All right first off let me say that I love the concept of Warzone I like the multiple objectives present and the amount of variety it offers but If I’m being honest there are a lot of issues that arise from this game mode.
One of these issues is the “snow ball” effect and it is very obvious that this a huge problem within warzone. For most of you that don’t know what the snow ball effect is, it’s in more simple terms, when a small advantage gains momentum and turns into a bigger and more powerful advantage over time. (Kinda like how a tiny snowball becomes bigger if you roll it down a hill, hence the name). This is prominent due to the req system currently in place and don’t get me wrong I honestly love the req system as it lets me play to my liking and it adds a ton of variety compared to most other game types but the system currently in place is broken due to this snowball effect. This effect has the possibility to manifest due to ONE player. As one player gains req lvls due to boss kills, spartan kills, or base captures he begins to gain more powrful req items. He then uses those req items to gain even more req items via the same methods, then he does this again … and again … and again. If that said person was more of a team player then the snowball effect would gain momentum much more rapidly and with much more negative consequences for the opposing team. Let’s say that the player spawns with a powerful req item, he then uses that req item to capture a enemy base (keep in mind this player is also fighting off spartans at the same time which also increases req level) , this not only greatly increase his req level but also moderately increases his teammates req level even if they had nothing to do with said base capture. This then allows teammates to feed off of other players accomplishments even though they are providing little to no help with the objectives. These “leeches” are rewarded with more powerful armaments as where the opposing team not only just lost base but they are now also punished for losing that base due to the fact that they will have to travel longer distances to reach enemy bosses or capture enemy bases. This then increases the probability of death for the opposing team as they will have less weaponary and more distance to travel.
There are several methods to solve or decrease this issue from occuring but many of these methods bring up other problems.
- “Blue Shell” approach
This method derives from the blue shell in Mario Kart where the players closest to the bottom gain advantages to more so balance the disadvantages they have. This method can be implemented through several ways. One way being by giving some sort of buff to the losing team when all bases are captured wether that be speed boost(to minimize the punishiment of traveling) or higher req recharge (to minimize the punishment of not being able to reach objectives in time i.e bosses) or both. Another way to implement this would be to give the losing team minor advantages if the score is a certain point difference. I really am not sure about the blue shell approach as it can cause a few more problems but it’s just an idea.
2)Teamwork/ Individual approach
This can go to ways but they both tend to minimize the snowball effect. Players should either be rewarded for teamwork via capturing bases and killing bosses (not spartan kills) or for individual work ( to remove the leeches). I believe the individual approach would work best but I feel 343 would like to promote teamwork rather than lone wolfing.
3)Communist approach
This is a more controversial method but I believe this would be the best one. This method will give everybody the same req levels no matter how good or bad a team does. This can be done by syncing up the req level to the time in a warzone match. (Req level 2 at 1 min, req level 3 at 2min and 30s etc…) This will not only eliminate the snowball effect but also cause player to think more about what to use considering that they are gaining req as fast as everyone else.(A player might spawn with a spartan laser since THEY KNOW the enemy team can spawn with a wraith, ghost ultra ect). Honestly I want to see this implemented as not only would this seem more fair but it will also make warzone a bit more competitive while still keeping the social aspect intact.
What do you guys think? Do you think warzone is fine as it is? Which method is your favorite? Any other methods you could think of?
By the way this post was inspired by the following vid
This guy is a great youtuber and his vid got me thinking. Watch the video if you want a bit more in depth info.