@Krieghund:
That assumes that competitive gamers are the primary audience of A&A. I would suspect that they are not. In fact, I would suspect that they are but a small percentage of the total audience. AH’s primary concern is sales. Getting Heavy Bombers and blowing the crap out of your enemies is fun. The average player doesn’t sit for hours and figure out how to maximize every advantage, so it’s not necessarily a game-breaker for them.
The reality of the situation is that AH is producing a game for the masses. There are always going to be tweaks necessary to level the field for competitive play.
Your kidding, right? Either that, or you are totally missing the point.
First, even non-competitive gamers want a competitive game. No one wants to play a game where the outcome is already decided. “Here, you be the loser this game.” Wow, what fun.
Second, competitive gamers correctly know what RUINS a game (i.e. HB “strategy”), which still ruins it for non-competitive gamers. While it takes strategy to play and win at a high level, if the game is broken, it takes no skill, just abuse of the broken system.
Third, HB may be fun…for the person bombing the other guy. But I guarantee you his opponent is not having fun. And secondly, after using the same HB boring strategy, it will no longer become fun, just a way to auto-win. In which case, no one plays, and the game dies.
I cant believe, after all the arguing back on the AH forum, arguing over the carrier rule, and HB, and game balance, that you would be arguing for this incredibly bone-headed decision.
Games in which one side always uses the same overpowered boring strategy is not fun.