charge rifle enjoyer · @iamkillinger
14th Jan 2022 from TwitLonger
killinger thoughts: the importance of pro feedback in algs!
Hi friends! Just a couple “quick” personal notes and reflections from me on the importance and use of feedback in comp Apex/ALGS:
1. Overall, I’ve been working and will continue to work on building and growing a system that allows for constructive, timely discussion about competitive issues between pros and our internal teams. (This happens in the pro league discord feedback channels, I try to always make sure players have places to voice their concerns, or can dm them to me directly. Obviously I’m also on twitter and reddit and all that too.)
Having the pro experience both in and out of game be accessible, understandable, and valued in planning and decision-making has always been one of the most important things to me, and honestly that’s what I hope will be my lasting impact on esports. That doesn’t just mean taking player feedback, it means making sure we have healthy communication between everyone on our end as well. It also means helping players feel like they’re able to get their thoughts and feelings across in the first place. We’ve only had one split so far where I’ve been fully part of ALGS, but I have already made a point of asking for player votes and discussions on various topics in our discord. We use that feedback for planning and to guide our approach to changes and adjustments. I will continue to do this going forward, and am always looking to refine the process.
Pro feedback is important. Fan feedback is important. Dev feedback is important. TO feedback is important. I focus on the pro feedback because that’s part of my job, but all of them need to be considered and given a voice for us to find the best solutions to problems, the best path to grow. I’m always gonna fight to make sure the pro voice is heard, and that constructive conversation can come from it.
a. NOTE: While seeing screenshots leaked out of that discord may seem kinda cool on social media, it does make it infinitely harder for me to have people (players and staff) feel comfortable contributing to conversations we have there if they are worried about leaks. If you’re in the pro league discord, consider the impact that sharing a screenshot of what someone said has on our ability to have future conversations.
b. EVEN MORE IMPORTANT NOTE: Not all changes can be decided upon and rolled out in the same way or in the same timeframe! Some things, like addressing bugs and exploits, are things that are much quicker and easier to address (**in most cases. There are absolutely bugs that can take a while to resolve or find a good way to address, but in general the process is quicker.) Other topics and issues may be easy to get feedback on, but take a lot of discussion and buy-in from multiple different stakeholders internally. They take time, even if it’s something that has been talked about in the community prior to this year. It’s just the nature of working on a project with multiple teams and moving parts, but it does not mean we are not working on improving the overall health of our program.
2. I want to call this out specifically: There are absolutely topics that have been around a long time, and have been a source of pain and frustration for the comp community. How pros feel about these various things are valid and understandable in many cases, and having discussions and finding solutions to them is just as important as addressing new changes and issues that come up. We are tackling them. I don’t expect anyone to give us the benefit of the doubt on that, but we can only show you through commitment and action over time. That’s what I plan to do.
Thought this bit of rambling might be interesting to some folks who might want see my perspective on this, so here you go! I love working with our competitive community, I love finding ways to make our league better, to make the pro experience better. I love Apex. (I love charge rifles especially, pls buff charge rifles thx.) I love that you guys love the game and the competition and being the absolute best you can be, and I will be here to help you achieve that. We’ll get there together.