Balance issues have been a recurring problem in For Honor. Between newer Heroes reducing the viability of the original cast and certain Heroes having far more options than others, it’s an ongoing discussion. With the release of Marching Fire, this has only increased. The community has noticed the gap between older Heroes and the new expansion Heroes. In addition, older Heroes such as Lawbringer and Warlord are drawing Ubisoft ire for not receiving reworks.
The community feels that the balance issues have rendered competitive play unfair at best – and unplayable at worst. Some players feel as if the dev team disregards player feedback in favour of data, ignoring the overall issue of the Heroes themselves. This appears to have finally hit a breaking point, as several top streamers have announced they’re no longer going to put out content for the game.
Content creator fallout with For Honor
Content creator Illest Truth stated in a recent video that he will no longer be releasing content on For Honor. The streamer cited a lack of consideration for community input and poor direction among other reasons. He went on to criticize the balance issues, stating that Heroes weren’t consistent. Streamers Kenzo and Mulisious have quit as well, citing similar reasons. Some other factors include a lack of motivation and a feeling that For Honor has changed since the expansion’s release. With some Heroes panned as outright “broken” and others in dire need of buffs, this is hardly surprising. Ubisoft has marched forward with new game modes, heroes, weapons, and armor. What they haven’t focused on, in the community’s opinion, are the most crucial elements of For Honor – the gameplay.
The key issues with For Honor
The biggest issue the community – and the majority of serious streamers – have with For Honor is the unbalanced roster. As the game progresses, For Honor releases new Heroes with each season. These new Heroes follow an unpopular trend of rendering older Heroes obsolete. With complex attacks, better mixups, and new mechanics attached, the older roster feels outdated.
Learn to play?
For Honor fans certainly aren’t impressed by a recent episode of Warrior’s Den. Creative Director Roman Campos-Oriola responded to requests for Lawbringer – one of the original Heroes – to get a rework. Instead of considering this, Roman replied by stating that players should “learn how to play Lawbringer” before considering a rework. This caused outrage among the higher-level players and For Honor veterans. The argument is that even after a player masters Lawbringer, he simply is not viable at the top of the game.
 Ubisoft finally addresses balance issues
In the most recent Warrior’s Den, Community Developer Eric Pope stated that the team has heard the community. Ubisoft is considerably open to community feedback, however, some feel that they have overlooked major issues. Mr. Pope urged the community to put together a list of proposed balance changes on the official game subreddit. The community has more than complied, with dozens of balance threads being posted not only on the regular subreddit, but the competitive one as well. There were many considerably well-thought suggestions with significant detail.
The community has feedback
Ubisoft asked for specific details – not just vague “balance” requests – and the community came through in spades. Here are the most-discussed changes that For Honor‘s community proposes for the dev team:
- Light attacks should be faster across the board. Slower light attacks result in unsafe and nonviable options for players.
- Tracking (Hero movement following the opponent) feels unbalanced and should be normalized. Some Heroes’ moves move the player towards the opponent, while others can easily be evaded.
- Zone attacks should not only be faster but cancellable across the board. Some Heroes have unsafe Zone attacks and refuse to even use them.
- Increase Hero health across the cast. With many attacks in For Honor being unreactable, players feel that Heroes should have more health to compensate for moves they are unable to counter.
- Revenge should not be available in 1v1 fights, as it is meant for gank (2v1,3v1, etc) scenarios. Players should also be able to activate Revenge during CC (crowd control) moves, as there are currently many ways to circumvent a player with Revenge. Additionally, a revenge meter on an opponent’s bar would be a better way to properly manage and gauge Revenge feeding.
- Stamina cost for parrying, blocking and feinting need tweaking. A long-standing problem in For Honor has been the game rewarding defensive play and punishing players for taking the offensive. Tweaks to the stamina system could encourage offensive play, making encounters less of a ‘staring contest’ than they currently are.
- Input window on Conqueror’s Shield Bash should be tighter as it’s currently too oppressive.
- Superior Block attacks with an unblockable property make more sense
A more comprehensive list – complete with full character reworks – can be found in this thread on the official subreddit.
A long time coming?
Many of the aforementioned changes are not new concepts from the community. In fact, the majority of issues that players have outlined have been longstanding problems. Fans have made it clear that they want a more balanced experience across the board, with movesets that seem fair. It’s also felt as if some game mechanics make certain Heroes considerably more advantageous to play. This leaves players who stick with the Hero they like feeling as if they’re fighting an uphill battle.
Any popular examples of this?
A popular example is a comparison between Superior Block, an ability that both Warlord and Conqueror have. Conqueror’s ability allows him to be fully mobile, giving him tons of holding power. Warlord’s, in comparison, requires him to stand still. This has been widely considered not only unfair, but wholly illogical. Both Heroes are Heavy classes, yet only one of them can move while using a fairly hallmark Heavy ability. Such examples exist in dozens across popular feedback.
Only time will tell as to what Ubisoft’s next move is. They have feedback from the community, now. Frustrated content creators and prominent veterans are fed up and ready to quit. The ball is in For Honor‘s court.
Will Ubisoft implement substantial enough changes to satisfy the community? Let us know below!
