Now that Season 2 has been live for a little bit, the New World team is reflecting on matters of balance, and while win rates are overall well-balanced, there are some trouble spots and inconsistencies that need attention.
Creative Director Dave Verfaillie notes that where they are right now is one of their better balanced moments. Between best and worst weapons, there's a deviation of about 1.1%, with damage also being in a good place. Ranged still has a bit of a damage advantage, but kill distribution is within a good range, so ultimately they're pretty happy about that right too.
However, one of the big problems, and this was also touched upon in a recent community Q&A, is that quality matches are sometimes a little too few and far between. This is more of a matchmaking issue, Verfaillie says, and better matchmaking is something the team has already committed to. Since it is a large technical issue and involves a lot of design considerations, they don't have a timeline. But it will take a while, though it does seem like the devs really want the community to be aware that the matchmaking improvements will happen.
Other topics touched upon are Arenas and War, and similar patterns hold, with some weapons more or less used, but win rates being “relatively well distributed”. In this area, however certain builds are proving to be notching higher rates than they’d like to see, in terms of keeping things balanced.
Season 2 will see a balance change in increased HP, which will be handled in a way if you invest early in con then you'll have more HP and it should help others perhaps not necessarily go for glass cannons, but to look for additional options. Reduced dodging cost is something they're looking for players to invest in, so they’ll tweak dex.
Overall, the team seems to be generally happy about where rates are right now, but there are a number of little changes and incremental changes that they're looking for. They're also seeing that the Detonate Heartrune might be a little overpowered, He was not finished with adjustments to perks.
Watch the full Q&A for all things balance and specifics, and head to New World for more details.
