As many people have pointed out recently, there are many problems with the current balancing of missiles in War Thunder. At the moment the R-27ER is dominant for BVR combat, the Aim-54A/C is the only Active Radar Homing missile in the game, the R-73 is the only thrust vectoring missile, the Aim-9M is the only missile with a smokeless motor, and everyone feels like the other countries have better armament. I feel this, and it is annoying, but I have some ideas. While some of these ideas may pose issues with historical accuracy I think it will improve the quality of life in War Thunder.
Currently the issues are:
Russian missiles dominate at long range (R-27ER)
Russian/Soviet aircraft (MiG-29/SU-27) are the only ones to have a thrust vectoring missile (R-73) (EDIT: The SRAAM does exist, but the R-73 is the missile without NATO near-pear technology)
American aircraft (F-14A/B) are the only ones to have Fox-3 missiles (Aim-54A/C)
American/NATO aircraft (F-16C/F-15A) are only ones with smokeless motor missiles (Aim-9M)
Games very quickly turn into furballs without any chance to “traditionally” dogfight
At times it can feel like there are only missiles with no chance to get kills while being “stock” vs. “spaded” aircraft
Here is what I think could help War Thunder at top tier when it comes to aircraft:
Create a gamemode where players can participate in 1v1/2v2 duels, starting in the air at a quick pace. This will allow players to have a chance to have more “traditional” dogfights without worrying about third and fourth parties. A gamemode like this would also allow people to play more to the strengths of their aircraft.
Lower the performance of the top-tier missiles (R-73/Aim-9M/R-27ER/Aim-54A/C), and wait for there to be better mechanics ingame in order to fight against these missiles to enhance their performance. Make people rely on their skills in their chosen airframe.
Make the top-tier (BR 11.3+) air RB battles go to Enduring Confrontation matches so that there is more distance, more opportunities for cover, and a more realistic mode of combat.
In matches that are not Enduring Confrontation, have less players in the game so that there are less furballs and more dogfighting.
While I know that a few of these ideas may be unpopular, think about the effects they would have before yelling at me in the comments. Anyways, thats what I think and I know that I will get told im wrong in 5 million different ways.
I know this is only talking about top tier but I do want to point out that Britian has had thrust vectoring aams since 2019.
I see where you are going but artificial nerfs are something I want gaijin to stay awsy from. We already have enough people complaining about tank reload times.
I play just enough ARB to know it is a hot, stanky, mess and I hope some day they can find a way to fix it and maybe even help new players learn how to use all the fancy features of their planes and set proper controls without having to spend an hour or two researching on youtube.
Real big EC Maps and I mean BIG ones with diverse objectives for both fighters, bombers and attackers, something like DCS but with the fun War Thunder gameplay.
Seeing the datamined radar command posts, SAM launchers etc makes me hopeful that day may come soon
Always feels about the same as the Aim-9M to me, he only issue i have in tip tier is, well, just the fact everything is so advanced. Takes luck and skill, but more often than not luck. I think spreading the gameplay to more EC maps will help a lot. Too fast paced TDM as it is now.
Changing things can be useful, not flat-out just removing things. Maybe try figuring out solutions rather than getting pissed off at something you can’t control.
the solution is removing them from the game 4head, i think iv stated that before, no other country has shit like the pantsir, strela, 2s38, ka-50, and all the spalless t series tanks all rolled into one tight best nation package