As an old player who has been playing since the S2 season, to be honest, what surprises me most about this update is the balance adjustment of air and ground weapons. The previous play style of mindlessly loading up on ground-attack missiles and charging at the opposite base at the beginning is obviously not that useful now. Officials have cut down the damage of some high-burst ground ammunition, and at the same time increased the durability of anti-aircraft firepower. This wave of changes has directly slowed down the pace of the game. In the past, there were less situations where the base was bulldozed in waves in three minutes. Now it is more necessary for teammates to cooperate to seize air supremacy first, and then consider ground targets. I think this is actually a good thing, at least the tactical depth has improved.
In addition, the maneuverability parameters of fighters in the new version have also been fine-tuned, especially the turning rate at medium and low altitudes. Many players complain that it has become more difficult to get started, but I think this is what simulated air combat should be like. The simple routine of diving at high altitude and shooting each other head-on can now be easily pulled sideways by highly maneuverable aircraft. When I drove the F/A-18 myself, I clearly felt that energy management becomes particularly important after entering a dogfight. The trade-off between height and speed directly affects your survival rate. This kind of detail actually tests the understanding of fighter aircraft performance, rather than simply relying on equipment values to crush them.
However, there is also a small concern, that is, the new version may not be friendly to novices. The official said it was to simplify the operation to attract new players, but this balance adjustment has actually made the entry barrier higher. In a team group I joined, several newcomers who had just played for a month complained that they were being beaten unilaterally by veteran players and felt that the experience was not good. I hope that some targeted teaching levels will be released in the future, or the matching mechanism can more reasonably separate new and old players, otherwise the retention rate of newcomers will be worrying.
As for team friendly battles, I feel that the tactical fault tolerance rate is higher after this update. In the past, it was less likely that one side would get two top fighter planes and it would snowball. After all, the burst damage is not enough now, and the space for grouping and pulling has become larger. Our team's recent training matches often have to wait until the last minute to decide the winner. The tension is indeed more exciting than before. Generally speaking, this version is in the right direction. I just hope that the balance of performance can be more refined and not completely destroy the unpopular models. After all, military fans and players hope that every aircraft has a reason to play. 🚀🛩️