Quote Originally Posted by Mawlzy View Post
Bingo! Instead we get many new players regarding the whole thing as a lottery in which they have no agency, and thus either quitting the mode, or perhaps worse never learning their jobs well nor contributing to their team because "what's the point?"

There are a couple of threads on Reddit in defense of Shatter, in which many self-confessed unstudied players note they like that map because at least they feel they are doing something by smashing ice (despite the fact they're really not). In other words, in the face of oppressive PvP from premades, they default to PvE.

I'd suggest anyone frustrated by "casuals" playing poorly might consider the possibility that, in many cases, this is a direct result of premades creating despondency.
If there is a "bingo" moment here, a new player often has no agency because they don't understand how FL works, they have never PvPed at all (no situational awareness), or they have never even used their new skills or know other job PvP skills - there should be a mandatory tutorial to introduce them before FL can be joined
However- the actual alliance composition is RNG, and that is because this is not a PVP oriented game. This is not EvE, nor any number of other PvP oriented games of which I have played (I know Eve, but haven't played it). That doesn't mean that a relatively small number of players can't make a difference .


So is saying that "matches are supposed to be as balanced as possible" that's a worthy goal to aim for - however now you have a lot of factors to consider (1) the PvP design team, and the mode that they balance for - it is NOT Frontline. (2) Do they consider the presence of pre-mades to be an issue ? Past history says no- they would have to agree. (3) New players quitting the mode- from my own view, at even this late in the expansion- queues don't seem to be an issue- that's also based on the number of sprouts I see- BUT I would trust Square's metrics more than just my experience in queues.

In addition, I don't rely upon a few Reddit threads (which I also follow) to see whether there are "oppressive premades" - people often whack ice in Shatter for the same reason that they say "let them fight" in any FL mode, and in many (not all) cases because they think BH doesn't apply in Shatter.

Finally- given some of the endgame stats, I'm not going to blame premades "creating despondancy". Not when I see some players with practically no damage, assists or kills. If someone is that easily discouraged, perhaps they should ask for some tips, or try another mode, or try another job.