Balanced maps take away some elements of chance from the game. If you think it is good or bad depends on what game types you prefer.
As 1:1 already has very few options when it comes to setup and strategy, balanced maps force players even more to do the standard optimum strategy, and the luck - which is finally the only deciding factor between equal opponents - is reduced to the outcome of one or two battles, i.e. most often how the AI doing the combats decides to follow the set strategies (or not).
I like SE IV for variety, not for the need to follow a clear narrow path of known optimal decisions as precise as possible. For me, KOTH got boring after I roughly have figured out this optimum. And with totally balanced starting conditions, I would find it even more boring. But it really depends - I also dislike chess for similar reasons, and a lot of people do like it
Re: Balanced Systems for KOTH games and other
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