Posted 29 July 2017 - 08:48 AM
I think 10v12 should be an option... for private matches. More options for private games are always welcome.
Forcing the entire QP queue to play that way is a sure-fire recipe for disaster.
Generally speaking, the easiest class to play is heavy- they have good armor, great firepower, and decent mobility all in one package. Consequently, the heavy drop queue isnormally much larger than the queues for the other weight classes, except where there is a new release in another class or PGI posts class-specific event rewards. It's not hard to understand why this happens: most people want to give themselves the greatest possible chance of achieving the highest possible personal score.
The same thing would happen if PGI made QP asymmetrical. Even if the overall win/loss rate doesn't change (although I rather doubt it would be that easy to balance), the Clan team will always have more kills to spread around- that's more opportunities for greater personal gain. Most of the time, half or more of a team in a 12v12 match doesn't get a single killshot; if you reduce the number of enemies per player, and increase the number of friendlies it takes to kill each enemy, then you decrease the probability that anyone but the best of the best will get any kills at all.
10v12 balance works in a strategy game where one player controls the entire team- regardless of how many IS 'Mechs it takes to kill a Clan 'Mech, the player still wins in the end if they play well. All the kills belong to that player, and their end-of-match score reflects the effort put into the win. In an action shooter, where one player controls one 'Mech, it is unreasonable to implement that kind of asymmetrical balance, because you are asking a certain percentage of one team to accept a bad personal outcome for the benefit of their teammates... while the other team makes no such sacrifice.
The entirely predictable consequence is that the Clan queue would explode while the IS queue would be deserted save for the handful of lore-hounds who don't mind the challenge or don't care that their KDR and damage-per-round will tank. Or, if you allow IS v IS and Clan v Clan, then all of the buckets dry out as each player turtles up in the mode they feel gives them the best chance of not being stomped.
It's a bad idea and always has been.