BuzzerBeater Forums

Right now I am sure the BBs are having some discussions about what and how to do for next season.

I think they should put together a panel of vet users, champs etc. NT champs, B3 champs, and teams with really high WR for many seasons.

I think you're absolutely right that the opinions of high level managers should definitely be obtained and valued. But I also think that it's important to remember that this is not just a game for those few managers who are competing at the highest level, but also for the tens of thousands of users in various strata up and down the league pyramids of various sizes. I would argue, in fact, that in terms of what's best for BB as a whole, getting it right for the vast majority of users who will never sniff the top levels is probably more important than fixing the ecosystem at the very top.

Of course, unlike relative ease in choosing the panel you've proposed, it's a lot harder to quantify who would be a good person to include in a panel to represent the masses. I am certain that there are people in the lower levels who may not have been NT/U21 managers but have demonstrated to those people that they know what they are talking about and maybe assisted in gameplanning type discussions (rather than just scouting, which is useful but doesn't require the same type of decisionmaking). I think it's important to try to ensure that the solution that we're looking for works for all levels of the game, not merely to address how broken it is at the top level or to put an easy button in for lower levels.

To suggest that anyone who HASN'T been winning knows about the GE is crazy. But I honestly believe that guys who HAVe been winning and have won, indicates they know a thing or two. There is only 1 B3 winner and 2 WCs every year (NT)....for the NTs their nation says a lot about it in terms of size and the number of users who have completely thrown away their team/never done anything but train also helps....but the guys who get the WC get some credit. At the end of the day the BBs should look to these guys for some input, not just ignore them.

On the other hand, take any one of these teams, and have him start a new team in, say, Italia. They're still the same people and still know the engine as well as they did before, but not only are they not winning the B3 any time soon, it may well be 10 seasons or more before they're getting a sniff of the top league. And it may be even harder if they can't rely on having a financial advantage that came with an early start date, and have to build the arena with today's economy rather than the one from early seasons.

Now, of course, if the question is how does the engine work when almost nearly identical teams of incredibly high-salaried players are played in essentially the same tactics over and over, naturally, nobody but the teams that are doing it would have any reasonable input at all. But well over 90% of the users of the game (and that's generous) will never come close to that level - but perhaps there are fellows (Manon, for example currently) who have experience with different tactics and players builds and can contribute information on how those players and tactics perform against a similar level of competition. B3 level players for the most part don't have the luxury - I'm not sure if you're one who's said it, but a major reason given against outside offenses in the elite level of play is that it would be too expensive to have the players needed to make it work. So on the economy of those issues, sure, the B3 players know that perfectly - but how many of them have real experience playing with and against those outside-focused offenses to know how they actually perform in the engine? Would a rejiggering of the salary formula fix the issue, or is there just not effect from certain outside skills, for example?

At the end of the day therea re guys who HAVE PROVED they are smart and can understand the GE and figure it out better than others. THat have PROVEd they know how given players with given stats will perform. Playing for a long time and the right league environment are a factor for sure...but that DOES NOT DESCREDIT THE ACTUAL WINNERS.

That all makes perfect sense... if you're looking to create a new game engine exclusively for the B3. I don't suppose you'll at least acknowledge that it makes business sense for BB to actually put some effort into trying to make the game more appealing for the tens of thousands of people who will never be at that level, rather than act as if the only thing that matters is the less than one percent at the very top.