Seriously, how much longer do we have to put up with this broken balance in simulator mode?
Airfield Anti‑Air – Overkill
You get shot down from 11 km away by airfield AA. That’s not defense, that’s a wall you can’t break through.
There’s zero chance for tactical maneuvers, because you’re doomed the moment you even try to approach. This isn’t simulation, it’s a punishment barrier.
Naval Anti‑Air – Close Combat Denied
The ships’ AA is ridiculously overtuned.
It’s practically impossible to get close, let alone carry out an attack. That wipes out one of the most exciting aspects of the mode.
If you can’t even approach ships, then why are they there? Decoration?
Rewards – No Progress
The rewards have not increased at all, even though the difficulty has skyrocketed.
That’s a slap in the face: higher risk, zero reward.
Simulator mode is supposed to mean greater challenge with greater payoff – right now it’s just suffering with no motivation.
Demands, Not Requests
Airfield AA range must be reduced immediately.
Naval AA must be balanced, so it’s not an impenetrable wall.
Rewards must be raised, otherwise simulator mode is pointless.
Summary:
In its current state, simulator air battles are not fun, just frustrating. Overpowered AA and worthless rewards make the mode practically dead. If the developers are serious about making this enjoyable, then urgent changes are required. We’re not asking, we’re demanding: proper balance and meaningful rewards!
Withwise to the AF AA. I’m waiting the arrival of ARM early next year to see the impact that has on the overall balance. It should be dangerous, but with proper sead… It could be a really fun mechanic.
If that doesn’t have any effect, I have a half dozen suggestions for mitigation but it should still be effective. Nothing worse than AA that doesn’t do anything.
I’m actually wanting extra SAMs around the map, make sead a real part of the wider gameplay.
As for naval, bar the carriers which have a host of issues (like only one side having enabled AA on their carrier) I dont find the destroyers too bad, though does need retuning for lower BRs where torps are a part of the gameplay
I understand what you’re saying, and you make some valid points. Convoy missions right now really do come with too much loss, especially at higher BRs where the AA almost guarantees you’ll be shot down—either before dropping bombs or immediately after. Getting only ~135 points and a few thousand SL for that, while repair costs keep you in the negative, is definitely not motivating.
The speed gap between 10.7 and 11.7 aircraft is also a serious issue: flying an A‑10, you simply can’t compete with a MiG‑23, and that’s very noticeable in matchmaking.
I think convoy AA should be toned down, or at least the rewards increased, so that taking the risk isn’t pointless. And for matchmaking, it would help if aircraft performance was considered more carefully, not just BR numbers.
Overall, I agree: in its current state there’s too much frustration and too little reward. Hopefully the devs will reconsider the balance, because simulator mode could be far more enjoyable if these problems were addressed.
add to the list AI surveillance aircraft that goes too fast to catch up, theyre going too fast to even complete their loop inside map boundaries sometimes, AI bombers also complete their loop around the map faster sometimes and leave and most planes never catch them
Yes, this is unfortunately another serious issue. The AI reconnaissance aircraft often fly at such speeds that players have no chance of catching them, and sometimes they don’t even finish their loop within the map boundaries. The same goes for AI bombers, which can complete their circuit too quickly and then leave, meaning most planes never get the opportunity to intercept them.
This isn’t just frustrating, it undermines a key part of the gameplay. It would be great if the developers addressed this and adjusted the speed and behavior of AI aircraft so they actually become meaningful targets in simulator battles, rather than unreachable ones.
Given that air-to-air player-versus-player combat is more valuable, is more than obvious that air simulator battles strike tasks are at some point pointless or don’t give a fair reward compared to combat tasks, airfield anti-air vehicles is not a problem since airfield itself should be the last main task to win the match (theorically), naval and convoy anti-air in other hand is something else, I personally prefer doing strike rather than fighting, and I’ll agree that strikers in air simulator battles is somewhat undervalued, hopefully Gaijin improves this.
Someone hasn’t figured out how to defeat VT-1s yet, and stay away from airfields until they figure it out.
The rewards system is why people feel bad, but not in the way you describe.
Being punished heavily when you’re on the losing side is extremely difficult to cope with, and the only solution here is to end spawn costs/repair costs entirely in simulator so people don’t feel like they should leave just because their side is losing 20 minutes in.
I don’t think it’s just the reward system that’s bad, but rather everything I’ve listed so far as problems. And the fact that some players quit after 20 minutes just because their team is losing is simply laziness. They should try to turn the situation around – quitting is definitely not the solution.
Spawn and repair costs could indeed be reduced somewhat so they don’t feel overly punishing, but I don’t agree with removing them entirely. With proper balance these costs can remain part of the game, they just shouldn’t make it impossible for players to continue.
The VT‑1 missiles are especially problematic: for aircraft that don’t have long‑range offensive weapons, it’s simply unfair, because they can’t do anything against them. This basically eliminates tactical options and leaves players without a real chance.
No, it’s not laziness. It’s the fact that you’re not going to make any SL if you’re a premium account haver, and go extremely negative otherwise.
That’s why people leave.
Spawn cost being reduced will change nothing.
And aircraft don’t have long range offensive weaponry? AGM-65s [all of them], GPS bombs, etc.
I regularly play simulator battles, and I don’t quit just because the match is going badly. You have to make the most of it – that’s all. Adapting to the situation is part of the game, and in my view that’s what makes it worth playing through to the end.
