Not a top tier player and I usually just play games against myself,but they last longer and each side seems to win the same amount compared to 402nd edition. That’s with no bid so I would say it’s more balanced than global.
Here’s a quote from Oztea "This has gone through a lot of games and seems balanced.
Some quirks people in the community have brought to my attention are
A) Japan can put the hurt on India (India Crush) if they want to, and you can’t stop it unless you max defend. But IF you max defend you have a decent shot at holding, so its super risky for Japan, and if you see it coming they have thrown the game away. So be cautious with India.
B) US can buy all transports round 1 and send a ton of units to Africa round 1. Really messes up Germany’s mojo. But….lets Japan get a head start in the Pacific.
The counter to this is an airbase in Holland (which MAY be added to the setup) that allows massive German airpower to strike SZ 91 and kill all the US transports while they are lightly defended."