequently out of position chasing for hits. I'm not saying we never lose to them, but we win more than we lose and are going up against the same teams as everyone else. I also said team chemistry is important. So, a good coach is going to teach their team how to play together along with focusing on individual skills.

but maybe Jean gets you 1 more win every 5-10 games.. that's p2w

Can you prove the win was based solely on this build and would never have happened if they were using a different build? People use p2w as a catch all for something that provides an advantage. Wins are not being bought. Again, if you don't have the skill to back it up, you're not going to be successful. Just like those in HUT with the best possible team are still going to lose against a more skilled played with a lower rated team.

What is the long term plan here?

We'll have to wait and see what is announced. I don't have any details on what's coming in the future.