I don't understand why you decided to drastically change the weapon balance and loot distribution with the introduction of Season 2. Adding these new hop-ups and other changes have had unintended consequences that are close to ruining this game:
- New attachments - Disruptor and Hammer Point hop-ups, everyone knows these are overpowered - even after the nerf, but adding these in the first place was totally unnecessary. The weapon balance before Season 2 was REALLY GOOD, there were a variety of viable weapons and load-outs to use that catered to many different play styles, all very viable. 301/WIngman, R99/LongBow, Havoc/Peacekeeper.... etc etc etc. There were so many great and viable options - all essentially ruined in Season 2. There WAS NOT one OP weapon that everyone used, nothing need to be fixed. If it ain't BROKEN, DON'T FIX IT. Now you just have people running around looking for an Alternator with a Disruptor hop-up, it's pathetic.
There were also some nearly useless weapons like the Mozambique, p2020 and some would say Alternator and THATS FINE, all games should have weapons like these. These are guns you grab when you drop hot at the beginning of the game in the early fights. They DID NOT need to be buffed so drastically as to totally change the whole meta. The idea that I'm using an Alternator in the end game ridiculous. The increases in damage were fine but the additional hop-ups where just a complete failure, I hope you realize this when you look at the weapon meta this week and TAKE THEM OUT. No other game I can think of had such a great balance of weapon choices prior to Season 2, the fact that you decide to upend this is MIND BOGGLING.
- Loot Distribution - it seems with the addition of all these extra attachments that the loot tables weren't adjusted properly so not it's more difficult to find a gun or good armor in Season 2. Apex's smallish map, fast play require more loot, not less. The RNG factor should be lowered not increased in a game like Apex. All these changes added together have made looting worse.
- Circle size and damage - With the progressive changes to the circle both in the Elite Queue and now Season 2 you are eliminating many different tactics and strategies that made this game very fun and unpredictable, specifically early game. First of all, no BR should have forgiving circles late in the game - after circle 3 it should move fast and be very damaging, but in the first 2-3 circles you should allow it to be forgiving so that the game can play out like a BR not a Multiplayer Deathmatch. What about circle camping? What about it? The great thing about BRs is that many different tactics and strats are possible, if teams want to 'circle camp' early game, so be it. When you make the 2nd and 3rd circle so unforgiving it's impossible to loot a team you just killed because of the circle, this is ANTITHETICAL the whole idea of a Battle Royale game: being able to loot enemies you kill. There's a balance to be struck here, decreasing circle 1 size and the damage taken in circles 2 and 3 went too far, these need to be tuned, that being said I think you are close with getting the circle just right.
Instead of letting players play the game you're forcing specific styles that are having unintended consequences on this game, essentially promoting more HARD CAMPING and HiDING instead of tactical fighting. Crappy weapon meta + bad loot + plus bad early circles = players who hard camp and hide and an increased TTK. There are only a few viable load outs now as far as weapons go, the RNG is much higher because of bad loot distribution.
I know you're looking at data, but you should also look at how the game was played prior to adding the Elite Queue. Some things needed to be tweaked, not drastically changed. I hope you make this game great again, and rollback most of the drastic changes you added in Season 2. APEX LEGENDS was a great game when it rolled out, very little need to be changed, small tweaks here and there, not drastic changes like Season 2.
Thank you.
