Tell me please, because I don't know any difference between then and now.
HiTech
The post referring to 'then and now' was
When two sides was tried more than twenty years ago, there was no ENY.
Or was it
dude what could these conditions that have changed be? being a foreigner I would love to learn.
semp
Are you saying there is no difference between twenty years ago and now?
ENY is mentioned by caldera as being a difference. Semp is asking for what conditions have changed. A bit odd as he knows full well what has changed.
Back on point. HITECH, the truth is that much has changed and there is a massive difference between then and now. Your game offering has changed in many ways, from the limited dar to 'all seeing dar' to the current hybrid. From GVs being bomb**** fodder to invisible hidetard GVs. From Titanic Tuesdays to Find a Fight Fridays. Mass Brawls to hit and run. Being ganged to gang banging......it all changes.
In my opinion
there is an issue with combat in the game and there are many factors influencing it. With respect to the 2v1 ganging, yes, I believe it is an issue and I believe 2 sides is an option that should be considered. I do not think I can name any other current game out there where there are 3 sides in open conflict. I think the last one I remember was Red Alert.
Is 2 sides the answer? I do not know, cannot hurt to try. I think smaller maps are a must given the population and if they were smaller maybe 3 sides would still be relevant.
My parting shot. Herein lies your problem. To go to 2 sides requires 2 sided maps. You do not have many of those and it appears that it takes 2 years to create a map (buggy at that). so, you are in a corner. Your player numbers are too low for your maps and certainly too low for 3 sides on those large maps but you cannot produce maps easily in order to address that issue so your best option is to do nothing.
Respectfully